Bakersfield Evictions

Yes!  You can still evict a bad tenant.  Call us to start the process.  (661) 873-4423

We are an eviction service in Bakersfield and throughout Kern County.

An eviction, known as an unlawful detainer in California, is the removal of a tenant from a rental property by the landlord. An unlawful detainer is only for possession of the property, but not for recovery of monetary damages.  Monetary damages may be recovered after control of the property is taken.

A landlord can generally evict a tenant if one or more of the following is true:
  • The renter fails to pay rent on time.
  • The renter breaks the lease or rental agreement and will not fix the problem, like leaving trash in the yard, failing to keep the water turned on.
  • The renter becomes a serious nuisance by disturbing other tenants and neighbors.
  • The renter damages the property, such as breaking out windows.
  • The renter uses the property to do something illegal, such as sell drugs.
  • The renter stays after the lease is up.
  • The landlord cancels the rental agreement by giving proper notice.

Temporary restrictions due to Covid-19 may hamper or delay an eviction.

Steps to evict:
  1. Give proper notice
  2. Fill out forms
  3. File forms in court
  4. Serve tenant
  5. Wait for tenant to respond
  6. Take a default if the tenant fails to respond or go to trial if the tenant does respond
  7. Post judgment proceedings, such as appeal or removal of the tenant by the sheriff
 
What will you do for me?
    1. Initial consultation with registered Legal Document Assistant to assure compliance with state and local filing requirements.
    2. Preparation of the initial notices.
    3. Professional process service of the initial notices.
    4. Professional preparation of unlawful detainer summons and complaint and supporting documents by Registered Legal Document Assistant.
    5. Electronic filing of unlawful detainer case documents.
    6. Professional Process Service of initial court filing to all tenants including prejudgment claim of right to possession.
    7. Subsequent filings for default judgement trial setting and sheriff lockout, if necessary.
    8. Management of eviction case all the way through sheriff lockout.

Our low flat-fee of $550 does not include significant payments to others, such as court filing fees, Sheriff’s fees, process service, or attorney fees.  We do pay the cost of electronic filing.  The cost of service of documents is heavily dependent location of the property and the difficulty serving the tenant, so costs vary greatly depending on the location of the property and the availability of process servers.  If you have a friend willing to serve papers for you, we can give them instructions as to how to do it.  It is common for our clients to only pay our fee and the court filing fee, which is currently $240 for the the initial lawsuit documents.  The court’s fee schedule can be found here.

Representation in court

We do not, will not, and cannot represent you in court.  We are a document service providers, not an attorneys.  In most cases, no court appearances are necessary, but you can represent yourself at the court trial if needed.  A hearing and appearance is only needed if the tenants file an answer to the unlawful detainer. If you would feel more comfortable being represented by an attorney or you just don’t want to go to court, we can introduce you to an experience eviction lawyer to represent you on a limited scope basis for a flat-fee of around $350 per court appearance. There is usually only one appearance per case. We know contract attorneys all over California.

 

Our Location

We are located in the historical Haberfelde Building at 1706 Chester Ave, Ste. 350, Bakersfield, CA 93301.  We can be reached by phone at (661) 873-4423.  Payments can be made here.

Court Locations

Kern County has multiple court locations.  We serve all locations in the county and prepare paperwork for evictions throughout California. Evictions are generally filed in the closest courthouse to the location of the property.

  • Evictions in Bakersfield are filed in Bakersfield courthouse at 1415 Truxtun Ave. as are evictions in surrounding areas of the county that are near Bakersfield, such as Oildale, Greenacres, and Rosedale. 
  • Evictions in Lamont are filed in the Lamont courthouse at 12022 Main Street as are Taft evictions and areas around Taft because the Taft courthouse is currently closed.  This generally includes McKittrick, Derby Acres, Valley Acres, New Cuyama, San Emidio, Lebec, and Maricopa.
  • Evictions in Shafter and evictions in Wasco and Palmo are filed in the Shafter courthouse at 325 Central Valley Hwy.
  • Evictions in Mojave are filed in the Mojave courthouse at 1773 State Highway 58 Business as are Tehachapi evictions, California City evictions, Willow Springs evictions, and Rosamond evictions.
  • Evictions in Ridgecrest are filed in the Ridgecrest courthouse at 132 E Coso Avenue as are evictions in China Lake, Indian Wells, and Inyokern.
  • Evictions in Lake Isabella are filed in the Kern River courthouse at 7046 Lake Isabella Blvd. as are evictions for Wofford Heights, Kernville, Mountain Mesa, Weldon, and Bodfish
  • Evictions in Delano are filed in the Delano courthouse at 1122 Jefferson Street as are evictions in McFarland, Jasmin, Pond, Earlimart, and Richgrove.