There is a misconception that a tenant has 30 days to leave their apartment after getting the eviction. Or that they can get a hardship stay from the courts that will stop the eviction until they find a new place to move into. Hardship Stays are not easy to get, especially if you are being evicted for nonpayment of rent.
Hardship Stay of Eviction
After your landlord gets a judgment for eviction you will receive a Warrant For Removal. You have three business days from the date you receive the Warrant For Removal to request a warrant hearing. To request a warrant hearing you must go to the clerk’s office in the Special Civil Part at the courthouse where your eviction hearing took place. At the warrant hearing, you can ask the Court for a Hardship Stay of Eviction. A hardship stay, if granted, delays your eviction temporarily.
You will be granted a Hardship Stay if, only if, you have all the money that is due to the landlord and pay it to the landlord or the Court. To receive a Hardship Stay, you must demonstrate some type of hardship to the Court, like having nowhere else to go, or the presence of children in the home. A hardship stay is not necessarily automatic. The Judge always has discretion on whether or not to grant the hardship stay and can consider the needs of the landlord as well when exercising the discretion.
How to Get Hardship Stay of Eviction
1. You must pay all of the money owed to the landlord on the day of the warrant hearing. (Don’t assume that the amount due on the WFR is correct). You should figure the amount due on your own, and be sure to include late fees, court costs, attorney’s fees, and rent that is due and that has become due since the court date, that has not been paid.
2. A judge may only grant a hardship stay for a maximum of six (6) months. The Judge usually grants the hardship stay in increments of two (2) months. That means that after the first two (2) months you must ask the Judge for an extension of the stay. Therefore, you should be looking for a new apartment/house as soon as your hardship stay begins. If you have to ask for an extension be prepared to show the Judge what you have done to try to find a new apartment.
3. In order to continue being eligible for the hardship stay, you must pay rent for each month that you are in the apartment/house on the day that is due according to your lease. You should pay the full amount of your rent directly to the landlord or into court at the Special Civil Part window. Be sure to get a receipt for any rent payments.
A hardship stay is not easy to get, especially if you are being evicted for nonpayment. It seems even social services have been telling recipients, that they can just waltz into court and get a hardship stay. While hardship stays can be an effective way to postpone an eviction, it is not a right that one is entitled to.
