How summary ejectment works in North Carolina
North Carolina calls an eviction summary ejectment. It is a small claims case in district court, heard by a magistrate when the landlord asks for that assignment (G.S. 7A-210), and it can include a claim for back rent up to the $10,000 small claims limit.
Grounds come from G.S. 42-26: the tenant held over after the term ended, did something that ends the lease under its own terms, or abandoned the premises while behind on rent. For notice periods to end a periodic tenancy, see our North Carolina landlord-tenant law guide. This page covers the case from demand to sheriff.
The 10-day demand for past-due rent
Under G.S. 42-3, a lease is forfeited if rent stays unpaid 10 days after the landlord demands all past-due rent. Make the demand in writing, list the amount and the date, and keep proof of delivery. Count 10 full days before filing.
Many written apartment leases include their own clause ending the lease for nonpayment. When the case rests on that clause, the claim falls under G.S. 42-26(a)(2), and the lease, not 42-3, governs whether a demand is needed. Read your lease form carefully before relying on it, because a vague clause sends you back to the 10-day demand.
- Holdover after a fixed term: no demand is needed once the term ends, but you must not accept rent for a new period.
- Partial payments: a lease can say that accepting partial rent or a partial subsidy payment does not waive the breach (G.S. 42-26(c)). Without that clause, taking a partial payment can undercut the case.
- Utility arrears billed under G.S. 62-110 cannot be the basis for ending the lease, and payments go to rent first unless the tenant designates otherwise (42-26(b)).
Filing the complaint and serving the summons
File a complaint in summary ejectment with the clerk of superior court in the county where the building is located. An agent with actual knowledge of the facts, such as your property manager, can sign it (G.S. 7A-223(a)).
The clerk issues a summons requiring the tenant to appear at a time not more than seven days after issuance, excluding weekends and legal holidays (G.S. 42-28). The sheriff mails a copy by the end of the next business day and either reaches the tenant by phone or visits the unit within five days of issuance, at least two days before the hearing. If no one can be served, the sheriff posts the papers on the premises (G.S. 42-29).
Posting matters for money claims. If service was only by mail and posting, the magistrate can sever the rent claim and rule on possession alone (G.S. 7A-223(b1)). You keep the money claim for later.
The hearing and judgment
The magistrate hears the case without a jury. In a summary ejectment case, judgment is rendered the same day the evidence closes, except in complex cases such as criminal activity, breaches other than nonpayment, Section 8 or public housing tenancies, or counterclaims, where the magistrate has five business days (G.S. 7A-222(b)). A continuance cannot exceed five days or the next small claims session without both sides’ consent (G.S. 7A-223(b)).
If the tenant doesn’t appear and the pleadings allege nonpayment as a breach allowing reentry, you can ask for judgment for possession on the filed pleadings (G.S. 42-30). If the tenant pays or tenders the rent due plus court costs before judgment, the case for nonpayment stops (G.S. 42-33).
Appeals and stay bonds
Either side can appeal for a new trial in district court by announcing it in open court or filing written notice within 10 days after judgment, and the appellant must pay court costs within those 10 days or the appeal is dismissed (G.S. 7A-228).
An appeal stops the eviction only if the tenant pays the clerk the undisputed rent in arrears and signs an undertaking to pay rent into the clerk’s office as it comes due (G.S. 42-34(b)). If judgment came more than five business days before the next rent date, the tenant also pays prorated rent to that date (42-34(c)). If a payment is more than five business days late, the stay dissolves on your application and the sheriff can proceed.
Frivolous appeals cost tenants more since recent amendments. Under G.S. 42-46(i)(5), a landlord who prevails on a tenant’s appeal recovers its actual reasonable attorney fees if the court finds the tenant knew or should have known the appeal was frivolous, in bad faith or solely for delay.
The writ of possession and the sheriff
You can request a writ of possession from the clerk once the 10-day appeal period has run without a stayed appeal. If the judgment is more than 30 days old, you must first sign an affidavit that you have not signed a new lease with the tenant or accepted rent for any period after judgment (G.S. 42-36.1A).
The sheriff executes the writ within five days of receiving it. Before removing property, the sheriff gives the tenant notice of the approximate time, delivered at least two days ahead or mailed at least five days ahead, warning that property not claimed within seven days may be disposed of (G.S. 42-36.2).
Self-help, retaliation and federal rules
A residential tenant can be removed only through the court process in Chapter 42 (G.S. 42-25.6). An owner who locks out a tenant or cuts off access is liable for actual damages under G.S. 42-25.9, and in Myers v. Broome-Edwards (N.C. App. 2024) the court treated a self-help eviction as an unfair and deceptive trade practice.
Retaliation is a defense when the case follows within 12 months of a good-faith repair request, a code complaint or tenant organizing. It does not protect a tenant who breached the duty to pay rent when that breach is the real reason for the case (G.S. 42-37.1(c)).
If your building has a federally backed mortgage, such as a Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or FHA-insured loan, or takes part in a covered federal housing program, the CARES Act notice rule may apply. Section 4024(c), codified at 15 U.S.C. 9058(c), bars a landlord of a covered property from requiring a tenant to leave until 30 days after a notice to vacate. The 120-day moratorium expired in 2020, but the 30-day text is still in the statute and courts have disagreed on whether it still applies. Serving 30 days at a covered building sidesteps the question. For a default judgment, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act also requires an affidavit on the tenant’s military status (50 U.S.C. 3931).
North Carolina eviction timeline at a glance
The table follows a nonpayment case that uses the 10-day statutory demand, counting the rent due date as day 0.
| Step | Deadline | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Written demand for past-due rent | Day 1; 10 days to pay | G.S. 42-3 |
| File complaint in summary ejectment | Day 12 at the earliest | G.S. 42-26, 42-28 |
| Sheriff mails and attempts service | Mail by next business day; visit within 5 days, at least 2 days before hearing | G.S. 42-29 |
| Hearing before magistrate | No more than 7 days after the summons, excluding weekends and holidays | G.S. 42-28 |
| Judgment | Same day in most nonpayment cases | G.S. 7A-222(b) |
| Appeal and court costs | Within 10 days of judgment | G.S. 7A-228 |
| Request writ of possession | After the 10-day appeal period | G.S. 7A-228; Rule 62(a) |
| Sheriff executes writ | Within 5 days; tenant notice 2 days in person or 5 by mail | G.S. 42-36.2 |
Worked example: a 16-unit Charlotte building
Assume a unit renting for $1,350 a month in a 16-unit Charlotte building, a tenant who stops paying and does not appeal, and $600 in attorney and service costs. These are assumptions, not market data. A day of lost rent is about $44.38.
With the 10-day demand, the complaint is filed on day 12 and, assuming the hearing lands on the seventh business day with one weekend in between, the magistrate rules on day 21. The writ is requested on day 31, the sheriff delivers notice that day and executes on day 33. Lost rent is $1,465, or $2,065 with costs.
If the lease’s own forfeiture clause lets you file on day 2, the same steps put the sheriff at the door on day 23: $1,021 in lost rent and $1,621 in total. Under G.S. 42-46(i)(3), lawyer fees you can charge the tenant under a written lease are capped at 15% of the amount owed, or $202.50 on one month’s rent here.
| Scenario | Days to possession | Lost rent | Total with $600 costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-day statutory demand | 33 | $1,465 | $2,065 |
| Lease forfeiture clause, no demand | 23 | $1,021 | $1,621 |
Alternatives to a full eviction
Because a tenant who pays the rent and costs before judgment ends a nonpayment case, a short written payment plan is often the cheapest outcome. When you need the unit, a cash-for-keys agreement with a firm move-out date can beat the 23-to-33-day path and removes the risk of a stayed appeal that can run for months.
Selling a North Carolina building with a pending eviction
You can sell an occupied building while a summary ejectment case is open. The buyer takes title subject to the leases and can continue the case or refile under its own name after closing. Share the demand letters, complaints, judgments and any stay bond on file, since a tenant paying rent into the clerk’s office during an appeal affects who collects that rent.
Ask tenants to sign estoppel certificates confirming rent, deposits and balances. They give a buyer a clean starting point.
Selling your North Carolina apartment building to Skyline
Skyline Capital Investments buys apartment buildings with five or more units across North Carolina, including occupied buildings with nonpaying tenants or open eviction cases. You can sell before the case is finished.
Send the address and unit count through the form on this page or call (469) 660-2977. We typically respond within 48 hours.
