Which notice to serve in Virginia
The notice decides whether the case survives. Under Va. Code 8.01-126(D), the court cannot enter an order of possession unless you hand up a copy of a proper termination notice and it goes into evidence.
Under the 2026 amendments to Va. Code 55.1-1245, nonpayment now carries a 14-day notice. It must tell the tenant the rent is unpaid and that the lease will end if rent isn’t paid within 14 days. A bounced check or a rejected electronic payment uses the same 14 days.
- Unpaid rent: 14 days to pay, Va. Code 55.1-1245(F).
- Remediable lease violation: 21 days to cure, with termination no sooner than 30 days after the tenant receives the notice, 55.1-1245(A).
- Non-remediable violation: termination at least 30 days after receipt, 55.1-1245(C).
- Repeat violation of a like nature after an earlier cured notice: 30-day termination, no second cure, 55.1-1245(E).
- Criminal or willful act that threatens health or safety, including illegal drug activity: immediate termination, with an initial hearing within 15 calendar days of service, 55.1-1245(C).
How to serve the notice and what it must say
Notice to a tenant is served at the last known residence, which can be the unit itself, under Va. Code 55.1-1202(B). If the lease allows it, you can send notices electronically, but you must keep proof such as a delivery receipt or a certificate of service, and any tenant can opt back into paper.
Two content rules trip owners up. If the tenant has a Housing Choice Voucher or other rental assistance, the first page of a termination notice must show the statewide legal aid phone number and website, or the notice is not effective (55.1-1202(D)). And if you want to keep collecting partial payments without waiving the eviction, the notice must carry the acceptance-with-reservation language in Va. Code 55.1-1250(A), word for word.
A change is coming. Starting July 1, 2027, a nonpayment notice will not be effective unless it includes a ledger of charges and payments for the tenancy or the past 12 months, whichever is shorter, under the new version of 55.1-1202(E).
Filing the unlawful detainer in general district court
Once the notice period runs out, file a summons for unlawful detainer with the general district court in the city or county where the building sits. Under Va. Code 8.01-126(B), you, your agent or your attorney give a sworn statement of the facts, and the magistrate, clerk or judge issues the summons. You can ask on the summons for all rent due through the hearing date, 8.01-126(F).
The statute sets the clock. The initial hearing must happen within 21 days of filing, or no later than 30 days if the court can’t fit it in, and the summons has to be served at least 10 days before that return date.
The first court date, judgment and the 10-day appeal window
At the initial hearing you can get a final, appealable judgment for possession and an order of possession that same day, Va. Code 8.01-128(B). If the tenant doesn’t contest the amount owed, you can ask the court to split the case and set the final rent and damages for a later date, up to 120 days out, so possession isn’t held up by the money fight.
The tenant has 10 days to appeal to circuit court, and the bond and writ tax must be paid within those same 10 days, under Va. Code 8.01-129(A). A defendant who appeals posts a bond, generally enough to cover the judgment, though an indigent tenant does not have to post one. You can ask the judge to issue the writ of eviction immediately at judgment, but the sheriff still can’t remove the tenant until the 10-day appeal period has run, 8.01-129(B).
The writ of eviction and the sheriff’s 72 hours
The sheriff executes the writ, not you. Under Va. Code 8.01-470, the officer must serve notice of intent to execute at least 72 hours ahead, giving the date and time, with a copy of the writ attached. Execution should happen within 15 calendar days after the sheriff receives the writ and no later than 30 days after it was issued. An order of possession stays good for 180 days, so if you cancel one writ you can request another inside that window.
On lockout day, the tenant’s belongings go to the public way or, at your request, to a storage area you designate, which can be the unit. The tenant has 24 hours to retrieve them, and after that you may dispose of what’s left, under Va. Code 55.1-1255.
The tenant’s right to pay and stay
Virginia gives tenants two chances to redeem a nonpayment case under Va. Code 55.1-1250. At or before the first return date, paying all rent, late charges, attorney fees and court costs ends the case, and a written commitment from a local government or nonprofit can buy 10 more days to pay. After judgment, the tenant can still pay everything on the summons, including sheriff fees, up to 48 hours before the scheduled eviction.
If that late payment comes in, you or your attorney must tell the sheriff promptly to cancel the writ. Owners of four or fewer units can limit redemption to once per lease period with written notice, but an apartment building above that size gets no such limit.
Lockouts and retaliation
Self-help is off the table. Va. Code 55.1-1252 bars recovering a unit by cutting essential services or refusing access without a court order. If a landlord does it anyway, the tenant can petition the general district court, which must hold an initial hearing within five calendar days, and the tenant recovers actual damages, statutory damages of $5,000 or four months’ rent, whichever is greater, and attorney fees, under 55.1-1243.1.
Retaliation is a defense to possession. Under Va. Code 55.1-1258, you may not file or threaten an eviction because a tenant complained to a code agency, organized tenants or testified against you, though you can still evict a tenant who is behind on rent. A broader version takes effect January 1, 2027, adding media and fair housing complaints.
Federal rules that can change the timeline
If the 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 may require a 30-day notice to vacate under 15 U.S.C. 9058(c). The 120-day moratorium ended in 2020, but the 30-day text is still in the statute and courts have split on whether it still applies. At a covered building, the safer course is to give 30 days rather than 14.
Before any default judgment, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, 50 U.S.C. 3931, requires an affidavit stating whether the tenant is in military service.
Virginia eviction timeline at a glance
This table shows the deadlines for a nonpayment case from notice to lockout.
| Step | Deadline | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Serve pay-or-quit notice | 14 days to pay | Va. Code 55.1-1245(F) |
| File summons for unlawful detainer | After the 14 days expire | Va. Code 8.01-126(B) |
| Serve the summons | At least 10 days before the return date | Va. Code 8.01-126(B) |
| Initial hearing | Within 21 days of filing, 30 at most | Va. Code 8.01-126(B) |
| Tenant redemption, first chance | At or before the first return date | Va. Code 55.1-1250(B)-(C) |
| Appeal and bond | Within 10 days of judgment | Va. Code 8.01-129(A) |
| Sheriff’s notice of eviction | At least 72 hours before execution | Va. Code 8.01-470 |
| Tenant redemption, last chance | Up to 48 hours before the eviction | Va. Code 55.1-1250(D) |
| Writ executed | Within 15 days of receipt, 30 days from issue at most | Va. Code 8.01-470 |
| Order of possession expires | 180 days after it is granted | Va. Code 8.01-470 |
| Belongings in the public way or storage | 24 hours to retrieve | Va. Code 55.1-1255 |
Worked example: what one nonpaying unit costs
Assume a 24-unit building in Richmond where one tenant pays $1,550 a month and stops paying on the 1st. You serve the 14-day notice on the 2nd. Assume a flat $750 attorney fee for an uncontested case; your counsel’s quote may differ.
On the fastest path the Code allows, you file on day 15 after the notice, the summons is served that day, and the hearing lands 10 days later, on day 25. You get judgment and ask for the writ at once, but the sheriff can’t act until the 10-day appeal period runs out, so the earliest lockout is day 36 after the notice. Counting from the 1st, when the rent went unpaid, that’s 37 days of unpaid occupancy.
At $1,550 a month, a day of rent is about $50.96. Thirty-seven days comes to $1,885 in lost rent, and adding the assumed $750 fee brings the floor to $2,635. If the court can’t hear the case for 30 days and the sheriff takes the full 15, the same unit costs far more.
Alternatives, and selling with an eviction pending
A filed case isn’t the only exit. A payment plan with the acceptance-with-reservation notice lets you take money without waiving the case. A cash for keys agreement, where you pay the tenant to leave by a set date and sign a move-out agreement, can beat 37 or more days of lost rent plus court time.
You can also sell with the case open. The buyer takes the building subject to the leases and can step in as the plaintiff once title transfers, so hand over the notice, proof of service, the ledger, the summons and any order of possession. Tenant estoppel certificates confirm rent, deposits and defaults for the rest of the rent roll. For the leasing rules around a sale, see our Virginia landlord-tenant law guide.
Selling your Virginia apartment building to Skyline
Skyline Capital Investments buys apartment buildings with five or more units across Virginia, occupied, with problem tenants and with evictions already filed. We price the building as it stands, so you don’t have to finish a court case before you sell.
Send the address and unit count through the form on this page or call (469) 660-2977. We typically respond within 48 hours.
