Legal FAQs for Renters in Louisiana

Louisiana's statewide emergency protections for renters have expired.

Landlords may now try to sue tenants to evict them. If you are worried about an eviction, reach out as soon as possible to your local legal aid group. The lawyers may be able to help you find protections and services to deal with your eviction.

Earlier Protections

Governor John Bel Edward's Executive Order had previously suspended eviction court proceedings in Louisiana through June 15, 2020, but did not prevent evictions from being filed or enforced against renters. That order has expired.

Louisiana renters also had federal protections against eviction that lasted through August 26, 2021.

Since the emergency protections have expired, then in Louisiana:

• Your landlord can still give you a notice to vacate.
• Your landlord can still file an eviction against you.
• Hearings on eviction may go forward.
• The court can still issue a new order, judgment, or writ of possession against you, but may extend deadlines.
• Law enforcement can still enforce an existing eviction order against you, to remove you from your home.

Yes, Louisiana renters still need to pay rent during the emergency.

You may have been protected from eviction, but now that those protections are over, you may be sued and you still owe all your rent.

If you cannot pay rent, take steps to protect yourself:

• Apply for rental help immediately: If you need financial assistance for housing costs like rent or utility bills, you may be able to get help.
• Communicate with your landlord: Send a written letter or email to your landlord as soon as possible. You can also try to negotiate with your landlord to make a payment plan or get a temporary rent reduction. Get help here for drafting and mailing a letter to your landlord. You can also use this letter-writing tool here.
• Get written records of all communication: Keep copies of any letter or email you send, and any responses from the landlord. Keep receipts for any payments you make, that are signed and dated. If you make a payment plan or rent agreement, make sure to get it in writing.
• Keep proof of COVID-19’s impact on you: Collect documents about your COVID-19-related employment problems, health care issues, or other issues that affect your ability to pay rent. This includes letters from your employer, doctor, insurance provider, child care provider, schools, etc.

Your landlord may be able to evict you during the emergency, but you should check to see if you fall within local protections.

Check with your local government to see if they provide any additional local protections.

If you receive a notice to vacate from your landlord, or an eviction lawsuit (also called a "rule for possession"), reach out for legal help.

Your housing utilities might be shut off by the provider if you don't pay your bills.

Earlier, the Louisiana Public Services Commission had issued a ban on shutting off utilities during the state of emergency.

If you need financial assistance for utility costs, you may be able to get help.

Landlords are never allowed to shut off a renter's utilities in an attempt to force the renter out. This is illegal. Reach out to a lawyer for help if this happens to you.

Tell your landlord about any repairs needed, particularly if they affect your health and safety.

The emergency may delay your landlord's ability to make repairs, but if they are urgent you should call your landlord to make the repairs as soon as possible.

Emergency repairs could be for problems with:

• Running water or hot water
• Heat
• Stove, refrigerator or oven
• Electricity
• Bathroom use
• Missing doors, locks, or windows
• Pests

If your landlord doesn't make the repairs promptly, send them a written letter or email about the need for emergency repairs and keep a copy of this communication.

Find legal help to get advice for your situation.

You may be able to break your lease if you can come to an agreement with your landlord.

Your lease is still valid despite the emergency period. However, you can talk to your landlord to see if they will agree to let you leave early. If they agree, be sure to get the agreement in writing.

Also, you can review your lease. It may have a part that lets you end the lease early in times of financial difficulty. If your lease has this kind of part, you might be able to break the lease, in some cases penalty-free.

Find legal help to get advice for your situation.

Contact a legal help organization to help defend yourself.

It is illegal for your landlord to evict you without first going to court and getting an eviction order. To remove you from your home, a landlord must file an eviction lawsuit against you, win the case, and get an eviction order from the court.

Legal aid groups might be able to provide you with full representation, or other legal organizations can give you information or brief advice.

Find legal help to protect your rights.

All eviction proceedings have started again in Louisiana. Check the Louisiana Supreme Court's website for updates.

Renters in 3 categories have special national protections against being evicted during the Emergency Period of March 27, 2020 to July 24 or 25, 2020. These national protections add onto any state and local protections you have.

Do you fit in any of these 3 categories?

Your home’s owner has a federally backed mortgage loan or other guarantee (like through Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae). Search if your home is covered.

You pay rent through a federal assistance program like the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher, Rural Development Voucher, or other 'covered housing' program.

You live in Public Housing, where the government is your landlord.

If you are a renter in one of these 3 categories, the federal CARES Act section 4024 gives you these protections. (Remember, these protections add onto any state and local protections you have)

• Your landlord cannot file a new eviction lawsuit against you for not paying your rent during the Emergency Period. They can still evict you for other behavior, like drug abuse, other criminal activities, or other lease violations.
• Your landlord cannot charge you new fees or penalties for not paying your rent during the Emergency Period.
• After the Emergency Period ends, your landlord may not be able to evict you immediately.(Different states interpret the protections ending on July 24 or 25. Check with local lawyers to see about your state). If you have not paid your rent in full during the Emergency Period, your landlord must wait until the period ends before giving you a notice to vacate. For example, they may give you a notice on July 26, and you must be allowed until at least August 25 to leave the property.

For more help on these national protections, reach out for legal and financial help here. Also, use this tool to write a letter to your landlord if you are having issues with rent or eviction.

You do not have to leave your home yet.

In Louisiana, if your lease does not waive a notice to vacate or if you live in government subsidized housing (such as Section 8 housing), your landlord must give you a written notice that they may bring you to court to evict you for not paying your rent (or other reasons). The notice should give you time to either pay your rent or prepare defenses against eviction.

This notice must follow some rules to be valid. If it doesn't follow these rules, then you can challenge it and stop an eviction.

These are the Louisiana requirements for an eviction notice:

1. The notice must be written down.
2. It has to have your full name and address, as well as the date it was served to you.
3. It must explain why you may be evicted -- whether it is for non-payment of rent, a lease violation, or other reason.
4. The notice needs to say that you have 5 days to move out and that your landlord can pursue legal action if you do not move. (You may have more than 5 days if it’s written in your lease.)
5. It must say how the notice was delivered - either personally handed to you or mailed in.

Reach out for legal help if you think the notice isn't correct, or if you need assistance in defending yourself against the eviction.

Find local legal help in Louisiana here.

A verbal conversation doesn't count as an "eviction notice". To be legal, the notice must be written down and given to you in the correct way.

Reach out for legal help if your landlord is trying to make you leave without going through the court process. This is illegal and a lawyer may be able to help you protect yourself.

Find local legal help in Louisiana here.

No, you do not have to leave (or 'quit') your home by the date listed on the eviction notice.

You do not have to leave your home until you have been brought to court, and a judge has ordered that your landlord can make you leave.

After the date on the eviction notice passes, then your landlord may file an eviction lawsuit in court against you. You will be able to go to court and present defenses to protect yourself.

Find local legal help in Louisiana here.

You still have time to reach out for rental assistance, and stop the eviction from moving forward.

Be sure to let the local group know that you have received an eviction notice and what its deadline is. They may be able to help you pay the rent you owe, or work with your landlord to reduce the amount or put you on a payment plan.

Keep in mind that in Louisiana, your landlord does not have to accept your payment of back-rent.

Find local legal help in Louisiana here.

In Louisiana, you have a minimum of 5 days between your landlord giving you a notice and them filing a lawsuit against you in court to evict you. Check your lease. If your lease allows for a longer period of time, you may have more than 5 days.

The notice should tell you how many days the landlord is giving you. If they are giving you less than 5 days, then you may be able to challenge it as illegal.

Reach out for legal help if you think the notice isn't giving you the required time to make your payment.

Find local legal help in Louisiana here.

You should make sure that the landlord properly 'served' you with the lawsuit. If they didn't give it to you in the correct way, you can challenge the eviction lawsuit. In Louisiana, a landlord must follow certain rules to let you know about the lawsuit:

1. Only certain people can give you the lawsuit's Citation and Rule for Possession. The landlord can not give you these papers - it has to be a person not involved in the case. This can be the sheriff or a constable.
2. The notice has to be given to you personally, or left with a member of your household that is of age, or posted on your door.

You should also reach out to local lawyers who can help you prepare for your court hearing so you can protect yourself against the eviction.

Find legal help in Louisiana here.

In Louisiana, you are required to respond to the eviction lawsuit, if you want to avoid the eviction.

You will have 3 days after you receive the Citation and Rule for Possession to get a written response back to the court. If you do not submit this response by the 3rd day, you may lose your case and the judge may give the landlord permission to remove you from your home.

Reach out to legal help to learn what your rights and defenses are in your eviction case. These organizations can help you deal with this lawsuit.

Find local legal help in Louisiana here.

You can come to an agreement, but you should still go to court to make sure your case is closed.

You can work with your landlord to work out an agreement before the date of the court hearing. This might be a payment plan or other agreement on what needs to happen for you to stay in your home.

Be sure to get this agreement in writing, so that you can prove it exists and that your landlord follows through on it.

Also, you should still go to court for your hearing date, to make sure the court knows about the agreement and closes the lawsuit. If you do not go to court, the lawsuit might still continue and the judge might rule that the landlord can remove you. Go to court yourself to make sure this doesn't happen.

You can reach out for legal help to get assistance in negotiating an agreement with your landlord, and making sure this agreement is being followed.

Find local legal help in Louisiana here.

If you are behind on rent, you can get help from your local Rental Assistance program. This is a government service to help people who owe rent or utility bills.

Especially if you are behind on rent because of COVID-19 hardships, your local Rental Assistance (or Rent Relief) program can help you.

Find your local Rental Assistance program at your Get Help page here.

Local governments set the rules about who is eligible for rent relief. Most programs focus on people who have suffered COVID-19 hardships.

You can talk to your local Rental Assistance program to learn their eligibility rules.

You may have to show your household income, or if you are on other benefits programs like SNAP.

You may also have to show that you are at risk of homelessness or eviction if you don't get rental assistance.

Check with your local Rental Assistance program to see if you are eligible.

Many local Rental Assistance programs are open to everyone, regardless of immigration status. Many programs do not even ask about immigration status.

Check with your local Rental Assistance program to make sure about eligibility rules and immigration.

Most Rental Assistance programs let landlords apply.

Either a renter or a landlord can start the application.

The landlord will have to fill in as much information they have about the amount of money needed, and the eligibility for the program. The tenant may have to fill in the rest of the information.

Check with your local Rental Assistance program about the steps to follow to apply for rent relief.