Legal FAQs for Renters in Wyoming

Wyoming's does not have statewide bans on eviction, and the national eviction ban has expired. Landlords may evict tenants in Wyoming now.

Renters can apply for money to help cover rent and utility costs. Reach out here to get housing assistance.

Since there are no special protections in Wyoming, for renters:

1. Your landlord can still give you a notice to quit.
2. Your landlord can still file an eviction claim in court against you.
3. Hearings on eviction are still happening, and the court may still hear an eviction case against you. If you are sick or caring for someone who is sick, the court may postpone an eviction hearing against you.
4. The court may issue a new order, judgment, or writ of eviction against you.
5. An existing eviction order may be enforced against you.

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

Check with your local city or county government to see if they give renters any additional protections if they are struggling to pay rent during the emergency.

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

• Apply for rental assistance: If you need financial assistance for housing costs, you may be able to get help.
• Communicate with your landlord: Send a written letter or email to your landlord as soon as possible. Explain why you cannot pay the rent because of COVID-19 impact. 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. 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.

Wyoming renters may be evicted during the emergency.

If you are sick or caring for someone who is sick, you may be able to get a postponement of any eviction court case against you. If you are in this situation, be in touch with your local courts to request a postponement.

If you receive a notice to quit from your landlord, or an eviction lawsuit, reach out for legal help.

Wyoming renters' utilities may be shut off during the emergency period. Check with your utility providers and local governments, to see if they offer any protections to renters.

Renters must still pay their utility bills. If you need financial assistance for utility costs, you may be able to get help. You can also contact the Wyoming Low Income Energy Assistance Program to help pay for heating costs.

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).

Reach out for legal help for additional guidance.

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 take you to court by filing an eviction lawsuit, win the case, and getting 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.

Eviction cases in Wyoming courts are still proceeding, though likely not in-person. If you are sick or having flu-like symptoms, call your court and your court hearing may be rescheduled.

Be in contact with your local court for more information and 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 Wyoming, your landlord must give you a 3-day written notice to quit before they can evict you. The notice to quit may be for:

1. Non-payment of rent or partial payment of rent;
2. Lease violation(s);
3. Ending lease term or tenancy; or
4. Other reasons (sometimes the landlord does not list a reason).

The notice to quit does not have to be anything official. It does not need to be notarized. It does not need to be served by a Sheriff or process server. Typically, the landlord will post the 3-day notice to quit on your door or someplace where you will see it.

The notice may give you the opportunity to either pay your rent or move out. Once you get a 3-day notice to quit, the landlord is not required to accept rent if you are behind on rent. If you do not receive a 3-day notice, this is a potential defense against the eviction.

In Wyoming, the landlord cannot change the locks or remove your property from the home. Some bad landlords have been known to do this, so you may want to be careful and always have at least one person in the home after the notice to quit expires.

The landlord cannot shut off power, water, or other essentials. This is an illegal eviction and you may have a legal remedy.

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 Wyoming 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 Wyoming here.

No, you do not have to leave (or 'quit') your home by the date listed on the 3-day notice to quit.

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 3-day notice to quit passes, then your landlord may file an eviction lawsuit in court against you. The lawsuit is called a Forcible Entry and Detainer or “FED”. You will be able to go to court and present defenses to protect yourself.

Find local legal help in Wyoming here.

You may still have time to reach out for rental assistance to try and stop the eviction from moving forward. However, your landlord is not required to accept rent if you are behind.

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.

Find local financial help in Wyoming here.

In Wyoming, you have a minimum of 3 days between your landlord giving you a notice and them filing a lawsuit against you in court to evict you.

The notice should tell you how many days the landlord is giving you. If they are giving you less than 3 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 Wyoming 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 Wyoming, a landlord must follow certain rules to let you know about the lawsuit:

1. Wyoming landlords must file a complaint in the appropriate circuit court.
2. Only certain people can give you the lawsuit's Summons and Complaint including the sheriff or any third-party over the age of 18.
3. The documents may be given to you in person, left with someone over the age of 14 who lives at the rental property, or left at your workplace.
4. The summons and complaint must be served at least 3 days, but no more than 12 days, prior to the eviction hearing.

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 local legal help in Wyoming here.

In Wyoming, you are not required to respond to the eviction lawsuit. Still, it is recommended to file a written response, especially if you have defenses.

You will have an eviction hearing automatically scheduled at court. You must appear there if you want to defend yourself against the eviction. You are not required to submit anything but if you do have proof or evidence, it is recommended to submit it 5 days prior to the hearing. If the tenant does not appear for the hearing, the trial will continue as scheduled and the judge will likely rule in favor of the landlord. If the judge rules in favor of the landlord, you will have to move out.

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 Wyoming 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 Wyoming 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.