California Eviction Question

Question

If a tenant has lost an unlawful detainer lawsuit in court and a judgment has been entered against him/her, then the next step is a writ of possession where the tenant is given 5 days to vacate the premises. I found out that the plaintiff has to file for a writ of possession after the tenant has lost his case. So what I want to know is if they can immediately go that same day to file for the writ of possession and approximately how long it takes for the sheriff to serve the writ on the tenant. Will it take a week or so (maybe less/maybe more) for the sheriff to actually serve the writ seeing as how California is backed up right now with thousands of people losing their homes? There is no definite answer I realize but I wanted to know if someone knows the unofficial time span for this in this state and how long it will PROBABLY take for the sheriff to get around to actually posting the writ. Mind you this is not in an extremely busy county like LA or San Diego county, but the courts in my county are EXTREMELY overloaded with these types of cases. I just need a ballpark figure or someone who has some recent experience with this. Please don't post an uneducated answer or a random guess.

Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

Based upon my experience in counties of varying sizes in the midwest, service can be anywhere from a couple of days to a couple of weeks.  I realize this is not the kind of answer that you want as it's not directly pertaining to California, however, where I practice anyone can call up the Sheriff's office and ask how long it will take to have something served and the estimates quoted are usually pretty accurate.  If I were you, I would call your county's Sheriff's Department, ask to speak with someone in service of process, tell them that you are going to want a writ of possession served in whatever zip code you are in and ask what the current time frame is for service of process.

Good luck.

Answer 2

Don't worry about the writ.  The sheriff is coming to escort the tenant out of the home.  The judge gave a date to pay or quit.  No 2nd date needed.The sheriff will be out the same day and he will bring a locksmith and your stuff will go to the front lawn.  Don't try to "time" this.  You will be shocked at how fast they empty your house.  Move now. /

Answer 3

The sheriff will show up one day without notice and put all of your stuff on the sidewalk. He will then post the warrant on your door. There is no way to prevent this or time it. The neighbors and passersby will then be free to rummage through your stuff and take whatever they want.