Most of our tenants take good care of their homes and pay on time. This page is about the few who don’t, and why their choices are the reason we ask every new tenant for a security deposit of 2x the rent.
What three past evictions cost
Court filing fees, sheriff fees, and the months a home sits empty during an eviction are on top of those figures.
The cases
Case 1 — nearly a year of chances
| Unpaid rent | $3,305.88 |
| Damage | $5,000+ |
| Deposit held | −$1,800.00 |
| Loss after deposit | $6,505.88+ |
Evicted once, caught up, then fell behind again. Appealed the second eviction to stay longer, and a writ was needed to remove belongings left behind.
Case 2 — a leak left running
| Unpaid rent | $3,814.70 |
| Damage | $3,000+ |
| Deposit held | −$1,990.00 |
| Loss after deposit | $4,824.70+ |
A water leak went unreported long enough to soften the subfloor, and the home had a severe cockroach infestation. Second eviction for non-payment.
Case 3 — never paid once
| Unpaid rent | $5,218.59 |
| Damage | still being assessed |
| Deposit held | −$3,600.00 |
| Loss after deposit | $1,618.59+ |
Moved into a freshly rehabbed home and never paid a single month’s rent. The deposit included extra pre-paid money because of a prior eviction, and it still wasn’t enough.
Case 4 — in progress, Burke County
| Complaint filed | Aug 27, 2026 |
| Judgment for possession | Sep 15, 2026 |
| Writ of possession filed | Sep 28, 2026 |
| Damage and unpaid rent | Still being assessed |
What was left behind: the tenants’ dog, and pet waste throughout the home. Three broken windows and doors torn off their hinges. A water leak nobody told us about. Trash and food left out inside and outside. Repairs have not started, so no dollar figure is in the totals above yet.
Every destroyed home is a family without one
When a tenant wrecks a home or stops paying, the damage doesn’t stop with us. That home sits empty for months while it’s repaired, instead of housing a family who needs it. The money that goes into fixing it is money that can’t go toward the next affordable home. Affordable housing is hard to find and harder to build, and every home lost to neglect is one less place for a working family, a retiree, or someone getting back on their feet.
Why the deposit is 2x the rent
- An eviction takes about 2 months. Rent usually stops well before the tenant leaves.
- Move-outs are expensive. New flooring alone is about $2,000 in materials plus $4,000 to install, around $6,000 for one home, before any unpaid rent is counted.
- Losses get passed on. Every dollar we can’t recover makes it harder to keep rents affordable for the next family.
The deposit is 100% refundable. Take care of the home, pay on time, and you get it back. See our screening criteria for the full rules.