Avoid the High Cost of Eviction

When landlords evict tenants, they lose money that they cannot get back. But when landlords participate in mediation, they save the time and cost of eviction.

The Early Settlement Mediation Program provides free mediation to resolve concerns between landlords and tenants, including repairs and non-payment of rent. Mediation is a meeting between a landlord and tenant with a neutral, third party to help them resolve their concerns and come to long lasting agreements that benefit both parties.

Mediation has a high rate of success. In over 75% of the cases handled by the Early Settlement Mediation Program, both parties reach a lasting, mutually acceptable resolution. And in 94% of cases where a settlement is reached, the settlement fully resolves the issues so that no further mediation or court action is necessary.

Housing Solutions conducted a survey of Tulsa landlords and property managers to learn about the high costs of eviction. This is what we learned:

• The cost of filing an eviction is low for landlords, with an average cost of $178.00 for the filing fee, service, and other costs.
• Most landlords reported hiring an attorney to evict tenants and the cost of an attorney is also low for landlords, with an average cost of $273.00.
• When landlords obtain a money judgment against a tenant for unpaid rent or other damages, they sometimes include the filing costs and attorney fee.
• But overwhelming, landlords say money judgments are not collected from tenants. 75% of landlords say the judgments are never or rarely collected, even when they hire an attorney to collect them.
• The highest cost of eviction for landlords is preparing the unit to be rented after the tenant has been evicted. Landlords reported spending an average of $1,564.00 preparing a unit for a new tenant.
• While the unit is being prepared, landlords are missing out on the rental income for the unit. Landlords reported that units are vacant for an average of 48 days before a new tenant moves in.

The Early Settlement Mediation Program is sponsored by Tulsa County and the Oklahoma Supreme Court and has both in-person and virtual mediation options. Tenants and landlords can apply to this free program as soon as the dispute develops. You don’t need to wait for a missed rent payment or an eviction to be filed.

To apply for free mediation, contact the Early Settlement Mediation Program by calling 918-596-7786 or visit https://www.tulsacounty.org/mediation/intake to complete an intake form and email it to susan.johnson@tulsacounty.org.