| EVICTING A NEW YORK STATE TENANT FOR NON PAYMENT OF RENT:
NYS eviction is a legal process with procedures which must be strictly followed. The landlord CANNOT just call the police or Sheriff and have a tenant evicted because he wants the tenant out, nor can the landlord lock the tenant out or simply order the tenant to move.
The tenant has the right to due process.
Under NYS Law, a landlord seeking to evict a tenant for non-payment must first give the tenant a chance to pay by giving the tenant a three-day (3 day) notice in writing, stating that the tenant has three days to pay all the rent in full or the tenancy will be terminated. The notice does not have to be formal but it must be specific - tenant's name, tenant's address, the date, the TOTAL amount due (rent and late payments), state that this is a three day notice and if the amount of X is not paid IN FULL on or before X (three days forward, usually Midnight) formal eviction proceedings will begin.
The eviction can be started following the three (3) day notice if no payment is received.
The landlord then files a petition (form available at the Clerk's Office in most Cities) and obtains a hearing date. The hearing date MUST be scheduled between five (5) and twelve (12) days after the tenant is served with notice of the eviction, as explained below.
Service is made either by having a third party (not the landlord and it is not particularly wise to have a relative of the landlord do the service) personally hand the petition to the tenant. If the tenant is avoiding service it may be made by nailing the petition to the door and sending a copy by mail (nail and mail) as soon as possible - I would mail it the very same day. An Affidavit of Service will be provided by the Court and it must be completed by the person who does the service.
If service is made by nail and mail and the tenant does not appear in court the landlord will get an eviction warrant but will NOT get a money judgment for unpaid rent - the landlord will have to go to Small Claims Court in a separate action and sue for unpaid rent.
If the tenant appears and the judge finds that the tenancy is terminated because of non-payment he/she will sign a warrant of eviction (this is NOT the same thing as an arrest warrant). The landlord may also obtain a money judgment for the arrears due in rent if personal service was made and the tenant makes a personal appearance in court.
Once the warrant of eviction (again, this is NOT the same thing as an arrest warrant) is signed by the judge the landlord then submits the warrant to the sheriff. The sheriff must give seventy-two (72) hours notice to the tenant before enforcing it and evicting the tenant.
Landlord tenant law in NYS favors the tenant. There are strict procedural rules and if the tenant comes to Court with the past due rent and late fees the landlord must accept them and the Judge will NOT order eviction. The landlord would then have to evict for breach of contract or some other grounds. | 
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