Tenant Defenses to Evictions in Your State

A tenant facing eviction has legal rights and potential defenses that vary depending on the state and local laws. Common defenses to eviction include improper notice, landlord retaliation, incorrect eviction procedures, victim status, illegal discrimination, and uninhabitable living conditions. For example, Massachusetts law provides special protections for tenants who have experienced domestic violence, rape, sexual assault, or stalking. Some of these protections might provide a tenant with a right to leave the rental early and a defense against eviction. 

Some states require "just cause" for evicting tenants. For example, Colorado’s just cause protections protect tenants who have lived in a rental for 12 months or longer, meaning the landlord must have just cause to not renew a tenancy. Self-help eviction—changing the rental property’s locks or causing an interruption of heat, running water, hot water, electric, gas, or other essential services to the tenant to try to make the tenant move out—is never allowed.

Understanding your state's specific laws and regulations is crucial when facing an eviction proceeding. State laws give tenants defenses to protect tenants from unlawful evictions.