There is no single flat fee to halt a dispossessory action in Georgia. What it costs you depends on how much rent the landlord says you owe, because Georgia law requires you to deposit all past-due rent, utilities, and the landlord’s court costs into the court registry to keep your right to stay while the case is pending, and to keep depositing each month’s rent as it comes due until the court rules. There’s also a faster option: within seven days of being served, you can pay everything claimed plus court costs under what’s called the tender defense and end the case outright. You can only use that once in any 12-month period.
The Tender Defense: Pay Once and End the Case
For evictions based on unpaid rent, the cleanest way to stop the action is to tender the landlord all rent allegedly owed plus the cost of the dispossessory warrant within the seven days after you’re served. If the landlord accepts, the case is over and you stay.1FindLaw. Georgia Code Title 44 – Section 44-7-52
Two limits matter. A landlord only has to accept this tender once in any 12-month period from the same tenant, so if you used it within the past year, it’s gone. And the tender has to cover everything the landlord claims, including late fees if the written rental agreement provides for them. If the landlord refuses a proper tender, the court can order the landlord to accept payment of rent, late fees, and court costs, and keep you in possession if you pay within three days of that order.1FindLaw. Georgia Code Title 44 – Section 44-7-52 For non-residential tenants, the tender defense works differently and a partial payment won’t block the eviction.
What You Deposit Into the Court Registry
If you file an answer and the case isn’t resolved within two weeks of service, Georgia law shifts your rent payments from the landlord to the court. The deposit has two parts.2Justia Law. Georgia Code 44-7-54 – Payment of Rent and Utility
- All rent and utility payments you allegedly owe from before the dispossessory warrant was issued. If you’ve already paid part of what the landlord is claiming, you can submit a receipt instead of paying twice.
- Every month’s rent, and any utilities you’re responsible for under the lease, deposited on the date each is due, for as long as the case lasts.
Miss any one of these payments and the court issues a writ of possession and the sheriff removes you. No grace period, no cure. Most tenants who lose dispossessory cases lose this way, not at trial.2Justia Law. Georgia Code 44-7-54 – Payment of Rent and Utility
What the Court Costs Run
On top of the rent, you have to reimburse the court costs the landlord paid to open the case. Two main pieces: the filing fee to initiate the dispossessory action, and the fee for the sheriff or constable to serve the summons. Filing fees vary by county. Fulton County’s magistrate court, for example, charges a $60 filing fee for dispossessories. Service fees generally run $40 to $90 depending on the county.
In total, expect the court costs portion to land somewhere between $100 and $150. The clerk’s office can give you the exact figure for your case. These are separate from the rent deposit and have to be included in your tender or your initial registry deposit to preserve your defense.
How to Pay
Payments go to the Clerk of Court for the court handling your case, not to the landlord. Most Georgia magistrate courts won’t take personal checks or cash by mail, so plan on a money order, cashier’s check, or certified check. Put the case number and both parties’ names on the payment so the clerk credits the right account.
Ask for a dated receipt every single time. That receipt is your proof that you met the statutory deadline. If the landlord later says you missed a payment and asks for a writ of possession, the receipt is what keeps you in the property. Hold onto all of them until the case is fully closed.
If You Can’t Afford the Court Costs
Georgia allows you to file an affidavit of indigence swearing under oath that you can’t pay the required costs. If accepted, the court relieves you of the obligation and your legal rights are unchanged.3Justia Law. Georgia Code 9-15-2 – Affidavit of Indigence
It isn’t automatic. The landlord can challenge the affidavit with a sworn statement saying it isn’t true, and the court will hold a hearing. The judge can also look into your finances independently and order you to pay within a set period if you turn out to be able to afford it. One important limit: the affidavit covers filing fees and court costs, but Georgia courts have not consistently applied it to waive the rent deposit required under the dispossessory statutes. The rent deposit does different work than a filing fee, so don’t count on indigent status excusing you from depositing rent into the registry.
What If You Disagree About the Rent Amount
You don’t have to deposit whatever the landlord says. Either party can submit a written rental agreement to establish the figure. If there’s no written agreement and the amount is disputed, the court sets the deposit at whatever you last paid that the landlord accepted without written objection.2Justia Law. Georgia Code 44-7-54 – Payment of Rent and Utility The same rule governs the ongoing monthly deposits. Raising this with the court early can cut your deposit substantially if the landlord is claiming an inflated figure.
What Happens to the Money
Money in the registry doesn’t just sit there. The clerk pays the landlord undisputed portions of the deposited rent as payments arrive. If you’ve claimed some of those funds, say, because the landlord owes you for failed repairs, the disputed portion stays in the registry until the court decides who gets what.2Justia Law. Georgia Code 44-7-54 – Payment of Rent and Utility When the case ends, remaining funds are distributed according to the judgment.
Don’t Miss the Seven-Day Deadline
None of these payment options matter if you don’t file an answer in time. You have seven days from service of the summons to answer, orally or in writing.4Justia Law. Georgia Code 44-7-51 – Issuance of Summons and Service If the seventh day is a weekend or legal holiday, it rolls to the next business day, and the summons itself states the last date. Miss it and the court issues a writ of possession immediately, with no hearing, treating every claim in the landlord’s affidavit as proven.5Justia Law. Georgia Code 44-7-53 – When Writ of Possession Issued At that point there’s no fee that halts anything.
Separately, before filing, the landlord has to make a written demand giving you at least three business days to pay or move out. If you pay the full amount during those three days, the landlord cannot file the action at all.6Justia Law. Georgia Code 44-7-50 – Demand for Possession That’s the cheapest halt available because you avoid court costs entirely.
Federally Backed Properties: 30 Days’ Notice
If you live in subsidized housing or a property covered by a federally backed mortgage, the landlord has to give you at least 30 days’ notice to vacate before the eviction process can start, regardless of Georgia’s shorter timelines.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 9058 – Temporary Moratorium on Eviction Filings This CARES Act requirement outlasted the pandemic. If the landlord filed without that 30-day notice on a covered property, it’s a defense you can raise in your answer, and it may halt the case without you needing to pay anything into the registry. Many tenants in FHA- or Fannie Mae-financed apartment complexes don’t realize they’re covered, and the landlord isn’t required to tell you. Checking the federal lookup tools before your answer deadline is worth the time.