--- title: When a Finished Eviction Isn't Finished description: New California eviction laws require proof of service and may challenge past judgments. Learn how to protect your interests as a property owner. image: https://www.zazuetarealestate.com/hubfs/Eviction_Notice_in_California.jpg --- [JESÚS R. ZAZUETA Alliance Bay Realty · Investment Real Estate](https://www.zazuetarealestate.com/) - [Lease](https://www.zazuetarealestate.com/real-estate-leasing-services) - [Sell](https://www.zazuetarealestate.com/sell-an-investment-property) - [1031 Exchange](https://www.zazuetarealestate.com/1031-exchange) - [Buy](https://www.zazuetarealestate.com/buy-investment-property) - [Blog](https://www.zazuetarealestate.com/income-property-newsletter-blog) - [About](https://www.zazuetarealestate.com/about-real-estate-agent) - [Contact](https://www.zazuetarealestate.com/contact-us) [Call Us Now](tel:+16503391944) Tenants # When a Finished Eviction Isn't Finished Oct 8, 2026, 5:19:29 PM · Jesus Zazueta, Realtor # **When a Finished Eviction Isn’t Finished** *Two new state laws change how eviction papers must be served. The bigger change is how long an owner may need to prove it.* Most small owners think of an eviction, if they ever need one, as something with an end date. On October 1, the **Apartment Owners Association of California** hosted a live stream with two veteran process servers, Eric Ratliff and John Healy, on AB 747 and its follow-up bill, AB 2042. AB 747 was chaptered on October 10, 2025. Governor Newsom signed AB 2042 on September 20, 2026. Both take effect January 1, 2027.[digitaldemocracy](https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260ab747)[recordinglaw](https://www.recordinglaw.com/news/california-ab-2042-debt-buyer-default-judgment/) For a Peninsula owner who has self-managed a triplex for 25 years and rarely sees a courtroom, the question is simple: does any of this reach me? It does, though not where most owners would expect. ## **A Reasonable Goal, a Wider Reach** The concept is understandable. A tenant who never received court papers cannot defend a case, and lawmakers wanted proof that service actually happened. So beginning in 2027, a proof of service in an eviction case must include at least one photograph of the site, stamped with the date, time, and GPS coordinates. Personal delivery must be attempted at least three times, on three different days and at different times, before substituted service is allowed.[digitaldemocracy](https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260ab747)[policyrisk](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/CA-AB747-20252026) That part lands on the process server. The part that lands on the owner comes later. ## **The Burden Moves, and It Has No Clock** Under AB 747, a default judgment that is void for improper service can be challenged at any time. Once a former tenant offers evidence that service was not lawful, the party who obtained the judgment carries the burden of proving that it was.[policyrisk](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/CA-AB747-20252026)[legiscan](https://legiscan.com/CA/text/AB747/2025) Consider an owner who wins possession by default in March 2027. The unit is re-rented. The file goes in a box. In 2033, the former tenant, struggling to rent elsewhere with a judgment on record, files a motion saying the papers never arrived. Now the owner must show otherwise. Is the process server still in business? Does anyone still have the photographs? Did the law firm keep the file, or did it withdraw from the case years ago? ## **A judgment is only as durable as the records behind it.** Healy’s advice in the video is blunt: keep eviction records for at least ten years, and keep your own copy. Do not assume your attorney will. **The Fix That Not Everyone Calls a Fix** AB 2042 is described as cleanup, and here the speakers and the state’s largest owner group part ways. The **California Apartment Association** supported the bill, saying it lets an improperly served tenant answer the complaint instead of forcing an outright dismissal that restarts the case. Ratliff and Healy read the same language less favorably and argue it makes a server’s sworn proof easier to rebut.[caanet](https://caanet.org/?p=107958) Both readings can be partly right. Owners should ask their own attorney which one governs their file. ## **The Cheapest Document Is the One That Sinks the Case** Here is where self-managing owners should pay closest attention. AB 747’s new attempt and photo rules do not apply to three-day notices or other pre-litigation notices. But every eviction complaint must now state the date, time, location, and method used to serve the underlying notice.[eppscoulsoneppscoulson](https://eppscoulson.com/california-service-of-process-rules-are-changing-what-litigants-landlords-and-businesses-should-know-about-ab-747/) That notice is often the one document the owner serves personally. Ratliff, who has served papers since 1981, says more cases are lost on a badly served notice than on anything else. Code of Civil Procedure section 1162 sets an order: personal delivery first, then a substitute at home or work, and posting and mailing only when those fail. Many owners skip to the door and the tape. The content matters too. In *Eshagian v. Cepeda*, decided June 26, 2025, a Court of Appeal threw out a possession judgment because the notice didn't state when the three-day period began or ended.[caanet](https://caanet.org/?p=94824) A complaint can be amended. A notice cannot. ## **Default Was the Goal. Now It’s the Soft Spot.** The most counterintuitive moment in the video comes when both servers say they now prefer that a tenant file an answer. For years, a default was the fastest and cheapest outcome. But a tenant who appears in court submits to its jurisdiction and cannot later claim it was never served. In the speakers’ view, a judgment reached at trial is far harder to unwind. That doesn’t mean owners should invite litigation. It does mean speed and finality are no longer the same thing. ## **What a Careful Owner Does Before January** None of this requires panic. It requires a file. The speakers recommend photographing every notice you serve with location data turned on, getting a certificate of mailing from the post office instead of dropping an envelope in a box, writing notes at the moment of service, and asking your attorney to copy you on every filing. They also expect photo requirements to extend to notices in a future session. That is a prediction, not law. ## **The Bottom Line** Instead of asking, *“How quickly can I get the unit back?”* owners may need to ask, *“Could I prove this was done right ten years from now?”* For most long-term Peninsula owners, an eviction is rare. That is exactly why the paperwork deserves attention. The owner who does this once a decade is the one least likely to have a system for it. If you are weighing a notice at your own property, speak with a landlord-tenant attorney before you send it. ## **Frequently Asked Questions** ### **When do AB 747 and AB 2042 take effect?** January 1, 2027. AB 747 was chaptered in October 2025 with a delayed operative date, and AB 2042 was signed in September 2026 to clarify it. ### **What is a geolocation photograph?** A photograph of the service location carrying a readable stamp of the date, time, and GPS coordinates. On most phones, this requires location services to be turned on for the camera. The law does not require photographing the person served. ### **How long should I keep eviction records?** The speakers recommend keeping records for at least ten years because a default judgment void for improper service can be challenged at any time. Keep your own copy of the proof of service, photographs, mailing receipts, and the process server’s contact information. ### **Is a default judgment still worth having?** It is still a valid judgment. The speakers’ point is that a default is now more exposed to a later challenge than a judgment entered after the tenant appears. Whether that changes your approach is a question for your attorney. ### **I have never evicted anyone. Does this matter to me?** Mostly as preparation. The habits that protect an eviction file, including dated photographs, proof of mailing, and current tenant employment and occupant information, are easier to build before you need them. ## Thinking About Selling or Exchanging a Bay Area Investment Property? If you own a duplex, triplex, fourplex, or small apartment property in San Mateo County, Santa Clara County, or elsewhere in the Bay Area, including cities such as Redwood City, San Bruno, San Jose, San Mateo, Burlingame, Daly City, Palo Alto, Hayward, Santa Clara, or Sunnyvale. I can help you evaluate your next move. That may mean selling, completing a 1031 exchange, repositioning your equity into a different property, or simply understanding what your property is worth in today’s market. I work with small multifamily owners who want clear numbers, practical guidance, and a strategy built around their long-term investment goals. If you are considering a sale or 1031 exchange, contact me to discuss your property and the options available to you. **Contact Jesús Zazueta** with Alliance Bay Realty | 650-339-1944 | Lic# 02043643 Educational information only, not tax or legal advice. Consult your own CPA, tax attorney, and a qualified intermediary before acting. Jesús R. Zazueta · DRE# 02043643 · Alliance Bay Realty. ## Weighing an acquisition — or an exit? A no-obligation call to talk through the numbers, the timing, and the policy landscape. No pressure, no pitch. [Schedule a No-Obligation Call →](https://www.zazuetarealestate.com/contact-us) JESÚS R. ZAZUETA Alliance Bay Realty Full-service multifamily guidance for real estate investors across San Mateo & Santa Clara Counties. Lease. Sell. 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