For years, Mehigan Law advised most clients against pursuing money judgments after evictions. The reason was straightforward: the return on investment typically did not justify the time and expense involved. Attorney labor was intensive, collection likelihood often low, and the cost usually outweighed potential recovery. Many tenants who defaulted on rent had no assets to collect against. The result was clear.
Landlords and property managers successfully recovered possession of their properties but had no practical way to recover lost rental income. Those losses were written off, a frustrating but seemingly inevitable cost of doing business.
This guidance has changed at Mehigan Law.
This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Educating yourself is crucial and can help streamline and reduce your legal risk. However, seeking professional legal counsel consolidates your efforts and pre-emptively ensures compliance whenever issues inevitably arise.
Why This Service Is Now Available
Mehigan Law now handles money judgments efficiently and cost-effectively for California property managers and landlords. What was once a labor-intensive process that made little financial sense has become a viable tool for recovering lost revenue. We offer this service on a flat-fee basis to create predictability for our clients, and we handle the entire process in-house.
We prepare all documentation, obtain your signature, file with the court, and deliver the certified judgment along with clear instructions for your collection options. You can add it to ongoing eviction cases or pursue it separately for past cases that remain within the statute of limitations.
Understanding Money Judgments in California
A money judgment is a court order that legally establishes a debt and grants the holder enforcement authority that ordinary unpaid rent does not. Many eviction proceedings result in judgments for possession only, successfully returning the property to the landlord but leaving rental debt legally uncollected. A money judgment transforms that uncollected debt into an enforceable legal obligation backed by California’s judicial system.
Without a judgment, your collection options are limited to voluntary compliance through letters and phone calls. Under California law, there are multiple paths to recovery that create real opportunities to collect what you are owed.
Long-Term Asset Creation
Money judgments transform expiring debt into long-term recoverable assets. A judgment is enforceable for ten years from the date it is entered and can be renewed once for an additional five years. This creates a total potential enforcement window of fifteen years. During this time, the judgment accrues interest annually.
Why Time Matters for Collection
This extended timeframe matters because tenant financial circumstances can change dramatically over years. A tenant who has no assets during an eviction may later secure stable employment, purchase a home, or receive an inheritance.
With a judgment in hand, you maintain the legal right to collect on that debt throughout this entire period. You can exercise strategic patience, waiting for the debtor’s financial situation to improve rather than being forced to write off the loss immediately.
This stands in stark contrast to writing off unpaid rent, which permanently closes the door. A judgment keeps that door open for fifteen years and maintains your legal position should the debtor’s circumstances improve.
For property managers handling multiple properties, this transforms how you think about rental losses. Rather than viewing them as inevitable write-offs, judgments create the possibility of future recovery when conditions become favorable.
Powerful Legal Collection Tools
A judgment provides legal authority to pursue three primary enforcement mechanisms under California law. These tools create multiple pressure points rather than relying on a single collection approach.
Wage Garnishment
Wage garnishment allows direct deduction from a debtor’s paycheck through their employer. California law permits garnishment of up to 25 percent of disposable earnings. Once a wage garnishment order is in place, it continues until the debt is satisfied.
The employer is legally required to comply with the order, making this an effective method for ongoing collection when you know where the debtor works.
Bank Levies
Bank levies provide a one-time seizure of funds from a debtor’s bank accounts. This enforcement method accesses whatever funds are available in the account at the moment the levy is executed. While debtors have a brief window to claim exemptions for certain protected funds, a bank levy can provide immediate access to available assets.
This works particularly well when you know the debtor maintains bank accounts but may not have steady employment.
Property Liens
Property liens through an Abstract of Judgment create a legal claim against any real estate the debtor owns or acquires in the future. You record the Abstract of Judgment with the county recorder in any California county where the debtor may own property. Once recorded, the lien attaches to all real estate the debtor holds in that county. The debtor cannot sell or refinance that property without satisfying your judgment first.
This proves particularly effective when a debtor purchases a home years after the eviction.
These three tools fundamentally change the collection conversation from requesting voluntary payment to exercising legal authority. You can pursue them simultaneously or sequentially, depending on what you learn about the debtor’s assets and circumstances.
Access to Professional Collection Agencies
Many of the most effective collection agencies will not accept cases without an existing judgment. These agencies need the legal enforcement tools that judgments provide to work effectively on your behalf. Their expertise lies in using wage garnishments, bank levies, and property liens to pursue persistent professional collection efforts that individual property managers cannot efficiently manage alongside their regular operations.
The Handoff Model for Property Managers
Mehigan Law provides a seamless handoff model. We obtain the judgment for you through our flat-fee service. You receive the certified judgment along with clear instructions. If you choose to engage a collection agency, you can hand them the judgment and let them pursue enforcement.
Most agencies work on a contingency basis, meaning they only get paid a percentage if they successfully collect. You pay nothing up front to the agency, and they assume the labor and risk of the collection effort.
For property managers, this creates a practical division of labor. You focus on property operations, leasing, and tenant relations. The collection agency focuses on tracking down former tenants and using legal tools to recover what they owe.
This approach works particularly well for larger property management companies handling multiple properties where the administrative burden of pursuing individual collections would distract from core business operations.
Liquidity Through Judgment Sales
Money judgments can be sold to specialized companies for immediate cash recovery. This option serves property managers who prefer immediate liquidity over waiting years for a debtor’s circumstances to improve. The typical recovery when selling a judgment ranges from five to ten cents on the dollar. While this is substantially discounted, it is meaningfully better than writing off the debt as a total loss.
When Selling Makes Sense
Selling makes sense when immediate cash flow needs make a quick sale attractive, even at a significant discount. Large property management companies conducting portfolio cleanup may prefer to convert multiple non-performing judgments to cash all at once rather than managing ongoing collection efforts. Selling also eliminates the administrative burden of tracking judgments and coordinating with agencies.
For property management companies operating at scale, you can systematically obtain judgments in all evictions where tenants owe significant amounts. Rather than evaluating each case individually for collection potential, you accumulate judgments, knowing that you can periodically sell portfolios to judgment buyers.
Across dozens or hundreds of properties over time, these partial recoveries add up to meaningful revenue that would otherwise be lost entirely.
How the Service Works
The money judgment service is available for current evictions moving forward and for past evictions that remain within California’s four-year statute of limitations for filing. The in-house handling at Mehigan Law provides a clear, predictable process.
We prepare all the required documentation for the money judgment. You review and sign the paperwork, and we handle all filing with the appropriate California court. Once the court enters the judgment, we deliver the certified judgment to you along with an Abstract of Judgment for recording if you choose to pursue property liens. You also receive clear written instructions explaining your collection options and the procedures for pursuing wage garnishment, bank levies, property liens, or engagement with collection agencies.
The fee structure uses a flat rate plus e-filing costs. This creates predictability in your budgeting. For property managers handling multiple properties, this makes it straightforward to decide whether to pursue judgments based on the amount owed.
Making the Decision
Not every eviction case warrants pursuing a money judgment. The amount owed matters significantly. Consider what you know about the debtor’s circumstances and what you can reasonably learn. Think about your preferred collection strategy.
Some property managers prefer the patient approach of holding judgments long-term and waiting for the right collection opportunity. Others prefer active pursuit through professional agencies. Still others value immediate liquidity through sales. The judgment itself creates all three options where previously none existed.
Mehigan Law provides consultation on specific situations without pressure. We can discuss individual cases and provide guidance on whether judgment pursuit appears viable based on the facts you know.
Moving Forward
The is a fundamental, but clear, viable shift in our guidance on pursuing money judgments after evictions. That’s why we’re proud to make it accessible to our clients as a cost-effective service. Being able to change unpaid rent from a write-off to a long-term asset with multiple paths to eventual collection is significant.
Contact Mehigan Law
Mehigan Law has served California property managers and landlords for over 45 years. We provide guidance based on your specific circumstances and help you make informed decisions that protect your interests and improve your bottom line. Money judgments now represent another way we can help you manage the financial realities of rental property operations in California.
If you have questions about whether pursuing money judgments makes sense for your current cases or past evictions, reach out to our office. We can discuss your specific situations and provide guidance tailored to your property management approach and business model. Contact us at evictions@mehiganlaw.com or call our office directly at (916) 646-0800.
We are here to help you evaluate your options and pursue the strategies that work best for your operation.
