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A legal lockout in Georgia follows the writ — self-help does not

Lockout is the word landlords use for getting the keys back. There is a legal version and an illegal one. The legal path is a dispossessory, a judgment, a writ of possession, and execution with the county officer present — then locks changed on that same authorized visit. Changing locks, shutting off utilities, or stacking belongings at the curb without that process is self-help. EvictIQ does not do self-help. We are not a law firm. This is not legal advice.

Apartment door with a new deadbolt after vacancy in Georgia
Apartment door with a new deadbolt after vacancy in Georgia

Legal lockout versus illegal self-help

  • Legal: judgment, writ, execution with the required officer, then locks changed
  • Illegal self-help: lock changes, utility shutoffs, or removal without a writ
  • Fulton execution runs through the Marshal’s Department
  • We refuse occupied lock-changes that skip the court path

Sheriff Lockout Coordination

The court-ordered lockout with the executing office on the calendar.

Lock Change Services

Rekey after a lawful recovery or a verified vacancy — not a shortcut around the writ.

A self-help lockout can become its own case against the owner. If the tenant is still in possession, the next step is the court path, not a locksmith.

Questions we hear on this search

Can I lock a tenant out if they are three months behind?

Unpaid rent does not authorize a self-help lockout. The legal path is demand, dispossessory, judgment, writ, and execution. EvictIQ only coordinates that court-ordered path. We are not a law firm.

When can locks be changed?

After a lawful setout or on a unit we have verified vacant. Occupancy is checked before anyone rekeys a door that might still be lived in.

Is a lockout the same as a setout?

People use the words interchangeably. Operationally, setout is the execution day; lockout is the lock-and-secure piece of that day — or a later rekey on a recovered unit. Both still require the legal path when someone is in possession.

Request a case review

Tell us the property and where the case stands. Written scope and price come back before anything is filed.

What happens after you submit
  • A coordinator reviews your property and case details, usually the same business day.
  • You get a written scope and price before anything is filed — no work starts without your go-ahead.
  • Once approved, we prepare and file, then serve, then coordinate the writ and setout as the court allows.

Talk to a coordinator about your case

Same-business-day review on most cases. Written price before any work starts.