Let’s be clear on what an eviction is; an eviction happens when BOTH of two things happen:
1. A Tenant violates a provision of the lease, and then…
2. The Tenant either doesn’t cure the violation or leave the premises within the time specified in the Lease, the Notice, or by State law.
At which point, the landlord has to start incurring expenses to get the Tenant out.
As a Landlord, the first part of that is understandable and potentially excusable with a reasonable explanation. Stuff happens, and you can’t pay the rent in full and on time. This is a problem for the Landlord, but it is one that could be understood and if given a good enough explanation, can accept.
But the second part of that — not so much. If you can’t pay the rent, tell the Landlord ASAP and then clean the place thoroughly and LEAVE. Don’t force the Landlord to hire a lawyer, serve you with papers, take you to court, and wonder how many days, weeks or months the Property is going to be stuck without bringing in Rent.
There are plenty of Tenants who have never done that. Especially through the era of eviction moratoria. There’s absolutely no way a Landlord should be required to rent to someone who put some other Landlord through the cost and hassle of an eviction.
Some people may have been “evicted” due to various situations that were not their fault, such as:
1. A Landlord planning to sell the property.
2. A Landlord not renewing a lease at the end of its term.
Assuming you moved out as requested and didn’t force the Landlord to take you to court, those were NOT evictions. They were simply Lease Agreement terminations. Again, those are not evictions.
But if you answer a Landlord’s question, “Have you ever been evicted?” with the word, “Yes,” then there’s not much you can do to redeem yourself. If a Landlord gives you notice to vacate for reasons of their own, and not because of anything to do with you (for example: NOT because of non-payment of rent, or a violation of the lease provisions), then you were NOT evicted and it is perfectly legitimate to answer that question with, “No.”