Although building or buying your home is a good idea, renting one has always become a lifesaver for many people out there. This can be attributed to the costs involved in pursing either of the above-mentioned ventures. Moreso, if you work in the city and you have to report to work daily, you may opt to rent a house and live there with your family. When renting a house, there is a lease agreement document that tenants sign with their respective landlords. There are many terms stipulated in the lease agreement including the timelines that one is renting the house or apartment. At the end of the lease period, the tenant should leave the apartment and look for another one to rent out there. Depending on how the landlord used to relate with the tenant, he or she can choose to renew the lease or not. When it comes to lease renewal, there are certain timelines that the landlord has to observe so as not to inconvenience the tenant and also to be on the right side of the law. In this article, we shall take a closer look at the duration the landlord give to notice the tenant that he or she is no longer renewing the lease, alongside other related ideas.
Can A Tenant Stay After The Lease Expires?
For most landlords, their fear is that the tenant might leave their apartments or houses before the lease period is over. However, there are instances when the tenant may opt to remain in the rented house or apartment even after the lease term has come to an end. Well, the tenant here is at liberty to remain in your property for a long as you allow him or her to be.
Typically, this kind of tenancy is commonly known as holdover tenancy. Other times, it is commonly referred to as ‘tenant at sufferance’. Here, the tenant will continue to pay rent as usual. Since the landlord is tolerating this behavior, the tenant will continue staying in that property until he or she is evicted by the landlord.
Although some landlords may opt to have this kind of arrangements with their tenants, you might have issues when evicting the tenant as the laws of your state might limit you in one way or another. Other times, you may not have control over your property whenever there is a vacancy. Apart from this, the tenant might opt to move out at a time when you can hardly find a new tenant to sign a new lease. The tenant might damage your property and you might not be able to hold him or her into account like you use to, in the previous months. Finally, you may not be in a position to increase the rent as long as the tenant enjoying this kind of tenancy is still within your premises.
How Much Notice Does A Landlord Have To Give If Not Renewing The Lease?
Sometimes, the landlord might not want to renew the lease agreement with the tenant due to a number of issues. If this is the case, the landlord will not renew your lease and thus will notify you about this scenario so that you can make adequate plans moving forward. As far as the duration of the notice is concerned, it should be well spelt out in the lease agreement.
In case it is not, you can consider referring to the laws of your state. However, the rule of thumb states that the landlord should issue a 60-day notice of lease non-renewal. Although different states might have different times, this duration is more appropriate and works well regardless of the state you live in. It is important to note that the notice of non-renewal is also known as the notice to vacate.
How To Give Notice Does A Landlord Not Renewing The Lease?
In case the landlord does not intend to renew the lease agreement, he or she has to notify the tenant within the stipulated time mentioned above. When issuing this notice there are various ways that a landlord can use deliver the notice to the tenant.
To put it into perspective, the landlord can handover a letter containing the details of lease non-renewal so that the tenant can be aware that his landlord is no longer willing to contain him beyond the lease period. Other times, the landlord can send a soft copy of the non-renewal letter to the tenant. Either way, the tenant will get to know that the landlord is no longer willing to extend the lease term.
Under What Circumstances Can A Landlord Terminate A Lease?
Can a landlord terminate a lease early?
Although it is the wish of every landlord to retain his or her tenant for the longest time possible, there are instances when the landlord may have no other alternative other than to terminate the lease earlier than the due date. Here are some of the reasons why a landlord may terminate a lease early include:
1. Failure to pay rent in time
Ideally, the tenant ought to pay his or her monthly rent on time. However, there are instances when the tenant can be paying rent later than the due date. If this trend is unchecked, the landlord might end up getting inconvenienced and thus might prompt him to terminate the lease earlier than the due date.
2. Disturbing the neighbors
Before relocating to a new neighborhood, it is very difficult to establish who your neighbors are. Better still, you may not be able to know their behaviors, among other details. Until you start living with them, that’s the moment you will get to know them better. Since most neighbors value their peace of mind, noise and loud music is the last thing in their list of priorities.
If you make noise or play loud music, chances are that they will raise a complaint with the landlord and thus make him or her to terminate your lease. Worse still, if you have some anti-social behaviors or are fond of leaving rubbish in the wrong places, the tenants might complain and thus trigger your eviction.
3. Damage to the property
As long as you live in a certain apartment or house, there will always be the normal wear and tear such as kitchen stains on the wall, paint peeling off and so forth. The good news is that this kind of damage can easily be repaired by the landlord.
However, if you start mutilating the walls of the house or drilling holes on the floor of the house, the landlord will have no other alternative but to terminate your lease. In fact, such damages can reduce the chances of getting your rent deposit back and thus, you have to be careful when engaging in such activities.
4. Engaging in felonies
There are some tenants who engage in criminal activities in order to make a living. From robbery with violence to cybercrimes, there is a myriad of crimes that some tenants engage in with an aim of generating an income. If you fall under that category, be sure that the landlord will not spare you. Unless you choose to refrain from such activities, you risk being evicted by the landlord.
5. Lease violation
Apart from the above-mentioned 4 reasons, your landlord can terminate the lease earlier than the due to date due to lease violation. When it comes to lease violation, there are many activities that can prompt a landlord to make such a move.
From keeping unauthorized pets to subletting the house or apartment, there is a plethora of reasons that can lead to this action. To be on the safe side, you should read the terms outlined in the lease agreement so that you can know what is expected of you as a tenant and thus reduce chances of getting evicted by the landlord.
Can a landlord end your tenancy for no reason?
Not really. Ideally, a landlord can only terminate your lease for no good reason at the end of the lease term. In this case, the landlord will not renew your lease. Better still, the landlord will not allow you to extend your stay in his property beyond the lease period unless you invoke the anti-retaliation law.
Although the landlord will serve you with a non-renewal notice, you can choose to make arrangements for lease extension the way you please. Like we mentioned above, you can choose to pay rent on a monthly basis to your landlord and still be a tenant in that premise.
Can a landlord break a lease to sell the property?
Well, the landlord can break the lease and sell his or her property to a homeowner. However, the ability to break the lease and sell that property depends on how cooperative the tenant is as well as the terms and conditions outlined in the rental agreement.
If you choose to break the lease and sell the property, there is a need for you to give your tenant a notice of either 30 or 60 days. With this notice in place, the tenant will have adequate time to look for a new house and so forth.
Lease Renewal Notice Period By State
Depending on the state you live in, the period in which the landlord give to issue a notice for a lease renewing varies. To put this into perspective, we shall tabulate the lease renewal notice period by state so that you can know these details better. Although these notifications are mostly for landlords, they can also apply for tenants. Like we previously stated, the rule of thumb is that the lease renewal notice period should be 60 days. However, in some states, it can be 30 days or there about. Read on to know more.
| State | Yearly / Fixed Term Lease | Month to Month |
| Alabama | No statute | 30 days |
| Alaska | No Notice | 30 days |
| Arizona | No Notice | 30 days |
| Arkansas | No Notice | 30 days |
| California | If the tenant lived in that property for 12 months or more, then a 60 day notice should be served. However, if the tenant has been in that property for less than 12 months, then he or she should be served with a 30 day notice. | 30 days |
| Colorado | If the tenant has lease the property for 1 years and beyond, he deserved to be served with a 91 day notice. However, if the tenant has leased the property for 6 months to 1 year, a 21 day notice should be issued. Finally, if the tenant has leased the property for a period of one week and less than 1 month, then a 3-day notice should be issued to him. | 21 days |
| Connecticut | 3 days | N/A |
| Florida | 60 days and above | N/A |
| Georgia | 30 days from the tenant and 60 days for the landlord | N/A |
| Idaho | No Notice | 30 days |
| Hawaii | No notice is needed and termination is automatic | No notice is needed and termination is automatic |
| Indiana | No Notice is needed | 30 days |
| Kansas | No notice is needed | 30 days |
| Lowa | No notice is needed | 30 days |
| Illinois | 60 days | 30 days |
| Kentucky | No statute | 30 days |
| Maine | No notice is needed | 30 days |
| Louisiana | No notice is needed | 30 days |
| Massachusetts | No notice is needed | 30 days |
| Maryland | 90 days | 30 days |
| Missouri | No notice is needed | N/A |
| Nebraska | No notice is needed | 30 days |
| Montana | No statute is required | 30 days |
| Nevada | No notice is needed | 30 days |
| New Hampshire | 30 days | 30 days |
| New Mexico | N/A | 30 days |
| Oklahoma | No notice is required | 30 days |
Can A Landlord Raise The Rent When Renewing The Lease?
Yes. As we speak, the landlord can now raise the rent whenever he is renewing the lease. However, if the landlord want to renew the tenant’s lease, he will present the tenant with the new lease before the existing lease come to an end.
By doing so, the tenant will know all the new terms including finer details such as the new lease amounts, the new start and end dates, among others. Since you will receive this notice one or two months before your current lease term comes to an end, be sure that you will know what to expect once the new lease begins.
Final Words
Once your lease term has come to an end, the landlord can opt to either extend it or not. However, this will be based on your past relationships with the landlord, past behavior while in his property, among other factors. If you are a landlord and want to renewing the lease, you should give the tenant a 30 to 60 day notice. On the other hand, if you do not want the tenant to remain in your property beyond the stipulated lease period, you should give him or her a notice of 30 to 60 days. By doing so, you will give him adequate time to look for another premise to live in and enjoy more convenience. Consider the above-mentioned ideas and you will not experience any hiccups when your tenant’s lease term comes to an end.