FIND HOUSING NOW:
HousingSearch™
DatabaseHOUSING PROGRAMS
+ HISC
+ HOPWA - STAP
+ Hotel / Meal
Vouchers
+ Section 8HELPFUL LINKS
+ Gov't Agencies /
Housing Advocacy
+ HOPWA Service Providers
+ How to Use
this Site
+ Moving
+ Search Sites for
Permanent Housing
+ Tenants Rights
+ TransportationHELP / TUTORIAL
+ About this Site
+ Guestbook
+ Frequently Asked
Questions
+ Tutorial: How to Use
This Site
FACT SHEETS -Moving Out: Giving Proper Notice
Giving notice for a periodic tenancy
To end a rental agreement (for example, a month-to-month agreement), you must give your landlord proper written notice before the moving date. To avoid later disagreements, date the notice, state the date that you intend to move, and make a copy for yourself. It's best to deliver the notice to the landlord in person, or mail it by certified mail.
The amount of advance notice you must give your landlord depends on your rental agreement (Civil Code section 1946). If you pay rent monthly, you must give written notice 30 days before you move. If you pay your rent every week, seven days' written notice must be given. You must follow these timelines unless your rental agreement provides for a shorter amount of required notice time. For example, if you have a month-to-month rental agreement, but agreed to a seven days' advance notice in the rental agreement, you only need to give seven days' notice. However, California law requires a minimum of seven days' notice (Civil Code 1946). You should either give your notice personally to the landlord or property manager, or send it by certified mail, return receipt requested.You can give notice to end your rental agreement any time during the rental period, but you must pay full rent during the period covered by the notice. For example, let's say you have a month-to-month rental agreement, and pay rent on the first day of each month. You could give notice any time during the month (for example, the tenth). Then, you could leave on the tenth of the following month. But you would have to pay rent for the first ten days of the month.
Renewing a Lease
Leases usually don't require you to give any written notice when they expire. You are expected to either renew the lease before it expires, with your landlord's agreement, or to move out. However, before you leave, you may want to give the landlord a courtesy notice stating that you are not renewing the lease.You should renew the lease in plenty of time before it expires. If you continue living in the rental unit after the lease expires, and the landlord accepts rent, you will be a holdover tenant.
Your tenancy will be periodic from that point on, and the length of time between your rent payments will determine the type of tenancy (for example, monthly rent equals a month-to-month tenancy). Except for the length of the stay, all other provisions of the lease will remain in effect. (Civil Code 1945)
If the landlord refuses to accept rent after the lease expires, he or she can file an eviction lawsuit immediately without giving you any notice.
Receiving Proper Notice
Thirty-day notices
A landlord can end a periodic tenancy with proper written notice in the same way a tenant can. Your landlord must give you 30 days' notice in the case of a month-to-month tenancy, seven days' notice for a week-to-week tenancy, or notice of the length specified in your rental agreement (but never less than seven days). The landlord isn't required to give you a reason for ending the tenancy.Please note: a landlord can give you three days' notice if he or she is evicting you for non-payment of rent or failing to obey a term of the lease.
If you receive a 30-day notice, you must leave the rental unit within 30 days after the date the landlord deposited the notice in the mail. If you don't move within this thirty-day period (excluding weekends and legal holidays), the landlord may file an unlawful detainer lawsuit. However, in some communities with rent control ordinances, a periodic tenancy can't be terminated by the landlord without some reasonable cause. In these communities, the landlord must inform the tenant of this cause, and it may be reviewed by local housing authorities. Landlords may also have to give just cause for evicting tenants who live in federal- and state-subsidized housing. Check with your local housing officials.
If you have received a 30-day notice and want to continue to rent the property, you will need to convince the landlord to withdraw the notice. Try to find out why the landlord gave you the 30-day notice. If it's something within your control (for example, consistently late rent), assure the landlord that in the future, you will pay on time.
Advance Payment of Last Month's Rent
If you paid rent in advance for the last month of your tenancy, this should pay the rent for your last month in the rental unit, unless the rent was raised while you were living there. In this case, you should expect to pay the difference between the current rent and the amount you have already paid for last month's rent. The landlord must give you proper notice of the increase in rent as well as the increase in the deposit.If the rental agreement labeled part of the total deposit you paid when you moved in as "last months' rent," you may use this to pay all or some of your final rent payment.
Disclaimer of Liability:
The information contained in this material is for the sole purpose of providing general information only, and must not be construed as legal advice, or take the place of competent legal counsel. Do not rely on these materials without consulting an attorney concerning your situation. The dissemination of this information does not create an attorney-client relationship and does not seek to represent you based upon your visit or review of this information.
Every effort has been made to ensure the information contained in the material is current. However, the law does change and the general information contained within may become dated. You should seek the advice of legal counsel for specific situations and advice to the "then existing" status of the law.