5 Legal Documents Required to Terminate a Residential Lease

Here are the several methods for terminating a residential lease, as well as the documentation required to make the procedure legitimate.

Here are the scenarios we will go over:

Tenant vacates with adequate notice
The landlord and renter have agreed to terminate the lease.
Lease Assignment is agreed upon by both the tenant and the landlord.
Both the tenant and the landlord agree to Lease Assumption.
The landlord has the legal right to evict the renter.

Leases are, by definition, transitory agreements. Even if all parties anticipate the lease to expire at some time, it is critical to safeguard everyone’s rights by executing it correctly. Here are the several methods for terminating a residential lease, as well as the documentation required to make the procedure legitimate.

Tenant vacates with adequate notice

The most typical method of terminating a lease is to provide the notice required under the Lease Agreement or by state or local legislation. Landlords utilize a Landlord’s Notice of Non-Renewal, whereas tenants use a Tenant Notice of Intent to Move. These notifications state that the lease option will not be exercised or authorized at the conclusion of the existing lease. This letter may include the renter’s forwarding address for things like the return of the security deposit, although the tenant may provide that information separately if they have not yet received their new address.

Typically, landlords and renters must give each other notice within the period set in the agreement. For example, it is customary for a lease to require the tenant to provide the landlord with at least 30 days’ notice before the lease expires, otherwise the lease would be converted to month-to-month. Some states may limit the length of notice required, such as no more than 60 days. In such situation, if the lease needs 90 days’ notice, the landlord cannot normally impose fines on the tenant as long as they provided notice at least 60 days in advance.

The landlord and renter have agreed to terminate the lease.

With an Agreement to Cancel Lease, a landlord and tenant may mutually agree to end a lease early or at any time. Because this is a modification to the contract that everyone agrees on, both the landlord and the renter must sign. In rare situations, the landlord and tenant may agree that it is in their best interests to terminate the lease early. In other circumstances, the landlord and renter may agree on an early termination fee.

If the landlord requests an early termination fee, it must be within any legal restrictions. A landlord, for example, cannot charge three months’ rent as an early termination fee if state or municipal legislation restricts it to two months.

Lease Assignment is agreed upon by both the tenant and the landlord.

Another alternative is to use a Lease Assignment to transfer the lease to a new tenant. The Lease Assignment assigns the original tenant’s lease responsibilities to a new tenant. The original tenant has no duties under the lease after the transfer.

The original tenant, new renter, and landlord must all agree to a Lease Assignment. The landlord may also negotiate for the new tenant to sign a longer lease. The landlord may be obliged to agree to a Lease Assignment provided the prospective new tenant fits the landlord’s pre-established credit, income, and other application conditions, depending on the terms of the original lease and local legislation.

Both the tenant and the landlord agree to Lease Assumption.

A Lease Assumption is another method for transferring a lease to a new tenant. This is what most people envision when they consider subletting a property that they do not plan to return to. A Lease Assumption is similar to a Lease Assignment in that the original renter is still obligated under the lease. For example, if the new renter fails to pay rent during the first lease period, the landlord may pursue restitution from the prior tenant.

The landlord has the legal right to evict the renter.

Landlords may be allowed to deliver an Eviction Notice if a tenant fails to comply with the conditions of their lease. An Eviction Notice compels the tenant to either correct the lease violation or vacate. Nonpayment of rent or violation of lease restrictions may be grounds for eviction.

Depending on the basis for the eviction, the landlord may or may not be compelled to provide the tenant a chance to correct the infraction before proceeding with the eviction. The landlord is required to provide a minimal amount of notice, which varies depending on the terms of the lease, local legislation, and the grounds for the eviction. The renter may either agree to leave or fight the eviction in court. It is critical for landlords to recognize that they cannot evict a tenant or limit their access to the property unless they follow the legal procedure outlined in local eviction regulations. Violations may result in a court awarding the tenant civil damages and possibly criminal proceedings against the landlord.