Lease Agreement 101 – Tenant Evictions

September 26, 2022

Tenant Evictions

As Covid era renter protections end and many renters face paying huge amounts of due rent while not paying current rent, we can expect a surge in evictions.

Tenants are often fearful to hear the word of “lease termination” or “eviction’. Yet a landlord can indeed terminate the lease agreement if the tenant materially breaches the lease terms.

Tenants should pay extra attention to the lease terms, timeline on written notice to vacate the units, as well as the consequences if they are not able to vacate at the agreed time. And there are other breaches of the lease contract that may result in an eviction as well such as extra room mates, illegal pets, and subleasing without permission. See more on the tenant eviction process.

Ending the Lease and Evicting

Normally, a thirty (30) day’s written notice is required before a tenant vacates the unit. If the tenant lease is on a month-to-month basis, they may terminate their tenancy by giving the landlord a thirty (30) day’s written notice.

If you are the tenant and you vacate the unit without giving a full 30-day notice, you may still be liable for payment up to thirty (30) day’s worth of rent starting on the day you gave written notice to the landlord. Additionally, the landlord may terminate the lease or evict you if you fail to move out on the date that you notified the landlord you would to vacate.

The landlord may also proceed eviction if you materially breach the lease terms include but not limited to the following:

Non-payment of Rent;
Number of late rent payments within any twelve months under the lease;
Failures to comply with lease and/or house rules;
Conduct that affects the health, safety, and quiet enjoyment of any tenants or visitors to the property;

Tenants should be aware that eviction via court and non-payment of rent will negatively impact their credit rating. If a landlord hires a collection agency to collect back rent owed, the agency could report this to the credit bureau which will impact the tenant’s credit rating.

An eviction itself may not appear on the renter’s credit rating, however most landlords will likely not rent to that renter. Eviction orders may be kept on file with county courts for up to 10 years, depending on the jurisdiction. Landlords discover eviction events when they do a tenant background check.

Once a final notice to vacate the rental has been issued by the landlord, the tenant usually have 7-14 days to vacate the unit. This can result in lost rent revenue for the landlord.

For California Evictions:

If you are a renter in California, your lease agreement will include the following three provisions:

Megan’s Law

Pursuant to Section 290.46 of the California Penal Code, information about specified registered sex offenders is made available to the public via a web site maintained by the State of California Department of Justice at www.meganslaw.ca.gov. Since landlord cannot discriminate against registered sex offenders, landlord may not notify tenants if any registered sex offenders are living at the building. Thus, the existence of registered sex offenders at the property is not a valid reason for lease termination.

Proposition 65 Warning

This law requires the landlord to publish a list of chemicals tenants known to cause cancer, birth defect, and other reproductive harm. For more information, tenants should go to http://p65warnings.ca.gov.

Information About Pest or Bed Bugs

Landlords may provide general information about bed bug signs and symptoms, life cycle and reproduction, survival, and the importance of cooperation and responsibilities between landlord and tenant for preventative measures and necessary treatment.

For instance, landlord may contract a certified pest control professional to conduct periodic pest control inspection for both common areas and individual units. At the lease signing, the landlord shall supply a copy of the legally required notice provided by the registered pest control company.

In return, tenant agrees to cooperate with all pest control efforts at the property. The Tenant is also responsible for maintaining his or her unit in a clean and uncluttered condition and reporting any evidence of infestation in the unit in a timely manner.

If tenant violates the pest policy, it’s considered a material breach of the lease since pest poses risk to health and safety to other tenants at the building.

See the post on tenant leases, building tenant relations, and tips on move ins for landlords.