What is the proper notice to terminate a tenant lease because I have sold the home?
Full Question:
I own property that I have been renting out for over a year to the same tenant. The first year was on a 1 year lease agreement which expired with no new lease agreement. The tenant just pays month to month since it expired. I decided to sell my home so I contracted a real estate agent and gave my tenant a 30 day notice which I gave her personally and had her sign it. The tenant refused to move at the end of the 30 days saying she needed more time and would not leave until she found another place. I filed the proper paperwork with the courts and she responded by saying that she should have been given 60 days not 30 days. My question is: If I gave her a 30 day notice which she signed and it's because I am selling my house, have a contract with an agent, and a purchase agreement with a perspective buyer, is my notice valid?
03/28/2009 |
Category: Landlord Ten... ยป Lease Termin... |
State: California |
#15806
Answer:
A landlord can end a periodic tenancy(for example, a month-to-month tenancy) by giving the tenant proper advance written notice. Your landlord must give a tenant 60 days' advance written notice that the tenancy will end if the tenant and every other tenant or resident have lived in the rental unit for a year or more. However, the landlord can give 30 days' advance written notice in either of the following situations:
-Any tenant or resident has lived in the rental unit less than one year; or
-The landlord has contracted to sell the rental unit to another person who intends to occupy it for at least a year after the tenancy ends. In addition, all of the following must be true in order for the selling landlord to give a 30-day notice:
-The landlord must have opened escrow with a licensed escrow agent or real estate broker, and
-The landlord must have given the 30-day notice no later than 120 days after opening the escrow, and
-The landlord must not previously have given a 30-day or 60-day notice, and
-The rental unit must be one that can be sold separately from any other dwelling unit.