Does the Pay To Quit notices from the landlord terminate my lease if I had paid?
Full Question:
Answer:
In Washington state, a lease agreement is forfeited if the tenant fails to pay the rent owed within 10 days of receiving a pay or quit notice. The act of the landlord giving a pay or quit notice does not, by itself, terminate the tenancy.
The following are WA statutes:
RCW 59.04.040 When a tenant fails to pay rent when the same is due, and the
landlord....
When a tenant fails to pay rent when the same is due, and the landlord
notifies him to pay said rent or quit the premises within ten days, unless
the rent is paid within said ten days, the tenancy shall be forfeited at
the end of said ten days.
RCW 59.18.310 If the tenant defaults in the payment of rent and reasonably
indicates by....
If the tenant defaults in the payment of rent and reasonably indicates by
words or actions the intention not to resume tenancy, the tenant shall be
liable for the following for such abandonment: PROVIDED, That upon learning
of such abandonment of the premises the landlord shall make a reasonable
effort to mitigate the damages resulting from such abandonment:
(1) When the tenancy is month-to-month, the tenant shall be liable for
the rent for the thirty days following either the date the landlord learns
of the abandonment, or the date the next regular rental payment would have
become due, whichever first occurs.
(2) When the tenancy is for a term greater than month-to-month, the
tenant shall be liable for the lesser of the following:
(a) The entire rent due for the remainder of the term; or
(b) All rent accrued during the period reasonably necessary to rerent the
premises at a fair rental, plus the difference between such fair rental and
the rent agreed to in the prior agreement, plus actual costs incurred by
the landlord in rerenting the premises together with statutory court costs
and reasonable attorney's fees.
In the event of such abandonment of tenancy and an accompanying default
in the payment of rent by the tenant, the landlord may immediately enter
and take possession of any property of the tenant found on the premises and
may store the same in any reasonably secure place. A landlord shall make
reasonable efforts to provide the tenant with a notice containing the name
and address of the landlord and the place where the property is stored and
informing the tenant that a sale or disposition of the property shall take
place pursuant to this section, and the date of the sale or disposal, and
further informing the tenant of the right under RCW 59.18.230 to have the
property returned prior to its sale or disposal. The landlord's efforts at
notice under this subsection shall be satisfied by the mailing by
first-class mail, postage prepaid, of such notice to the tenant's last
known address and to any other address provided in writing by the tenant or
actually known to the landlord where the tenant might receive the notice.
The landlord shall return the property to the tenant after the tenant has
paid the actual or reasonable drayage and storage costs whichever is less
if the tenant makes a written request for the return of the property before
the landlord has sold or disposed of the property. After forty-five days
from the date the notice of such sale or disposal is mailed or personally
delivered to the tenant, the landlord may sell or dispose of such property,
including personal papers, family pictures, and keepsakes. The landlord may
apply any income derived therefrom against moneys due the landlord,
including actual or reasonable costs whichever is less of drayage and
storage of the property. If the property has a cumulative value of fifty
dollars or less, the landlord may sell or dispose of the property in the
manner provided in this section, except for personal papers, family
pictures, and keepsakes, after seven days from the date the notice of sale
or disposal is mailed or personally delivered to the tenant: PROVIDED, That
the landlord shall make reasonable efforts, as defined in this section, to
notify the tenant. Any excess income derived from the sale of such property
under this section shall be held by the landlord for the benefit of the
tenant for a period of one year from the date of sale, and if no claim is
made or action commenced by the tenant for the recovery thereof prior to
the expiration of that period of time, the balance shall be the property of
the landlord, including any interest paid on the income.
