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My tenants lease expired on March 29,25. I mailed and emailed her a new 1 yr lease with a rent increase, rent must be paid through electronic transferer only if she a didn't send me a 60 day notice to vacate she was agreeing to my new terms. She sends me a letter saying she is not staying a year only 6 months and no rent increase and no electronic payments. She is driving me so crazy I turned it over to a management company. Doesn't she have to move or be evicted???
A tenant who stays after the lease expires usually becomes a month-to-month tenant under the old terms, not new terms imposed by letter. A new lease with a rent increase generally needs her signature to be enforceable. In most states you can end a month-to-month tenancy with proper written notice (often 30 or 60 days) and then proceed with eviction if she stays past the notice period. Good call handing it to a management company so the notices and timelines are done right.
Completely understand the frustration, but here is the hard truth: a tenant is not bound by a lease she never signed. Mailing and emailing the new lease and treating her silence as agreement does not create a contract, and she rejected your terms in writing, which settles it. What she most likely became is a month-to-month holdover tenant under the old lease terms (this varies by state). There is no eviction simply for refusing to sign a new lease. What you can usually do instead is give proper written notice of non-renewal at the end of the term, typically 30 or 60 days depending on the state. Good call handing it to the management company. Let them handle the notice in writing and keep everything documented from here. Not a lawyer, so have them confirm the non-renewal notice rules in your state.
She didn't agree to your new terms just by not sending a 60-day notice — a landlord can't impose new terms unilaterally. With the lease expired and nothing new signed, she's most likely a month-to-month holdover under the old terms (old rent). Handing it to a management company was the right move — let them handle the notice or negotiate a proper new lease. Get a local attorney's read before anyone files.
Hi Sheryl, this is a stressful spot to be in, and you did the right thing asking before acting. In my experience, when a lease expires and no new one is signed, the tenancy typically rolls into month-to-month under the old terms — she doesn't have to move or be evicted just for declining the new lease. But the flip side is you generally can't impose new terms (rent increase, electronic-only payments) without proper written notice and her agreement, so “silence means acceptance” usually doesn't hold up. Handing it to a management company was a sensible call — they can give her proper notice and either negotiate a signed renewal or start a lawful non-renewal if that's the route you choose. Keep all communication in writing from here.
