Types of Notices

The Notice from your landlord tells you what they want you to do. It gives you a chance to pay rent that's owed, fix a problem (called Perform Covenants in the Notice), or move out (called Quit in the Notice).

What type of Notice did you get?

There are 3-day, 30-day, 60-day, or 90-day Notices to Quit. The number of days in the Notice is the deadline for when you have to do what the Notice says.

Select the type of Notice you got for an explanation of what it means and the basic information the landlord is required to include.

This section describes the general information the Notice must include.

Some cities or counties require your landlord to include more information. Talk to a Self-Help Center or a lawyer for more information.

3-day Notice to Pay or Quit (pay rent or move out)

A 3-day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit Notice is used when the landlord thinks their tenant is behind on rent. It’s asking the tenant to pay the back rent or move out (quit).

The Notice must be in writing and include:

• The tenant(s) full name(s)
• The rental home address
• Exactly how much rent is owed
• That all the past due rent must be paid within 3 days or you must move out
• The name, address, and telephone number of the person to whom rent is due
• If you can pay in person, the days and times you can pay the rent and the address where you can pay it
• If you can pay by mail, the Notice must give the address where you can mail the payment

From April 1, 2022 to June 30, 2022, if the Notice is asking for rent (or other money owed under the lease or agreement, like parking fees) due October 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022, the Notice must include this statement:

If you completed an application for government rental assistance on or before March 31, 2022, you may have protections against eviction. For information about legal resources that may be available to you, visit lawhelpca.org.

How much money is owed

This type of Notice can only include past due rent. It cannot include fees, like late fees, fees for bounced checks, or utilities. The Notice is not valid if it asks for more than what's owed.

How to figure out your deadline

• Day 1 is the 1st day after you got the Notice
• Don't include Saturdays, Sundays, or court holidays when counting the days

3-day Notice to Perform Covenants or Quit (Fix a problem or move out)

A landlord can use this kind of Notice if their tenant isn’t following the rental agreement or lease, and the problem can be fixed.

For example, the tenant has a pet and the lease says "no pets," or the tenant is bothering neighbors with loud noise. The Notice must ask the tenant to fix the problem within 3 days or move out.

This Notice can go by other names, like a 3-Day Notice to Cure.

The Notice must be in writing and include:

• The tenant(s) full name(s)
• The rental home’s address
• A description of what the tenant is doing to violate the lease
• That the tenant must fix the problem or move out in 3 days (not counting Saturdays, Sundays, or court holidays).

How to figure out your deadline

• Day 1 is the 1st day after you got the Notice
• Don't include Saturdays, Sundays, or court holidays when counting the days

Some city laws (ordinances) require that your landlord send you a letter about the problem before they give you notice. This is sometimes called a "cease and desist letter."

If your tenancy falls under the Tenant Protection Act, this is also the Notice your landlord must give you before they give you a 3-day Notice to Quit (next section). If you don't fix the problem they tell you about in this Notice then they can give you a 3-day Notice to Quit (without the option to fix the problem) to end your tenancy.

3-day Notice to Quit (Move out because of serious lease violation)

A landlord gives their tenant a 3-day Notice to Quit (move out) if they think the tenant is responsible for serious problems at the rental home like:

• Causing or allowing a nuisance on the property (like a dangerous dog)
• Doing something illegal (like sell drugs) at the home
• Negatively affecting other people’s health and safety (using highly flammable or toxic chemicals at the home)
• Causing major damage to the home that makes it worth much less money (sometimes called commits waste)
• Moving in other tenants (subtenants) without the landlord's permission

If your tenancy falls under the Tenant Protection Act, your landlord gives you this Notice if you didn't do what was asked in a 3-Day Notice to Perform Covenants or Quit by the deadline.

The Notice must be in writing and include:

• The tenant(s) full name(s)
• The rental home’s address
• Describe everything that the tenant did to deserve a 3-day Notice to move out, including details and dates
• Say clearly that the tenant has to move out as soon as the 3 days are up (not counting Saturdays, Sundays, or court holidays)

This Notice can go by other names like a 3-day Notice to Vacate, 3-day Unconditional Notice to Quit.

How to figure out your deadline

Day 1 is the 1st day after you got the Notice. Then you count every day.

30-day or 60-day Notice to Quit (Notice to end rental agreement)

Tenant protection laws require many landlords to provide a just cause to end a rental agreement.

For example, a just cause could be that the landlord must make major repairs for a required health and safety reasons. Or, that they sold the house to someone who plans to move into it. If the laws apply, your Notice must have a just cause listed. Your landlord may be required to give you money to help you move (relocation assistance).

A landlord uses a 30-day Notice to Quit (move out) to end a month-to-month tenancy if the tenant has been renting for less than 1 year. A landlord uses a 60-day Notice to Quit if their tenant has been renting for 1 year or more.

In many cases, landlords can’t cancel a month-to-month tenancy for just any reason. They will need a just cause if required the Tenant Protection Act of 2019.

In some cases, a landlord can use the 30-day or 60-day Notice to end a rental agreement without a just cause. For example,

• If their tenant has lived in the home for less than a year. If there's more than 1 tenant in the same home, the one year is measured by the tenant who’s lived there the longest.
• If the landlord lives in the rental home (single-family home with no more than 2 in-law units, or condominium) with their tenant except if the landlord is a primary tenant (they rent a home from the owner and then rent out to other tenants).
• If the landlord lives in ½ of a duplex full-time and rents out the other half
• New housing that's been built within the last 15 years

If you get a 30 or 60-day Notices to Quit, it must be in writing and include:

• The tenant(s) full name(s)
• The rental home’s address
• That the month-to-month tenancy will end in 30 days if they're giving a 30-day Notice or in 60 days if they're giving a 60-day Notice.
• A statement on how to pick up any property left behind (reclaim abandoned personal property)

If required by the Tenant Protection Act the Notice must also include

• The just cause (legal reason)
• That if the tenant has lived in the home for more than 1 year they have (1) a right to money to help them move (relocation assistance) or (2) they don't have to pay their last month's rent (rent waiver). If you decide to waive last month's rent (choice 2) you'll include what the last month's rent amount is and that your tenant doesn't owe you rent for their last month.

How to figure out your deadline

Day 1 is the 1st day after you got the Notice. Then you count every day.

90-day Notice to Quit (Section 8 housing only)

Landlords can only use this type of Notice if their rental property is Section 8 subsidized housing. The Notice is a demand that the tenant moves out within 90 days.

The landlord must have a legal reason ("just cause") to ask the tenant to move.

The Notice must be in writing and include:

• The date the tenancy will end ("be terminated")
• Detailed reason(s) for the eviction
• That if the tenant doesn't move out within 90 days the owner may start a court case to evict them and that they can give their side of the story then
• That they have 10 days to talk about the Notice with the landlord. The 10-day period begins on the day that the Notice is properly delivered to them
• That people with disabilities have the right to request reasonable accommodations to participate in the hearing process

How to figure out your deadline

Day 1 is the 1st day after you got the Notice. Then you count every day.