Submitted by sheldon on Tue, 10/04/2011 - 16:25
I am a tenant at will, paid first and last month's rent, and gave my landlord a 30 Day Notice on September 30th in order to move out by October 30th. She's now saying she is going to sue me because I still owe one month's rent for October and I could move out at the end of November. She said I was supposed to give notice on August 1st and now she's saying it's September 1st. She has also threatened that she will automatically win because her uncle is a judge and her brother in law is a sheriff. Who is correct? This is my first apartment so I'm just making sure I'm not getting screwed.
Time for 30 day notice to quit
The rule is the same for both landlords and tenants who wish to terminate a tenancy at will. The party seeking to end the tenancy must give notice that is equal to one full rental payment period, or 30 days, whichever is greater. See Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 185, Sections 12, 13. It sounds like you gave proper notice, assuming you did serve the written notice on September 30. If you already paid the last month's rent (NOT to be confused with a security deposit which might be applied to rent, but might also be used to make repairs) then it sounds like you are set. I wouldn't worry about the uncle or the brother-in-law. Rather, concentrate on keeping all documentation and responding promptly to any court documents, if it comes to that. Good luck.