how a month to month tenancy works
tenancy falls under the real estate laws that cover leases in legal real estate terminology a lease is a contract between the owner of a property also known as the landlord and a tenant who rents the property 2 the lease transfers the owner s rights to the exclusive possession and use of the property to the tenant for an agreed upon period as anyone who has rented an apartment knows the lease sets forth the period of time for which the contract is to run and the amount of rent the tenant is contracted to pay the renter gains access to the property and uses it in whatever manner was agreed upon in the lease the landlord receives rent for a specified period of time and after the lease period is up their ownership rights are returned control over the end date of the tenancyfinancial fluiditypeace of mindmoving out or replacing a tenant on short noticehigher rents less predictable incomeuncertaintypros and cons of a month to month tenancywhether a month to month tenancy is advantageous or disadvantageous depends in part on a renter s or landlord s desire for flexibility and ability to respond quickly to changing circumstances month to month tenancy falls under the real estate laws that cover leases different types of tenancywithin the lease contract the tenant s legal right to possess the property is deemed the leasehold estate or tenancy depending upon the contract s language the following four different tenancies can be established this establishes a possession for the tenant that will last for a fixed time period which could range from days to years it has a specific starting and ending date with the latter signifying the expiration of the renter s tenancy 3this is established when the renter s possession is contracted for an indefinite period with no agreed upon expiration date the tenancy is originally created for a specific period but the renter s tenancy can continue until there is some notification of the lease s termination under the terms of the lease the contract is automatically renewable until the owner or renter gives notice to terminate 4a tenancy at will gives the renter the right to use the property for an unspecified period the tenancy continues until the owner or renter gives notice of termination 5 in the event of either party s death the tenancy is terminated a tenancy at sufferance occurs when the renter who at one time had established a contractual tenancy continues to remain in the property without the owner s consent this can occur when the renter does not surrender the property after the initial expiration date written into the lease it usually leads to eviction proceedings being instituted by the owner if however the landlord accepts a rent payment after the lease expiration date the property is considered to be leased again but now on a month to month basis 6