what is tenancy at sufferance 
tenancy at sufferance is created when a tenant has overstayed their lease term without a new agreement in this case the landlord can hold them to the terms of the old lease and collect rent payments for the time overstayed 1 this can continue until the landlord is able to obtain an eviction order or decides to extend the lease this can be contrasted with tenancy at will where a tenant occupies the property with the consent of the owner but without necessarily a written contract or lease 2understanding tenancy at sufferancetenancy at sufferance also called estate at sufferance or holdover tenancy arises when a tenant who has a lawful possession of a property for example a lease holds over without the owner s consent the only difference between a holdover tenant at sufferance and a trespasser is that the tenant entered into possession in a legal manner but has now overstayed his or her welcome 3each state may have different legal definitions and criteria to determine whether or not an occupant is classified as a trespasser if they remain on a property they previously had a lease agreement for ways a tenancy of sufferance can be put into effectthe circumstance that can lead to a tenancy of sufferance can include eviction proceedings this can be the case if a tenant s lease agreement comes to an end but they do not vacate the premises and the landlord intends to lease the space to new occupants the landlord or property owner may initiate their legal options to remove the tenant from the property but the tenant continues to dwell on the property and usually cannot be forcibly removed while the eviction process is underway the tenant must comply with the rental or lease terms however in some jurisdictions a landlord should not accept rent during this time as it may constitute an extension of the lease agreement evictions could take a relatively short time or take several months depending on the jurisdiction the property owner would have to accept the tenancy at sufferance throughout that period 34it is possible that the property owner will offer to buy out the tenant in order to see them exit the property this might be a more expensive option but it would expedite a resolution to the situation if such a buyout is accepted the tenancy at sufferance would end and the tenant would have to vacate the premises a property owner could also offer a new lease agreement acceptance of a new lease by all parties would also end a tenancy at sufferance and the tenant would be bound to the terms of the new agreement 