Tenancy at Will

With a lease agreement the lease usually expires after six months, year or whatever duration is specified in the agreement. What if you want an agreement that will not mention the duration of lease? You can go for tenancy at will in this case. This is basically a lease agreement for unspecified duration of time. Known to be easier to terminate, this has its own pros and cons. Here's more about, what is the agreement and how to terminate it.

Definition

This is a type of lease agreement for occupying a real estate in which the duration of tenancy is not mentioned. Landlord or tenant can terminate the agreement at any time by giving a notice of termination (30 days in advance). Remember that this agreement between landlord and tenant cannot be transferred by tenant to someone else.

Things To Consider

As a landlord or tenant, you might consider the option for the rental property. Basically as a landlord, you must know that there will be no continuity with this agreement. The tenant can at any time move out of the place. So the tenant comes into this place and occupies it, without any assurance that he/she will be there for following months. So the income coming from the tenant is not for a fixed period and you cannot divert it to fixed investments. So if you want to assure that a tenant stays in for a specific period of time, best to go for a lease agreement for renting a house. A benefit for the landlord getting into this agreement is that he/she can anytime ask the tenant to leave with appropriate notice. So if you are planning to sell the property, this agreement is a good option to go for, which will allow you to have the place vacated and sold as soon as you find a purchaser. Also, in cases when you feel that a tenant is not trustworthy, best to go with this agreement and later on, if you feel that the tenant is reliable, go for a lease agreement.

Well, if you are entering this agreement as a tenant, you have to think twice. Remember that as you have the freedom of leaving the place anytime with a month's notice, the landlord can as well ask you to leave anytime. In a situation when you have just shifted to this place and the owner decides to sell the place, you will have to bear extra costs while having to move again quickly. This also includes finding a new place and doing the whole shifting exercise again. Well, if you want to occupy the property for a short duration, this is definitely the right choice. But in case you want to occupy the property for a longer period of time, best to go for a lease agreement of 6 months or a year.

Termination

The procedure can be a verbal or written agreement. Usually landlords prefer the verbal agreement, when they rent their property to friends or family members. But a written agreement is definitely a smart thing to do. This will include things like apartment rental amount, due date for rent payment and other policies like no pet, etc. To terminate the tenancy, the landlord or tenant will need to give a written notice, 30 days in advance. While 30 days is the minimum period, this duration of notice period can vary as mentioned in the agreement.

With the aforementioned advantages and drawbacks of tenancy at will, you can think well and decide whether you should go for this option. Considering your future plans you can well decide if this is the right type of tenancy for your case.