Cash for Keys: How It Works, How Much to Offer and What to Put in Writing

Cash for keys is a deal with three parts: the landlord pays, the tenant leaves by a set date, and nobody goes to court. It is common when a tenant has fallen behind, when a sale needs an empty unit, or after a foreclosure. Done right, both sides come out ahead of an eviction.

How a cash-for-keys deal works

The steps are the same whether the payment is $800 or $20,000:

1. The offer. The landlord offers a sum in exchange for the tenant moving out by a date, usually 2 to 6 weeks away. Best made in writing, calmly, with no threats attached.
2. The terms. Both sides agree the date, the condition the unit must be in, what happens to any back rent and to the security deposit, and how the money is paid.
3. The paperwork. A short written agreement signed by the landlord and every adult on the lease, plus a dated notice setting the move-out day.
4. The hand-over. On move-out day, a walk-through. Keys come back, the unit is empty, and the landlord pays on the spot.

The glossary entry for cash for keys has a sample clause you can adapt.

The math: an eviction against a buyout

Here is the comparison a landlord is really making. The numbers are an example; court fees, legal costs and timelines vary widely by county.

The rent is $1,800 a month, and the tenant is two months behind: $3,600. It is October 5, 2026.

Eviction route. Filing and service fees of about $300, a lawyer at about $1,500 for a contested case, and two more months of no rent while it runs: $3,600. That is $5,400 out of pocket, with the end date up to the court calendar, before any damage or a sheriff’s lockout fee. The $3,600 already owed becomes a judgment that may never be collected.

Buyout route. The landlord waives the $3,600, pays $2,000 on October 31 when the keys come back, and has the unit ready to show in November. Total cost: $2,000, on a known date.

The landlord gives up little by waiving back rent that was unlikely to be paid, and saves weeks of vacancy. The tenant walks away with money for a new place and without an eviction case on their record.

How much to offer

No formula sets the number, but four things move it:

• How long an eviction takes where you are. Where a contested case runs for months, a buyout is worth more to the landlord.
• The tenant’s moving costs. First month’s rent and a deposit on the next place, a truck, time off work. An offer that doesn’t cover the move rarely works.
• What the tenant gives up. A tenant paying well below market, especially in a rent-controlled unit, is giving up a valuable lease. Buyouts there can run to tens of thousands of dollars.
• Local rules. Some cities regulate buyouts of rent-controlled tenancies. San Francisco and Los Angeles, for example, require a written disclosure to the tenant before talks begin and a filing with the city after. Check before you make an offer.

Many ordinary offers land between $1,000 and $5,000, or one to two months’ rent. Start with what the move actually costs, then add for speed.

What tenants should weigh

An offer is not an order. Before signing, a tenant should check:

• The date. Is there enough time to find and move into a new place?
• The back rent. The agreement should say plainly that any rent owed through move-out is waived, so it does not come back later as a debt or a collections account.
• The deposit. Will it be returned in full, applied to something, or itemized? The state deadline still applies; the security deposit limits by state table lists each one.
• A reference. Ask for a neutral or positive landlord reference in writing as part of the deal. It helps with the next rental application.
• Any court case. If an eviction was already filed, the agreement should say the landlord will dismiss it. A filing can show up on screening reports even when it ends in a deal.

What to put in writing

A good agreement fits on one page:

• Names of the landlord and every adult tenant, and the property address.
• The move-out date and time, and the condition: empty, broom-clean, all keys, fobs and remotes returned.
• The amount, how it is paid (a cashier’s check or a transfer at the hand-over) and that it is paid only when the unit is delivered as agreed.
• That rent owed through the move-out date is waived.
• What happens to the security deposit, and by when.
• That the agreement is void if the tenant has not moved out by the date.
• If a case is pending, that the landlord will dismiss it once the keys are back.
• Signatures and dates from everyone.

Once the date is agreed, put it in a formal notice as well. The notice to vacate letter fills in the move-out date, and the notice to vacate by state table shows the minimum notice periods if the deal falls through and the landlord has to start the formal process.

Mistakes that sink a deal

• Paying before the keys come back. Pay half up front at most, and only if it is what gets the tenant moved.
• Leaving an occupant out. Every adult who lives there must sign, or the unit may not come back empty.
• Pressure instead of money. Changing the locks, removing belongings or cutting utilities is self-help eviction, illegal almost everywhere, and it turns a cheap deal into a lawsuit.
• A handshake on the back rent. Unwritten waivers get forgotten. Write it down.
• Forgetting the deposit clock. The deal does not pause the state’s deposit deadline.

A cash-for-keys agreement ends the tenancy by surrender instead of by court order. When it works, it is the quietest eviction alternative there is.