Lease glossary

Holdover tenant

A holdover tenant is a tenant who stays in the unit after the lease has ended, or after a valid notice to leave has taken effect, without a new agreement. What happens next depends on the landlord: accepting rent can create a new tenancy, while refusing it and filing for eviction treats the tenant as unlawfully in possession.

Also called holdover

Example

A 12-month lease ends June 30, 2026 and the tenant is still there on July 1. If the landlord accepts July’s $1,500 rent, many states treat the tenancy as month to month on the old terms. If the landlord refuses it, the tenant is holding over, and many leases then charge holdover rent, such as 150% of the monthly rent prorated by the day: $2,250 ÷ 31 = $72.58 for each day in July.

In a lease it looks like…

If Tenant remains in possession after the end of the term without Landlord’s written consent, Tenant shall pay holdover rent of 150% of the monthly rent, prorated daily, and no renewal or extension of this Lease shall result.

By state

Whether accepting rent creates a new month-to-month tenancy, and how much notice then ends it, is set by state law.

Notice to vacate by state

Plain English, not legal advice. Last reviewed September 29, 2026.