Notice to Quit: Meaning and Lease Example

Notice to quit

A notice to quit is a landlord’s formal written notice telling a tenant to leave by a certain date, the step most states require before an eviction case can be filed. Quit here means give up possession, and the notice can be for unpaid rent, a lease violation, or simply ending a periodic tenancy.

Also called quit notice · eviction notice

Example

In Massachusetts, a landlord whose tenant has not paid $1,800 in rent serves a 14-day notice to quit on October 5, 2026. If the tenant has not paid or moved out by October 19, the landlord can file a summary process case, the state’s eviction proceeding, in court. The notice on its own does not remove anyone; only a court judgment can.

In a lease it looks like…

Landlord may terminate this Lease for nonpayment of rent by serving Tenant with a written notice to quit in the form and for the period required by law, after which Landlord may seek possession through the court.

By state

Each state sets the notice periods and what the notice must say, and a notice with the wrong number of days or missing wording can get an eviction case dismissed.

Notice to vacate by state

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