Non Payment

Nonpayment of Rent

The information in this section is only for cases where the tenant has not moved out and owes you rent. If the tenant has left the home for good by giving you back the keys or letting you know in writing, then you must start a civil or Small Claims case.

Whenever a tenant is 5 days late paying the rent, you must send the tenant a written notice by certified mail telling the tenant that the rent is past due. If you don’t do this and you start a case against the tenant for nonpayment of rent, the tenant can use the fact that you didn’t send this written notice as a reason why the case should be dismissed even if they didn’t pay. See RPL 235-e(d).

You also can’t start the case until after you have sent the tenant a written rent demand the way the law says. It warns the tenant that you want the rent, and that if the tenant doesn’t pay, the tenant can be evicted. The rent demand must tell the tenant the months and amounts of rent that the tenant owes. A written rent demand must be sent to the tenant at least 14 days before you can start the case. Read RPAPL 711(2). The rent demand must be delivered to the tenant the same way that the Notice of Petition and Petition must be delivered. Read RPAPL 735. There is a free DIY (Do-It-Yourself) Form program to make a written rent demand.

Note: A manufactured home park owner or operator must give a manufactured home tenant a written rent demand with at least 30 days notice. RPL 233.

If the tenant pays the full amount of the rent due before the court date, you must take the rent and end the case.