Pg 20

Question 1

When does a tenancy for years terminate?

Answer 1

Automatically at the agreed end of the designated term. Notice is not necessary.

Question 2

Does the death of either party terminate a tenancy for years?

Answer 2

No

Question 3

What is a sneaky essay extra points analysis regarding tenancy for years?

Answer 3

When classifying the interests, if there is a term of years tenancy with a clear beginning and a clear ending, but rent is monthly, you can make a small argument that they actually have a periodic tenancy instead of a term of years. So if he is paying monthly he should be able to terminate by giving a 30 days’ notice. Truthfully, though, the payment agreement is just for the tenant’s convenience, so that’s not really very accurate, but this is a good way to grab extra points

Question 4

What is involved in a periodic tenancy?

Answer 4

Possession for a fixed period of time that repeats unless the party terminates by giving notice. This has a fixed starting date but no fixed ending date. It is self renewing until it is terminated by one of the parties.

Question 5

How is a periodic tenancy created?

Answer 5

Expressly by the words or actions of the parties, or impliedly.

It can also grow out of a holdover situation or from a lease trying to create a tenancy for years that is invalid because it doesn’t meet the SOF, so then it is just a periodic tenancy.

Question 6

Is it possible to create a periodic tenancy orally?

Answer 6

Yes, as long as you agree on the major things.

Question 7

What are the buzzwords for periodic tenancy?

Answer 7

Month to month

Question 8

What is the duration for a periodic tenancy?

Answer 8

It can be undefined as long as there is a definite commencement date that is stated. And then it continues for successive periods until it is terminated (because it automatically renews at the end of each period until termination).

Question 9

Does the death of either party in a periodic tenancy affect the duration?

Answer 9

No

Question 10

If there is an informal periodic tenancy agreement created but it doesn’t state the term, what happens?

Answer 10

The courts will fix it.

Question 11

If rent is not stated in a periodic tenancy, what happens?

Answer 11

It becomes a tenancy at will

Question 12

How do you terminate a periodic tenancy?

Answer 12

One party terminates by giving notice to the other a minimum amount of time before the end of the recurring period. The minimum notice requirement prescribed by law applies, and that can be seven days to one year.

Question 13

If there’s a periodic tenancy for one month, at the end of that month what happens?

Answer 13

It automatically renews for another month until it is terminated by the parties

Question 14

If a tenant wrongfully stays in possession after termination of a periodic tenancy, what happens?

Answer 14

It becomes a tenancy at sufferance. The landlord can then transfer it back into a periodic tenancy by giving express notice, and the tenant giving and the landlord accepting rent for time after termination

Question 15

After termination of a periodic tenancy, if a tenant wrongfully stays in possession, what is the period of the new tenancy?

Answer 15

It is the same as whatever the old period was. If the old one was for a year or more, the new one is year to year, and the landlord specifies the new amount of rent and if that is not contested then the tenant is liable to pay it. If the tenant pays rent, that implies a renewal

Question 16

What is required for notice of termination in a periodic tenancy?

Answer 16

It can be oral, and it must:
- identify the sender as the landlord/tenant and the recipient as the other
– identify the premises
– state notice to terminate
– give the date of termination
– it is effective when delivered

Question 17

In order to terminate a periodic tenancy you must do what two things?

Answer 17

show intent to terminate and give the length of the term of the tenancy as notice up to a maximum of six months

Question 18

If a periodic tenancy has a term of one year, and either party wants to terminate, how much notice do they have to give?

Answer 18

Six months. But for any other timeframe, it is just required that the notice be equal to the length of the period.

Question 19

What does a notice for termination of a periodic tenancy include as far as the date goes?

Answer 19

It excludes the date of service but it includes the termination date

Question 20

Notice for termination of a periodic tenancy can only be given when?

Answer 20

At the end of a period and can only terminate at the end of a period. So if notice is given in the middle of a period, it is completely ineffective to terminate at any time at common law

Question 21

If you have a periodic tenancy that is monthly beginning on the first of the month, and the tenant gives notice on the 15th of the month that he wishes to terminate, what does the common law and the modern view say about when termination happens?

Answer 21

– Common law: you can only give notice to terminate on the first, because that is the end of the rental period (so the notice is not effective).
– Modernly: the notice is effective, but it does not take affect until the next rental period, so it will not become effective until the first of the following month

Question 22

If the facts on an exam do not give the applicable statute, whether it is common law or modern approach to the termination of a periodic tenancy, what should we assume?

Answer 22

Always assume common law

Question 23

What is a tenancy at will?

Answer 23

When possession is for no definite length of time, and it is terminable any time by either party. This is like a license. It is a continuing agreement of both parties with no designated period of duration besides the will of both. This cannot be assigned and no notice is required to terminate

Question 24

How do you create a tenancy at will?

Answer 24

Expressly or inferred by the circumstances (aka: failed attempts to create fixed term tenancies become tenancies at will).

Question 25

If you orally agree to three-year rent, what kind of tenancy is created?

Answer 25

Because this would be invalid since there is no writing, a tenancy at will would be created. But once the tenant sends rent and the landlord accepts it, that becomes a periodic tenancy. In this sense there is technically no implied tenancy at will

Question 26

What is involved in making a tenancy at will?

Answer 26

Permissive possession without agreement for term, or a holdover where the granter stays in possession with the grantee’s consent after a conveyance

Question 27

How do you terminate a tenancy at will?

Answer 27

The tenancy lasts as long as both parties want it to and it terminates instantly by either party saying they don’t want it to. No notice is necessary. This usually happens when one party says something to the other, but it can happen from inconsistent acts like a demand for possession, the landlord conveying the land, or the tenant trying to assign the tenancy, or the death of either party

Question 28

How long is a tenant whose tenancy has been terminated under a tenancy at will given to remove their possessions?

Answer 28

A reasonable time

Question 29

What is a tenancy at sufferance?

Answer 29

When a tenant under a different type of lease wrongfully holds over after termination of the tenancy.

Question 30

If you just leave your personal items behind, does that create a tenancy at sufferance?

Answer 30

No, and neither does holding over for a short temporary period

Question 31

How is a tenancy at sufferance terminated?

Answer 31

At the Landlord’s election

Question 32

For a tenancy at sufferance, if the landlord wants the tenant to stay, what happens?

Answer 32

It becomes a periodic tenancy. If the landlord doesn’t want the tenant to stay, it remains a tenancy at sufferance and the tenant becomes a trespasser until the landlord kicks him off the land.

Question 33

What is a key factor for determining the landlord’s intent in a tenancy at sufferance?

Answer 33

Whether or not he accepts rent

Question 34

If a landlord accepts rent, under a tenancy at sufferance, what is the length of the new period?

Answer 34

The length of the expired lease to a max of one year. If the expired lease was six months, it becomes a periodic tenancy for six months. If it was a three-year lease, it becomes a periodic tenancy for one year

Question 35

Can a landlord hold a tenant to another term under a tenancy at sufferance if there are equitable considerations to justify giving the tenant an extension of time to vacate?

Answer 35

No, for example if the tenant had a serious illness that caused the delay

Question 36

What is the deal with retroactivity in relation to tenancy at sufferance?

Answer 36

Landlord has the power to make the tenant either a trespasser or a periodic tenant retroactively to the beginning of the holdover so long as he gives an express statement or an implied election within a reasonable time

Question 37

How do you terminate a tenancy at sufferance?

Answer 37

By the tenant either being thrust into the position of trespasser or creating a periodic tenancy

Question 38

If a landlord accepts continued rent payments from a tenant at sufferance, what does that become?

Answer 38

A month to month periodic tenancy

Question 39

What is a tenancy on special limitation/leasehold with automatic termination clause?

Answer 39

Sometimes a fee or other freehold estate is created to endure only so long as a certain state of affairs remains. Ie: as long as is necessary to support the estate, and if it ceases, the estate falls in automatically. As soon as the event happens, the leasehold automatically ends. This only applies if the language leaves no doubt about the parties’ intent

Question 40

What are some different examples of terminating events that would work to terminate a tenancy on special limitation?

Answer 40

– Tenant’s illegal activities on the premises
– insolvency or bankruptcy
– death
– vacating the premises
- Landlord’s sale of reversion

Question 41

What are the four basic disputes that can happen between a landlord and the tenant?

Answer 41

– fight over rent
- fight over condition of the premises
– fight over possession
– fight over improvements

Question 42

What is the most common dispute between a landlord and tenant?

Answer 42

Fight over rent