Choose the right type of eviction Notice

You must give your tenant a written Notice before you start an eviction court case. The Notice gives the tenant a chance to pay rent that's owed, fix a problem (called perform covenants in the Notice), or move out (called quit in the Notice).

Eviction Notices are not court forms. You can find standard blank Notices in legal self-help books at the library, from an attorney, or possibly your local court Self-Help Center or online.

If the Notice has mistakes or is missing information, you may lose your eviction case. Make sure the form you're using for your Notice includes everything that is required by California law.

Consider talking with an eviction lawyer to make sure you are using the right Notice and that you are filling it out correctly.

Types of Notices

Choose the reason for eviction to see the type of Notice you can use and the basic information it must include. Some cities or counties may require you to include more information. Talk to a Self-Help Center or a lawyer to get the exact information your Notice must include.

Your tenant has unpaid rent due

3-day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit

Use this Notice if your tenant is behind on rent. It’s asking the tenant to pay rent within 3 days or move out (quit). The 3 days don't count Saturdays, Sundays, and court holidays.

The Notice must be in writing and include:

• The tenant(s) full name(s)
• The rental home address
• Exactly how much rent the tenant owes
• That all the past due rent must be paid within 3 days or the tenant must move out
• The name, address, and telephone number of the person to whom rent is due
• If they can pay in person, the days and times the tenant can pay the rent and the address where they can pay it
• If they can pay by mail, the Notice must give the address where the tenant can mail the payment

If you end up going to court it's helpful if the Notice also included what dates the overdue rent is for.

You can't use this Notice to ask for any other money the tenant owes, like late fees, interest, utilities, or damages.

If your tenant falls under the Tenant Protection Act, you must give your tenant this notice before you give them a 3-day Notice to Quit (for a serious lease violation). If they don't fix the problem you tell them about in this Notice then you can give them a 3-day Notice to Quit (without the option to fix the problem) to end their tenancy.

Your tenant violated the lease and needs to fix the problem

3-day Notice to Perform Covenants or Quit

Use this Notice when you think your tenant violated the lease and the problem can be fixed (the "fixing" is also called perform covenants).

For example, if the tenant has moved in a pet when the lease says "no pets," or is bothering neighbors with loud noise, or doing something else that violates the lease. The Notice must ask the tenant to fix the problem within 3 days or move out. The 3 days doesn't count Saturdays, Sundays, and court holidays.

The Notice must be in writing and include:

• The tenant(s) full name(s)
• The rental home address
• What the tenant is doing to violate the lease
• That the tenant must fix the problem or move out in 3 days

Some city laws (ordinances) require that you must send a letter to your tenant about the problem before you give them notice. This is sometimes called a "cease and desist letter." If this is required, you need to include what date you sent the letter in your Notice.

If your tenant falls under the Tenant Protection Act, you must give your tenant this notice before you give them a 3-day Notice to Quit (next section). If they don't fix the problem you tell them about in this Notice then you can give them a 3-day Notice to Quit (without the option to fix the problem) to end their tenancy.

The tenant committed a serious lease violation

3-day Notice to Quit

Use this Notice when you think your tenant is responsible for serious problems at the rental home like:

• Causing or allowing a nuisance on the property (like a dangerous dog)
• Doing something illegal (like sell drugs) at the home
• Negatively affecting other people’s health and safety (like using highly flammable or toxic chemicals at the home)
• Causing major damage (committing waste) to the home that makes it worth much less money
• Moving in other tenants (subtenants) without your permission if the rental agreement says they can't

The Notice must be in writing and include:

• The tenant(s) full name(s)
• The rental home address
• What the tenant is doing to violate the lease
• That the tenant must move out in 3 days

If your tenant falls under the Tenant Protection Act, before you give this Notice you have to give your tenant a 3-Day Notice to Perform Covenants or Quit so they have a chance to fix the problem.

This Notice sometimes goes by other names like 3-day Notice to Vacate or 3-Day Unconditional Notice to Quit.

The 3 days does count Saturdays, Sundays, and court holidays.

You want your month-to-month tenant to move out

30-day or 60-day Notice to Quit

30-day and 60-day Notices are used to cancel a month-to-month rental agreement.

Your right to use a 30-day or 60-day Notice is limited due to the Tenant Protection Act of 2019. This law requires many landlords to give a just cause to end a rental agreement. For example, the landlord must make major repairs for a required health and safety reasons. Or, that the landlord sold the house to someone who plans to move into it. If the law applies, your Notice must list a just cause. You may have to give your tenant money to help them move (relocation assistance).

Here are situations where you can use the 30-day or 60-day Notice without a just cause:

• If your tenant has lived in the home for less than a year. If you have more than 1 tenant in the same home, the one year is measured by the tenant who’s lived there the longest.
• If you live in the rental home (single-family home with no more than 2 in-law units, condominium, or apartment) with your tenant. But, eviction restrictions apply if you’re a primarytenant (you rent a home from the owner and then you rent out to other tenants).
• If you live in ½ of a duplex full-time and rent out the other half.
• New housing that's been built within the last 15 years

Get legal advice if your rental home is covered by your city or county’s eviction control laws (in addition to state laws), for multifamily residences, licensed care and health facilities, or other types of properties not mentioned here.

If you've researched the law and think you can end your month-to-month tenant's rental agreement, use these Notices when you want your tenant to move out. In general,

• Use a 30-day Notice to Quit (move out) to end a month-to-month tenancy if your tenant has been renting for less than 1 year
• Use a 60-day Notice to Quit if your tenant has been renting for 1 year or more

The Notice must be in writing and include:

• The tenant(s) full name(s)
• The rental home address
• That the month-to-month tenancy will end in 30 days if they're giving a 30-day Notice or in 60 days if they're giving a 60-day Notice
• A statement on how to pick up any property left behind (reclaim abandoned personal property)

If required by the Tenant Protection Act

• The just cause (legal reason)
• That if the tenant has lived in the home for more than 1 year they have (1) a right to money to help them move (relocation assistance) or (2) they don't have to pay their last month's rent (rent waiver). If you decide to waive last month's rent (choice 2) you'll include what the last month's rent amount is and that your tenant doesn't owe you rent for their last month.

The tenant lives in Section 8 subsidized housing

90-day Notice to Quit

Use this type of a Notice if the rental home is Section 8 subsidized housing. The Notice is a demand that the tenant move out within 90 days. Read more about ending a Section 8 tenancy.

You must have a legal reason ("just cause") to ask the tenant to move.

The Notice must be in writing and include:

• The date the tenancy will end ("be terminated")
• Detailed reason(s) for the eviction
• That if the tenant doesn't move out within 90 days the owner may start a court case to evict them and that they can give their side of the story then
• That they have 10 days to talk about the Notice with the landlord. The 10-day period begins on the day that the Notice is properly delivered to them
• That people with disabilities have the right to request reasonable accommodations to participate in the hearing process
• A statement on how to pick up any property left behind (reclaim abandoned personal property)

Your property is covered by the federal CARES Act

30-day Notice to Vacate

You must provide 30 days’ notice to vacate if your property is covered by the federal CARES Act (15 USC § 9058(c)). Property covered by the CARES Act means property where you

• are participating in a covered housing program as defined by the Violence Against Women Act
  (Note: There are separate notice requirements if the tenant is living in Section 8 subsidized housing. See the dropdown above titled "The tenant lives in Section 8 subsidized housing" for more information);
• are participating in the rural housing voucher program under section 542 of the Housing Act of 1949; or
• have a federally backed mortgage loan or a federally backed multifamily mortgage loan.