questions & answers

Question: received my billing statement for rent,and i noticed that we are being charged month to month rent because our lease expired,but was not givin noticed that our lease was about end and did not agree to pay month to month.Can my landlord charge us month to month rent without us signing a renewal lease from agreeing to pay month to month?

Answer: As a general rule, if a tenant continues to live in a rental unit even after the rental agreement has expired, then the landlord may continue to charge the tenant rent. Under the Arizona Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (A.R.S. Title 33 Chapter 10), any relevant terms or conditions that were stated in the lease that has expired will govern any subsequent tenancy, unless the previous lease was explicitly terminated or renewed or a new agreement was entered into (A.R.S. 33-1314). Ordinarily, unless the lease itself says otherwise or the landlord or the tenant gives notice of termination or non-renewal to the other, the rental agreement continues on a month-to-month basis, and each party has the right to terminate that tenancy by giving the other party at least thirty days notice (A.R.S. 33-1375). (The landlord may only raise the monthly rent by providing the tenant with advance written notice (and therefore the option to stay or leave), so a tenant who, upon receiving no notice from the landlord, continues to live in the rental unit even after the rental agreement has expired may only be charged the original rent.)