A Virginia month-to-month rental agreement is a contract (not necessarily in writing) for a tenant to rent property from a landlord, one month at a time, in exchange for a fee (“rent”). The agreement renews monthly, until either party gives proper notice to end it.
Basics of a Virginia Month-to-Month Rental Agreement
In Virginia, a landlord and tenant create a month-to-month lease by agreeing to rent a property according to acceptable terms. Written agreements are clearer and more reliable in case of disagreement, but month-to-month oral (unwritten) leases are legal.
Parties under a month-to-month lease have full rights under Virginia landlord-tenant law. The tenant must use the property in a responsible way and pay rent on time. The landlord must ensure the tenant’s quiet enjoyment of the property. This includes keeping critical features of the property in good working condition.
The main difference between a month-to-month lease and a fixed-term lease is that month-to-month leases can be terminated (with proper notice) by either party, for any reason, without penalty. Landlords also can usually modify terms from one month to the next, again with proper notice.
Required Disclosures for Month-to-Month Rentals in Virginia
Virginia landlords may not rent a property out without making the following disclosures to a potential tenant, as relevant:
- Landlord’s Name and Address – Landlords must give the tenant their name and address, or that of their authorized agent. This helps ensure smooth communication and payment of rent in the event of any unusual situations. Typically includes additional contact information for the landlord and authorized agents, such as phone numbers and email addresses.
- Shared Utilities – Virginia leases which share a utility meter with other units must disclose how they divide utility costs up. This ensures tenants receive fair charges and understand what uses contribute to their bill.
- Move-In Checklist – Landlords must provide tenants with a move-in checklist to take inventory of existing property damage before move-in. This helps ensure accurate deductions from the deposit upon move-out.
- Statement of Tenant Rights and Responsibilities – Landlords must accompany every new lease with a Statement of Tenant Rights and Responsibilities produced by the state Department of Housing and Community Development.
- Fee Disclosure Statement – Landlords must disclose the total rent and all fees which may be charged under the lease. This disclosure must come together with a statement that the landlord can’t charge fees which aren’t in the disclosure, unless agreed later in writing via addendum.
- Mold Disclosure Virginia landlords must disclose any visible evidence of mold in the rental unit, in writing, with any initial inventory of the rental property.
- Demolition/Displacement Notice – Virginia landlords must provide a disclosure when they plan to displace tenants within six months of move-in due. This disclosure is required for upcoming property demolition, rehabilitation, or conversion.
- Military Air Installation Disclosure – Virginia rentals must disclose a risk for noise disturbances and/or accidents, when located near a relevant military air installation.
- Defective Drywall Disclosure – Virginia leases must disclose any knowledge of potentially hazardous defective drywall.
- Methamphetamine Disclosure – Virginia landlords must disclose any knowledge relating to methamphetamine manufacturing or contamination on rental property.
- Lead-Based Paint – Landlords must provide an EPA-approved disclosure and informational pamphlet to tenants renting any property built before 1978.
The state page for fixed-term leases may have more detailed information on required disclosures.
Required Notice To End a Month-to-Month Rental in Virginia
Virginia lets both the landlord or tenant end a month-to-month lease with at least 30 days of advance notice. In general, it’s valid to end a month-to-month lease for any reason that isn’t landlord retaliation.
Virginia requires written notice to end a month-to-month lease. In some cases, this notice can be electronic. Notice standards differ in Virginia depending on whether or not the housing unit is regulated by a rental assistance or public housing program.
Required Notice To Raise the Rent on a Virginia Month-to-Month Lease
Virginia does not set a specific timeframe for notice to raise the rent. This means in most cases it’s reasonable for a landlord to follow the standard notice procedure for major lease changes like termination. In Virginia, this is 30 days.
Eviction in Virginia Month-to-Month Rentals
Virginia tenants may get evicted if they violate lease terms or stay on the property after the notice period allowed by a valid termination. Evictions in Virginia typically take two to four months.
For more information on the eviction process in Virginia, click here.
Sources
- 1 Va. Code § 55.1-1204(B)
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A landlord shall offer a prospective tenant a written rental agreement containing the terms governing the rental of the dwelling unit and setting forth the terms and conditions of the landlord-tenant relationship and shall provide with it the statement of tenant rights and responsibilities developed by the Department of Housing and Community Development and posted on its website pursuant to § 36-139. The parties to a written rental agreement shall sign the form developed by the Department of Housing and Community Development and posted on its website pursuant to § 36-139 acknowledging that the tenant has received from the landlord the statement of tenant rights and responsibilities. The written rental agreement shall be effective upon the date signed by the parties.
If a tenant fails to sign the form available pursuant to this subsection, the landlord shall record the date or dates on which he provided the form to the tenant and the fact that the tenant failed to sign such form. Subsequent to the effective date of the tenancy, a landlord may, but shall not be required to, provide a tenant with and allow such tenant an opportunity to sign the form described pursuant to this subsection. The form shall be current as of the date of delivery.
Source Link - 2 Va. Code § 55.1-1204.1
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A landlord shall provide, beginning on the first page of the written rental agreement, a description of any rent and fees to be charged to the tenant in addition to the periodic rent. Immediately above the list of fees, the written rental agreement shall state: No fee shall be collected unless it is listed below or incorporated into this agreement by way of a separate addendum after execution of this rental agreement.
Source Link - 3 Va. Code § 55.1-1204(H)
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The landlord shall provide a copy of the signed written rental agreement and the statement of tenant rights and responsibilities to the tenant within 10 business days of the effective date of the written rental agreement. The failure of the landlord to deliver such a rental agreement and statement shall not affect the validity of the agreement. However, the landlord shall not file or maintain an action, including any summons for unlawful detainer, against the tenant in a court of law for any alleged lease violation until he has provided the tenant with the statement of tenant rights and responsibilities.The landlord shall provide the tenant with an additional hard copy of such tenant’s rental agreement once per year upon request or shall maintain such rental agreement in an electronic format that can be easily accessed by or shared with the tenant upon request. Any additional electronic copy of a tenant’s rental agreement provided pursuant to this subsection shall be provided by the landlord at no charge to the tenant.
Source Link - 4 Va. Code § 55.1-1253(A) & (B)
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A. The landlord or the tenant may terminate a week-to-week tenancy by serving a written notice on the other at least seven days prior to the next rent due date. The landlord or the tenant may terminate a month-to-month tenancy by serving a written notice on the other at least 30 days prior to the next rent due date, unless the rental agreement provides for a different notice period. The landlord and the tenant may agree in writing to an early termination of a rental agreement. In the event that no such agreement is reached, the provisions of § 55.1-1251 shall control.
B. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection A, any owner of a multifamily premises that fails to renew the greater of either 20 or more month-to-month tenancies or 50 percent of the month-to-month tenancies within a consecutive 30-day period in the same multifamily premises shall serve written notice on each such tenant at least 60 days prior to allowing such tenancy to expire. For the purposes of this subsection, 60 days’ notice shall not be required to allow a tenancy to expire where the tenant has failed to pay rent in accordance with the rental agreement.
Source Link - 5 Va. Code § 55.1-1202
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A. If the rental agreement so provides, the landlord and tenant may send notices in electronic form; however, any tenant who so requests may elect to send and receive notices in paper form. If electronic delivery is used, the sender shall retain sufficient proof of the electronic delivery, which may be an electronic receipt of delivery, a confirmation that the notice was sent by facsimile, or a certificate of service prepared by the sender confirming the electronic delivery.
B. In the case of the landlord, notice is served on the landlord at his place of business where the rental agreement was made or at any place held out by the landlord as the place for receipt of the communication.
In the case of the tenant, notice is served at the tenant’s last known place of residence, which may be the dwelling unit.
C. Notice, knowledge, or a notice or notification received by an organization is effective for a particular transaction from the time it is brought to the attention of the person conducting that transaction, or from the time it would have been brought to his attention if the organization had exercised reasonable diligence.
D. No notice of termination of tenancy served upon a tenant by a public housing authority organized under the Housing Authorities Law (§ 36-1 et seq.) shall be effective unless it contains on its first page, in type no smaller or less legible than that otherwise used in the body of the notice, the name, address, and telephone number of the legal aid program, if any, serving the jurisdiction in which the premises is located.
No notice of termination of tenancy served upon a tenant receiving tenant-based rental assistance through (i) the Housing Choice Voucher Program, 42 U.S.C. § 1437f(o), or (ii) any other federal, state, or local program by a private landlord shall be effective unless it contains on its first page, in type no smaller or less legible than that otherwise used in the body of the notice, the statewide legal aid telephone number and website address.
E. The landlord may, in accordance with a written agreement, delegate to a managing agent or other third party the responsibility of providing any written notice under this chapter. The landlord may also engage an attorney at law to prepare or provide any written notice under this chapter or legal process under Title 8.01. Nothing herein shall be construed to preclude use of an electronic signature as defined in § 59.1-480, or an electronic notarization as defined in § 47.1-2, in any written notice under this chapter or legal process under Title 8.01.
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