Eviction notice template
The notice you serve before any eviction case: pay the rent or leave, or fix the breach or leave. Fill it in, print it, serve it, and complete the proof of service on your own copy the same day.
Pre-filled with an example. Replace every bracket, and take the period from your own state's statute.
Notice to pay rent or quit
Statements added to the notice
Preview
NOTICE TO PAY RENT OR QUIT To: Dana Whitfield And all other occupants: None known Premises: 1412 Ashgrove Ave, Unit 2 Rent for the premises is unpaid. You owe $1,450.00 for November 2026. Within [__] days after service of this notice, you must either pay the full amount above or move out and deliver possession of the premises. This period ends on [date]. Pay to: M. Reyes, 88 Linden Court, Suite 4 How to pay: In person Mon to Fri, 9am to 5pm, or by the bank transfer already set up The amount above is rent only. It includes no late fees, utilities or other charges. If you neither pay nor move out within the period, the landlord may file an eviction case in court. Only a court can order you to leave. M. Reyes (555) 010-0144 Date: 3 November 2026 PROOF OF SERVICE I served this notice on 3 November 2026 by: Hand delivery to the tenant. Served by: M. Reyes, owner Signature: ______________________ Date: ____________
Not legal advice. Several states and cities publish a mandatory notice form or required wording; where one exists, use it instead of this sheet.
This sheet is not legal advice
An eviction notice with the wrong period, the wrong amount or the wrong delivery is void, and you start again from day one. Some states and cities publish a mandatory form or require exact wording; where they do, use theirs, not this one. If the tenant has a lawyer or a housing agency involved, get your own before you serve.
Which version of the notice to use
The toggle above gives the two notices most landlords actually need. Use pay rent or quit when the only problem is unpaid rent. Use cure or quit when the tenant has broken a lease term that can be put right, like an unauthorised pet or an extra occupant. The other notice types, and when a state lets you skip the cure, are covered in types of eviction notices.
If there is no breach and you simply want the tenancy to end, this is the wrong document. Use the notice to vacate template instead, and check whether a month-to-month tenancy needs a longer period.
Two states, side by side
These two statutes show how much the rules move between states. Read your own before you fill in the period.
| Rule | California | Texas |
|---|---|---|
| Period | 3 days, not counting Saturdays, Sundays or judicial holidays | At least 3 days, unless the written lease says shorter or longer |
| Form for unpaid rent | A demand for the rent or possession | A notice to pay rent or vacate, if the tenant was not late before that month |
| Must state | Amount due, and the payee's name, phone and address | No list in § 24.005; check your justice court's rules |
| Delivery | Personally; or left with a suitable person plus mailed; or posted plus mailed | Mail; inside the unit in a conspicuous place; hand delivery to a tenant 16 or older; or e-mail if agreed in writing |
Sources, checked 2026-10-18: Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 1161, § 1162, and Tex. Prop. Code § 24.005 as amended from January 1, 2026.
Texas changed its rules on January 1, 2026
The old delivery rules (posting on the inside of the main door, the sealed "IMPORTANT DOCUMENT" envelope) were repealed. Any Texas template or guide written before 2026 may show the old methods.
How to fill in each line
- 01Names. Every tenant on the lease, spelled as on the lease, plus every other adult living there. A judgment only reaches the people you named.
- 02Amount. Rent only, to the cent, matching your rent ledger. In California, a pay-or-quit can be served any time within one year after the rent became due.
- 03Period and end date. Copy the number of days from your statute, then count it forward on a calendar using your state's counting rule and write the end date in.
- 04Where and how to pay. A name, address and phone the tenant can actually reach, and the days and hours if payment can be made in person.
- 05The breach (cure or quit only). The lease clause and what happened, specifically enough that the tenant knows exactly what to fix.
- 06Proof of service. Fill it in on your copy when you serve, not later. Photograph a posted notice in place.
The federal 30-day check
If your property has a federally backed mortgage (one bought or securitized by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, or insured or guaranteed by a federal agency) or takes part in a covered federal housing program, 15 U.S.C. § 9058(c) says you may not require the tenant to vacate until 30 days after you give a notice to vacate (checked 2026-10-18). A 3-day state notice does not shorten that.
Texas wrote this into its own statute: when a federal rule requires notice, the eviction case can go ahead, but the writ of possession cannot be served until the federal period has run. Check your loan before you serve.
Before you serve it
- The amount matches the ledger, and you have a receipt for every payment the tenant made.
- You have checked whether your city adds just-cause or extra notice rules.
- You know your state's rule on accepting part payment after the notice. Taking money can cancel the notice; if you do take it, use a rent receipt that says it was partial.
- You have not changed the locks, removed belongings or cut a utility, and you will not. Entry for any reason still follows the right-of-entry rules.
If the period ends with no payment and no cure, the next step is the court filing in how to file an eviction notice. Before you file, price the alternative: a move-out agreement is often cheaper than a contested case once you run the numbers in the turnover cost calculator.
Sources read for this page
- Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 1161checked 2026-10-18
- Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 1162checked 2026-10-18
- Tex. Prop. Code § 24.005checked 2026-10-18
- 15 U.S.C. § 9058checked 2026-10-18