No Cause Evictions–what you need to know
Oregon No Cause Eviction Notices
An eviction can be an anxiety inducing event for all parties involved. To make matters worse, Oregon has a complicated tangle of laws dealing with when, how, and for what reasons a landlord may evict a tenant without cause. This article will briefly discuss the differing types of no cause evictions under Oregon law so that both landlords and tenants may be better informed about the eviction process and determine how best to proceed with a no cause eviction when receiving or delivering a notice.
An eviction is a highly technical process. If you are a tenant and you receive a No Cause Eviction Notice, or if you are a landlord and you are about to serve a No Cause Eviction Notice, read this article carefully and assess whether the notice meets all of the criteria required by Oregon law. This is important because if a landlord does not follow the Oregon eviction process carefully, they make a mistake along the way, or they do not include certain information or the incorrect information in an eviction notice, the tenant may have a strong legal defense against the eviction and potentially be entitled to damages and attorney fees.
Furthermore, merely serving or receiving an eviction notice is only the first step in a process. Only a judge may order a tenant to leave. The eviction notice, regardless of the reason for delivery, does not give the landlord the right to lock a tenant out of their home. Unlawfully excluding a tenant could potentially lead to a tenant being entitled to additional damages and attorney fees.
No Cause Eviction Notices Generally.
Generally, No Cause Evictions (with some important exceptions discussed below) must occur during the first year of a tenancy. After the first year of a tenancy, the circumstances with which the tenant may be evicted without cause are limited to certain specific circumstances and often require longer notice periods (as discussed below).
A No Cause Eviction Notice does not need to include any specific reason for the eviction, however, a legal notice must provide the exact date in which the “notice period” ends and when the tenant must move out of their home. Additionally, a legal notice must be in writing and either handed, mailed to, or posted on the tenant’s door as well as mailed to the tenant (if your rental agreement so allows).
Depending on the circumstances, the landlord may provide a tenant with either a 30, 60, or 90 day notice period.
During the First Year of Tenancy: True No Cause Eviction - 30 Day No Cause Eviction (month-to-month).
If the tenant is renting on a month-to-month basis, the landlord may lawfully terminate a tenancy at any time during the first year by giving the tenant a written 30 Day No Cause Eviction Notice.
During the First Year of Tenancy: True No Cause Eviction - 30 Day No Cause Eviction (fixed term).
If the tenant is renting on a fixed-term basis (such as a 6 month or year long lease) and the ending date of the fixed term falls within the first year of the tenancy, the landlord may lawfully terminate the tenancy without cause by giving you a written 30 Day No Cause Eviction Notice not less than 30 days prior to the specified ending date for the fixed term. (If on the other hand the tenant does not receive any notice from the landlord or the tenant does not enter into another fixed term agreement, the tenancy automatically converts into a month-to-month tenancy under the same terms as your previous agreement.)
After the First Year of Tenancy: “Qualifying Landlord Reason”- 90 Day No Cause Eviction (fixed term and month-to-month).
After the first year of occupancy, however, the landlord (with a few exceptions discussed below) may only terminate a tenancy without cause, if under a month-to-month rental agreement, by providing the tenant with a written 90 Day No Cause Eviction Notice at any time; or, if under a fixed term rental agreement, by providing the tenant with a written 90 Day No Cause Eviction Notice not less than 90 days prior to the specified ending date for the fixed term, but then only for certain “qualifying landlord reasons” which are strictly limited to the following circumstances:
The landlord intends to demolish the dwelling unit or convert the dwelling unit to a use other than residential use within a reasonable time;
The landlord intends to undertake repairs or renovations to the dwelling unit within a reasonable time and the premises is unsafe for occupancy or the dwelling unit will be unsafe or unfit for occupancy during the repairs or renovations;
The landlord intends for the landlord or a member of the landlord’s immediate family to occupy the dwelling unit as a primary residence and the landlord does not own a comparable unit in the same building that is available for occupancy at the same time that the tenant receives notice to terminate the tenancy; or
The landlord has accepted an offer to purchase the dwelling unit separately from any other dwelling unit from a person who intends in good faith to occupy the dwelling unit as the person’s primary residence; and provided the notice and written evidence of the offer to purchase the dwelling unit, to the tenant not more than 120 days after accepting the offer to purchase.
Furthermore, to be legal, any such written 90 Day No Cause Eviction Notice for a qualifying landlord reason must:
Specify in the termination notice the reason for the termination and supporting facts;
State that the rental agreement will terminate upon a designated date not less than 90 days after delivery of the notice; and
If the landlord own 5 or more residential rental units, at the time the landlord delivers the tenant the notice to terminate the tenancy, pay the tenant an amount equal to one month’s periodic rent.
3+ Violations of the Rental Agreement - 30 Day No Cause Eviction & Written Warning Notices (fixed term).
However, if the tenant has a fixed term tenancy and they have lived in the home longer than a year, the landlord may lawfully provide the tenant with a written 90 Day No Cause Eviction Notice at the end of their fixed term if the tenant has committed 3 or more violations of the rental agreement within the preceding 12-month period and the landlord has given the tenant a “Written Warning Notice” at the time of each violation. Any such lawful Written Warning Notice must:
Specify the violation;
State that the landlord may choose to terminate the tenancy at the end of the fixed term if there are 3 violations within a 12-month period preceding the end of the fixed term; and
State that correcting the third or subsequent violation is not a defense to termination under this subsection.
Furthermore, a lawful written 90 day No Cause Eviction Notice for 3 or more violations of the rental agreement must also:
State that the rental agreement will terminate upon the specified ending date for the fixed term or upon a designated date not less than 90 days after delivery of the notice, whichever is later;
Specify the reason for the termination and supporting facts; and
Be delivered to the tenant concurrent with or after the third or subsequent written warning notice.
Landlord Lives Onsite or On the Same Property - 30 Day or 60 Day No Cause Eviction (month-to-month).
Additionally, if the tenant has a month-to-month rental agreement and the landlord lives in the same building, or on the same property, as the tenant, and the building or property does not contain more than 2 dwelling units, the landlord may then lawfully evict the tenant at any time, regardless of how long the tenant has lived there, without cause either with a written 60 Day No Cause Eviction Notice without qualification, or a written 30 Day No Cause Eviction Notice but then only if:
The dwelling unit is purchased separately from any other dwelling unit;
The landlord has accepted an offer to purchase the dwelling unit from a person who intends in good faith to occupy the dwelling unit as the person’s primary residence; and
The landlord has provided the notice, and written evidence of the offer to purchase the dwelling unit, to the tenant not more than 120 days after accepting the offer to purchase.
Landlord Lives Onsite or On the Same Property - 30 Day No Cause Eviction (fixed term).
Finally, if the tenant has a fixed term rental agreement and the landlord lives in the same building, or on the same property as the tenant, and the building or property does not contain more than 2 dwelling units, the landlord may lawfully evict the tenant without cause, regardless of how long the tenant has lived there, with a written 30 Day No Cause Eviction Notice prior to the specified ending date for the fixed term.
If you have read this article and you have questions about No Cause Evictions or any other landlord-tenant matter, please, feel free to contact Andrew Downs Law, LLC with any and all of your inquiries.