Requirements for a 3-day notice to pay rent or quit in California

Requirements for a 3-day notice to pay rent or quit in California.

The requirements for a 3-day notice to pay rent or quit in California are the topic of this blog post.

This blog post will discuss the requirements for a 3-day notice to pay rent or quit in California.

I have seen a lot of 3-day notices to pay rent or quit as I worked in California and Federal litigation from January 1995 through September and prior to that I worked in both commercial and residential property management for several years.

I want to emphasize that if you are a tenant in California that has been served with a 3-day notice to pay rent or quit the first thing you need to do is closely examine the notice to determine if it meets the requirements discussed in this blog post. If the three-day notice is defective than a demurer can be filed objecting to the complaint on the grounds that the three-day notice is defective or the defective notice can be raised as an affirmative defense in the answer.

California law requires that a 3-day notice to pay rent or quit must contain the following information.

1. The exact amount of rent due must be stated clearly on the notice. If the amount is overstated the notice may be considered fatally defective and will not support an eviction proceeding. This does not apply to commercial tenancies. But even with a commercial tenancy, a demand that exceeds 20 percent of the amount due is defective and will not support an eviction judgment.

2.  The notice must state the entire street address of the premises, must have the name, address and phone number of the person to pay the rent to, as well as the days of the week and hours in which the rent may be paid unless an alternative method of paying the rent is specified in the notice.

If it does not state these items the notice is defective and a general demurrer to the complaint may be filed.

The landlord must wait the entire three days to allow the tenant to comply with the notice. If the last day to comply is a Saturday, Sunday or Court holiday the tenant has until the end of the next business day to comply with the notice.

I want to stress again that any missing or incorrect information in the 3-day notice to pay rent or quit is grounds for a demurrer. If the 3-day notice is defective then the unlawful detainer complaint fails to state a cause of action and the demurrer should be sustained without leave to amend because the law cannot presume that a new and proper notice would be served and that the defendant would then fail to comply with a new notice.

This means that the landlord must prepare and serve a valid three-day notice to pay rent or quit, wait the appropriate amount of time, and then file another complaint if the notice is not complied with.

Attorneys or parties in California who would like to view a portion of an 11 page sample demurrer to an unlawful detainer (eviction) complaint in California objecting to the complaint on several grounds, including that the three-day notice is defective containing a memorandum of points and authorities with citations to case law and statutory authority and proof of service by mail sold by the author can use the link shown below.

Sample Demurrer to Unlawful Detainer (Eviction) Complaint for California by Stan Burman on Scribd

 

Attorneys or parties in California who wish more information on a collection of sample documents for use by tenants in California evictions containing over 30 documents including the demurrer to an eviction complaint sold by the author can use the link shown below.

https://legaldocspro.myshopify.com/products/california-eviction-litigation-document-collection

Over 300 sample legal documents for California and Federal litigation for sale.

To view more information on over 300 sample legal documents for California and Federal litigation visit: https://legaldocspro.myshopify.com/products

The author of this blog post, Stan Burman, is an entrepreneur and retired litigation paralegal that worked in California and Federal litigation from January 1995 through September 2017 and has created over 300 sample legal documents for sale.

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DISCLAIMER:

Please note that the author of this blog post, Stan Burman is NOT an attorney and as such is unable to provide any specific legal advice. The author is NOT engaged in providing any legal, financial, or other professional services, and any information contained in this blog post is NOT intended to constitute legal advice.

The materials and information contained in this blog post have been prepared by Stan Burman for informational purposes only and are not legal advice. Transmission of the information contained in this blog post is not intended to create, and receipt does not constitute, any business relationship between the author and any readers. Readers should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel.