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Pennsylvania month-to-month termination notice

As of October 27, 2026, Pennsylvania state law sets 15 days’ notice to end a month-to-month lease, but Philadelphia requires a good cause reason and at least 30 days.1,2

Updated Checked against palegis.us, phila.govHow we check

Pennsylvania at a glance

Month-to-month notice
15 days1

A dash or a missing box means the official pages we read do not state that rule; we never fill it in from memory.

Pennsylvania’s rules, with sources

Deadlines
  • For a Pennsylvania lease of one year or less, or one with no set length such as month to month, the landlord’s notice to quit at the end of the term allows 15 days from service.1
Delivering the notice
  • Pennsylvania state law allows the notice to quit to be served in person, left at the principal building on the premises, or posted conspicuously on the property.1
  • Philadelphia’s good cause notice goes by hand delivery or by first-class mail with proof of mailing.2
Law
  • Pennsylvania lets the written lease set a shorter notice period, or have the tenant give up the notice entirely.1
  • In Philadelphia, a landlord may not end or decline to renew a lease of less than one year, including a month-to-month tenancy, without a good cause reason.2
  • Philadelphia requires at least 30 days’ written notice stating the good cause reasons; without a proper notice, the lease renews month to month.2
  • A Philadelphia tenant who disagrees with the notice can file a complaint with the Fair Housing Commission or in court within 15 business days of receiving it.2

Questions about a Pennsylvania termination notice

How much notice ends a month-to-month lease in Pennsylvania?

Under state law, 15 days from the date the notice to quit is served, because a month-to-month rental is a lease for one year or less or for an indeterminate time. A lease of more than one year takes 30 days.

The Landlord and Tenant Act lets the lease shorten that notice or waive it, so the rental agreement is part of the answer.1

Can a Philadelphia landlord end a month-to-month lease without a reason?

No. The Philadelphia Fair Housing Commission explains that leases under one year, month to month included, end or go unrenewed only for good cause, such as habitual late rent, a breach of a material lease term, or the owner or a family member moving in.

The notice must be in writing, give at least 30 days and state the reasons, and it goes by hand or by first-class mail with proof of mailing. That is why a no-reason notice built on the 15-day state rule does not work inside the city.2

What to have at hand

  • Property address, unit and county
  • The date the tenancy began
  • The last day of the tenancy, counted from your state’s notice period
  • A mailing address where the tenant returns keys and sends a forwarding address

It is not for late rent or a lease violation, which take a different notice, and it does not end a fixed-term lease before its end date.

Month-to-Month Termination Notice in other states

More for Pennsylvania

Where this information comes from

Pennsylvania’s rules above come from the state’s own statutes, agency pages and forms, read on the date shown. A rule that passes its review date without a new check is removed automatically.

  1. Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951 (Pennsylvania General Assembly, unconsolidated statutes) palegis.us · checked Oct 27, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩
  2. Unfair rental practices (Philadelphia Fair Housing Commission) phila.gov · checked Oct 27, 2026 Open the official page (opens in a new tab) ↩

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