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Can you leave your apartment before the end of the notice period?
When you rent an apartment, you agree to follow several rules defined by the law. These rules apply throughout the duration of your lease, as well as when you wish to leave and return the apartment to its owner. The rule differs if you rent a furnished or unfurnished apartment, in a tense area or not. In any case, you must inform your landlord or the agency managing your lease of your desire to give notice by a registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt or by hand delivery against a receipt signed by the landlord or agency.
Before your departure, you are legally required to respect a notice period, which is a period during which you continue to pay your rent and are allowed to continue living in the apartment. It mainly serves to give you time to find new housing, move out, and for your landlord to find a new tenant. The notice period varies depending on the situation of your accommodation and will be closed on the due date, in other words, 1 to 3 months after the date mentioned on the acknowledgment of receipt of your mail, and by the outgoing inventory, as well as by the return of keys and the restitution of your security deposit.
To learn more about the notice period, read our article on the duration of a rental notice!
How to leave your apartment?
To give notice of leaving your rented apartment, you must write a termination letter or a letter clearly indicating your desire to terminate your lease before your actual departure. The letter must include:
- Today's date,
- your contact information,
- your landlord's contact information,
- the subject,
- the excerpt of the applicable law,
- the legal notice period depending on your situation,
- your planned moving date,
- your signature.
For more details on how to write your termination letter, find our tips in this article.
You must send the letter to your landlord or the agency managing your lease, either by sending it as a registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt or by delivering it in person and obtaining a signed receipt. Keep this proof of receipt carefully; it is the date mentioned on it + 1 to 3 months that counts.
Then, you will have to respect a more or less long period of time, as defined by the law, during which you will have to continue paying your rent and can still stay in the apartment. This is called the notice period, and it is put in place to give you time to find a new place, move out, and allow your landlord to find a new tenant. At the end of this non-negotiable period, unless an agreement has been reached with your landlord, you will no longer be bound by your lease agreement. You will also need to carry out the move-out inventory and return the keys in person before leaving the premises permanently.
What are the rules for the notice period before leaving?
The date
If you decide to terminate your lease voluntarily, you can give notice for any period of the year and on a date of your choice, without justification. Your only obligation is to respect the notice period defined by law (1 to 3 months depending on the situation of the housing) and the rules that frame it:
- payment of rent,
- move-out inventory,
- return of keys.
The duration
The rules for the notice period before leaving differ depending on the situation of your accommodation:
- If you rent a furnished apartment, this period is 1 month.
- If you rent an unfurnished apartment, it is 3 months.
- If it is an unfurnished apartment in a tense area, it is reduced to 1 month.
Discover what changes in tight housing market areas in our article!
During this period, you are obliged to pay your rent and can continue to occupy the accommodation until the deadline, but you are not obligated to do so. The notice period can of course be extended or shortened, and the amount of rent due can be reduced by mutual agreement with your landlord, but the latter cannot force you to do so.
This notice period is allocated for your move-out, and for your landlord, it is the time to find a new tenant.
Inventory
Before your departure, you will have to carry out the move-out inventory, at the latest on the date of expiration of the notice period. It is also the moment when you will hand over the keys to your landlord or to the managing agency of your accommodation. The latter will then have to return your security deposit check or not, depending on the conclusions of the move-out inventory.
The move-in inventory will be taken as reference, if damages have been caused, a part or the entirety of your security deposit may be retained to proceed with the repairs. Your landlord has a period of two months to return your security deposit to you, starting from the date of handing over the keys in person.
The appointment for the move-out inventory is established by mutual agreement between the landlord and the tenant or, failing that, on the date of expiration of the notice period. And to learn all about how to carry out the move-out inventory, we invite you to read the article on the subject.
Can you leave your accommodation before the end of the notice period?
You have the right to leave your accommodation before the end of your notice period, but you are required to pay your rent until the expiration date of your notice period, even if you decide not to occupy the premises during part or all of the period and have already carried out the move-out inventory, as well as returned the keys.
However, it is possible to reach an amicable agreement with your landlord regarding the deadline and the amount due, but he is not obliged to respond to your requests.
Should rent be paid after the move-out inventory?
Your notice period runs from 1 to 3 months from the date of receipt of your letter. For organizational reasons, you may wish to carry out the move-out inventory and return the keys before the expiration date of your notice period, you have the right to request it.
However, you are required to honor payment of your rent until the expiration date of the notice period, as defined by law and the receipt of your letter.
