New York Month-to-month Rental Agreement Template

A rental agreement with no fixed end date. It renews each month until the landlord or tenant gives proper written notice. This edition fills in the New York rules we could confirm and marks the rest as blanks to check.

New York rules for this form

Month-to-month notice. To end a month-to-month tenancy, a landlord gives 30, 60 or 90 days of written notice depending on how long the tenant has lived there. (Real Property Law (month-to-month tenancies, as amended in 2019))

Notice before a rent increase. An increase of 5 percent or more needs 30 days of written notice if the tenant has lived there under a year, 60 days for one to two years, and 90 days for more than two years. (Real Property Law section 226-c)

Notice before a rent increase. Rent stabilized tenants receive renewal lease offers with increases limited to the rates generally set by the local rent guidelines board. (Rent Stabilization Law and Code)

Deposit limit. For most rentals, the deposit and any advance payment together may not exceed one month of rent. (General Obligations Law section 7-108)

Deadline to return the deposit. The landlord must return the deposit, minus lawful deductions, within 14 days after the tenant moves out. (General Obligations Law section 7-108)

Notice before entry. There is no statewide statute on entry notice, so the lease controls and landlords are generally expected to give reasonable advance notice except in emergencies. (New York Real Property Law (no statewide entry statute))

Late fees. A late fee may not exceed $50 or 5 percent of the monthly rent, whichever is less. (Real Property Law section 238-a)

Required disclosures. Homes built before 1978 need the federal lead-based paint disclosure and the EPA pamphlet. (Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act (42 U.S.C. 4852d))

Required disclosures. The lease must state in bold type whether the unit has a working sprinkler system. (Real Property Law section 231-a)

Required disclosures. The lease generally must disclose whether the property is in a flood zone and whether it has flood damage history. (New York Real Property Law (flood disclosure))

Cities and counties in New York can add their own rules on top of these. Check local ordinances before you sign.

What is in the template

1. Parties
2. Property
3. Monthly term
4. Ending the tenancy
5. Rent
6. Changes to rent or terms
7. Security deposit
8. Utilities
9. Use, guests and pets
10. Care, repairs and alterations
11. Entry
12. Subletting
13. Default
14. Moving out
15. Disclosures
16. General terms
17. Signatures

Before you use it

• A month-to-month agreement renews automatically each rental period until someone gives written notice.
• Notice periods to end the tenancy or change the rent are set by state law, and some cities require longer notice or a valid reason.
• The flexibility cuts both ways: the tenant can leave on short notice, so turnover can come sooner.
• Everything else, from deposit limits to entry notice, follows the same rules as a fixed-term lease.

For the full explanation of this form, read our guide to the month-to-month rental agreement.