My tenant mailed me a 30 day notice that he was moving out. At the end of 30 days he text messaged me that his "loan" had not gone through and if could just continue paying and go on as before, I agreed. Four days later he left a message on my cell saying that he was leaving a the end of this week (today). I donot consider that to be another 30 day notice, can I penalize him for not giving enough notice to work on renting the house? I am in California.
Thanxs, val99

You were kind to allow him to stay. Many other landlords would have said, "tough luck, now get out". I would say he owes you for another month. Sending you a text message is really poor taste. You could have rented to someone else and now you are out. I would seek the full month's rent.

Did you keep documentation of his notice and his text message? You might need that and ANY other documentation, witnesses, etc. that you have. As it might end up in small claims court. Good luck.

Here is a little info from Robert Griswold, Landlord/Tenant Expert:

Q:I live in an apartment on a month-to-month rental agreement and plan to move if I find a better deal elsewhere. My question is about the 30-day notice to vacate.

If I give my notice but don't find another apartment, can I legally withdraw my notice? My friend says that it can be done as long as it is at least a few days before the 30 days are over. In other words, the apartment management cannot force me to move if I change my mind.

Property manager Robert Griswold replies: Your friend is wrong. The notice is binding and any holdover beyond the expiration date could make you liable for damages incurred by the landlord or a new tenant should you continue to occupy the apartment.

The landlord can agree to let you rescind the notice but would typically only do so if he either had not yet rented your unit or could reach an agreement with the incoming tenant to accept a different unit.

I wouldn't count on the cooperation of the landlord or a potential tenant merely because you have changed your mind. If you refuse to leave, you could find yourself liable to an incoming tenant for her costs of not being able to move in as planned. I suggest you only give your 30-day notice when you are sure that you are moving and know exactly when.

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Originally Posted by val99

my tenant mailed me a 30 day notice that he was moving out. At the end of 30 days he text messaged me that his "loan" had not gone through and if could just continue paying and go on as before, I agreed. Four days later he left a message on my cell saying that he was leaving a the end of this week (today). I donot consider that to be another 30 day notice, can I penalize him for not giving enough notice to work on renting the house? I am in california.
Thanxs, val99

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Did you work on re-renting before he changed his mind? Can you show advertisements in the paper? An effort to re-rent? After all your efforts, he changed his mind and the two of you agreed to a 30 day verbal rental agreement. You cancelled the ad in the newspaper, stopped taking phone calls and on several occasions turned potential tenants away. Is this somewhat correct? Then I would be keeping the security deposit to cover the expenses of him leaving and you again placing the ad and taking the calls.