Lease Violation
A tenant's failure to follow a term of the lease agreement, which may give the landlord grounds to take action, including starting an eviction.
A lease violation happens when a tenant does not follow one of the rules in the lease agreement. Common examples include having an unauthorized pet, making too much noise, letting someone else live in the unit without permission (subletting), or paying rent late. The lease is a contract between you and your landlord, and both sides are expected to follow its terms.
In Minnesota, a landlord generally cannot jump straight to eviction over a lease violation. The landlord must first give the tenant notice of the problem and, in many cases, a chance to fix it. For example, if the violation is an unauthorized pet, the landlord may give you written notice and a reasonable amount of time to remove the pet or face further action. If the tenant corrects the problem within the time given, the landlord may not be able to move forward with an eviction based on that violation.
Not every disagreement between a landlord and tenant counts as a lease violation. The issue must involve a specific term that is written in the lease. If you receive a notice claiming you violated your lease, read the lease carefully to see if the landlord’s claim matches what the agreement actually says.
Why it matters: Understanding what counts as a lease violation, and what your landlord must do before taking action, protects you from being pushed out unfairly. Landlords must follow a process, and tenants have the right to correct many problems before an eviction can move forward.
Example: Sarah has a lease for her apartment in Duluth that says no pets are allowed. She adopts a cat without telling her landlord. The landlord sends her a written notice about the lease violation and gives her 14 days to remove the cat or face possible eviction proceedings. Sarah rehomes the cat within the 14 days. Because she fixed the violation within the time allowed, the landlord cannot use that incident as the basis for an eviction.
When a landlord claims you broke a rule in your lease, or when you receive a warning or cure notice