• There are several reasons that a landlord of a rental property might want to break a lease with the tenant. Perhaps, for financial reasons, the landlord needs to put the property up for sale instead of continuing to lease the property. Maybe after living somewhere else for awhile, he must move back into the property. The worst-case scenario for any landlord, however, is having to evict a tenant who has broken a clause in the lease contract, by, for example, not paying rent.
  
  

State Laws

• If you are a landlord who is considering getting out of a lease with a tenant, the first thing to do is to check your state laws regarding landlords and tenants. Every state has a unique process for legally evicting a tenant. It is imperative to understand your rights and also your limitations when breaking a lease as a landlord.
  
  

Legal Help

• When planning to break a lease, contact a lawyer to talk about state laws and your legal rights as a landlord evicting a tenant. You'll want to contact the lawyer before you do anything to make sure that everything you do is according to the law. Discuss the entire process with a lawyer to gain an understanding of your right as the landlord and the rights of the tenant.
  
  

Due Process

• Most states share a common procedure for evicting a tenant. Eviction almost always starts with a notice from the landlord, which gives the tenant a chance to appear in court before being removed or to take care of certain things to avoid eviction. For example, if a tenant hasn't paid rent because the living conditions of the property are not up to code, then the tenant may have a right to withhold rent until the property is fixed. In any situation where the tenant may have a valid reason for not paying rent, the tenant has an opportunity to defend herself in court before the eviction process can proceed.
  
  

Types of Notices

• Figure out which type of eviction notice to send. The most common is the notice due to nonpayment of rent. This almost always requires the tenant to either pay up or vacate the property.
  
  The second type is the notice to vacate, which can be conditional or unconditional. This notice can either demand possession of the property in a certain time period or allow the tenant to choose whether to correct something, besides rent, or leave.
  
  In some states, you can send a termination of lease if the situation is extreme, such as the tenant being involved in illegal activity on the property. If the illegal activity on the property doesn't end after you've requested that the tenant stop participating in illegal acts, then you can file suit against the tenant. Always enlist the help of law enforcement if you find yourself in this situation.
  
  

Avoid Eviction

• In general, breaking a lease with a tenant can be a long, arduous, and often expensive process. If possible, attempt to reconcile any conflicts and repair the landlord/tenant relationship before moving forward with eviction.