Breaking a lease in Rhode Island

Chapter 34-18 gives a tenant three ways to end a lease early. A tenant who is 65 or older, or turns 65 during the term, may end it to move into assisted living, a nursing facility or federally designated elderly housing, by written notice with proof of admission; it ends no earlier than 45 days after the first rent due date after the notice. A servicemember may end it after entering military service, or on permanent change of station or deployment orders of at least 90 days, by written notice with a copy of the orders. Since July 1, 2026, a tenant may also end it without penalty if the tenant or a household member was a victim of abuse, domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking within the last 150 days, with written verification.

R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-15 R.I. Gen. Laws § 30-7-10 R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-40 R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-63 (P.L. 2026, ch. 147)

• For a monthly lease, the servicemember's termination takes effect 30 days after the next rent due date following the notice. Rent is prorated, no early termination charge is allowed, prepaid rent is refunded within 30 days, and dependents are released. R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-15(f)
• National Guard members on state active duty for more than 90 days in a row have the rights of the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, including ending a lease. R.I. Gen. Laws § 30-7-10
• If a tenant leaves without notice, with rent more than 15 days unpaid and substantially all belongings gone, send a certified letter saying you will re-rent unless you hear back in seven days, then make reasonable efforts to re-rent at a fair rent. R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-11(1) R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-40 See Abandonment and belongings left behind on the Rhode Island page
• A party harmed by a breach must take reasonable steps to limit the damages. R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-5(a)
• If the last tenant on the lease dies, a live-in caregiver or another adult living there may continue the lease for three months or the rest of the term, whichever is shorter. R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-38(d)
• The verification can be a protective order, proof of filing for one, a police report, or a letter from a law enforcement official, attorney, health care provider, social worker, counselor, therapist or victim advocate. Keep it and the household's personal details confidential. R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-63(a), (b) (P.L. 2026, ch. 147)
• A tenant ending the lease this way moves out within 30 days of the notice unless you agree otherwise, owes rent only through the later of the termination date or the move-out date, and gets the deposit back under the usual 20-day rule. R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-63(c) to (e) (P.L. 2026, ch. 147)
• You may not refuse to rent to an applicant because the applicant ended a lease this way or asked for a lock change, and a lease may not waive these rights. R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 34-18-64, 34-18-67 (P.L. 2026, ch. 147)

Either side may end a month-to-month tenancy, or any periodic tenancy longer than a month and shorter than a year, by written notice delivered at least 30 days before the date named. A week-to-week tenancy needs at least 10 days, and a year-to-year tenancy needs notice at least three months before the end of the occupation year. Each notice should follow the statutory form.

R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-37 R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-56

• Without a fixed term, a tenancy is week to week for a roomer who pays weekly and month to month in every other case. R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-15(d)
• The statutory form tells the tenant to leave on the first day after the end of the current rental period and to keep paying rent until then. R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-56(c)
• If the tenant stays on after the date, you may file on the next day. A willful, bad faith holdover can cost up to three months' rent or three times your actual damages, whichever is greater, plus attorney's fees. R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-38(a), (c)