tenant

law

Also known as: lessee, tenancy

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Last updated

July 14, 2026

Quick Summary

The relationship between a landlord and a tenant is defined by a contract, typically a lease. The landlord, as the property owner, grants the tenant exclusive possession and use of the property for a specified period, usually in exchange for rent.

There are several forms of tenancy:
* Fixed-period tenancy: Ends automatically when the term expires.
* Periodic tenancy: Continues indefinitely until notice to quit is given.
* Tenancy at will: Lasts as long as both parties agree.
* Tenancy in sufferance: Occurs when a tenant remains in possession after their lease has ended.

A lease can end through expiration, notice to quit, or forfeiture if the tenant breaches the lease terms. Eviction is the legal process of removing a tenant from a property. Tenants may be excused from rent obligations if the landlord fails to maintain the property, a concept known as "constructive eviction". A security deposit is often paid by the renter to cover potential damages to the property. In some regions, tenants may have specific rights, such as compensation for improvements made to the property.1234

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landlord and tenant
tenant, the parties to the leasing of real estate, whose relationship is bound by contract. The landlord, or lessor, as owner or possessor of a property—whether corporeal, such as lands or buildings, or incorporeal, such as rights of common or of way—agrees through a lease,…
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tenant, the parties to the leasing of real estate, whose relationship is bound by contract. The landlord, or lessor, as owner or possessor of a property—whether corporeal, such as lands or buildings, or incorporeal, such as rights of common or of way—agrees through a lease,…
Read More

bankruptcy fraud
Petition mills
…this form of fraud, a tenant will be contacted by an agency offering to work with the debtor’s landlord to prevent eviction. The debtor then agrees to pay the agency for its services. Many times these agencies have no intention of contacting the landlord. Instead, the agency will take the…
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…this form of fraud, a tenant will be contacted by an agency offering to work with the debtor’s landlord to prevent eviction. The debtor then agrees to pay the agency for its services. Many times these agencies have no intention of contacting the landlord. Instead, the agency will take the…
Read More

China
Economic development
The tenant’s position improved vis-à-vis the landlord’s, a wage-labor force arose in agriculture, and land was increasingly used as a marketable commodity. Systems that guaranteed tenants permanent cultivation rights spread in the 18th century through the wet-rice cultivation zone and in some dryland cultivation systems. Multiple…
Read More
The tenant’s position improved vis-à-vis the landlord’s, a wage-labor force arose in agriculture, and land was increasingly used as a marketable commodity. Systems that guaranteed tenants permanent cultivation rights spread in the 18th century through the wet-rice cultivation zone and in some dryland cultivation systems. Multiple…
Read More