Fresource Friday: Surrender of tenancy form

There are generally four ways in which residential tenancies end:

• Termination by landlord
• Termination by tenant giving notice
• Tenant vacating on the last day of a fixed term tenancy, and
• Surrender.

'Surrender' is the legal term for an agreement between the landlord and tenant that the tenancy will end.

A surrender can occur during both a periodic and fixed term tenancy. The basic idea is that landlords and tenants are free to end the tenancy if they both want to.

A surrender often happens where a tenant wants the tenancy to end and the landlord consents to regaining possession of the dwelling immediately, rather than insisting on the tenant serving notice (or holding a fixed term tenant to the end of the term).

Ending a tenancy by mutual agreement is best done in writing if possible. For the landlord a written agreement should prevent a dispute arising subsequently about whether there was an effective agreement to end the tenancy.

You can download the form here.

If it's a joint tenancy both tenants will need to sign the form.