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Committee hears narrow bill to align tenant and landlord notice windows for 'at‑will' tenancies
Summary
HB 351 would align the notice period for termination of at‑will tenancies so both landlords and tenants give the same notice (current law generally treats monthly at‑will terminations as 30 days). Witnesses questioned whether statute already covers the point and cautioned about unintended consequences for safety and nuisance evictions.
Representative Matthew Pitaro told the committee HB 351 would make the statutory notice symmetrical: when a tenant at will must give notice equal to the rent period, the landlord should have the same requirement. Critics — including landlord groups and several witnesses — said the existing statutory framework already governs notice (commenters cited RSA 540 variants) and warned an across‑the‑board change could increase the time landlords must tolerate nuisance or dangerous behavior before removing a tenant.
Testimony from property owners said extending notice requirements for landlord‑initiated terminations in cases where a tenant poses a threat or creates a public‑safety issue could place other residents at risk. Proponents argued the change would be a modest fairness improvement that encourages symmetrical expectations in private contracts.
Committee members asked OLS and witnesses for statutory clarifications and whether the bill would alter the timeline for established short‑term tenancies (weekly or monthly). No vote was taken.
