Whether you are a landlord or a tenant, everyone dreads the 3 Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit. No one wants to be evicted, and no landlord wants to make that difficult decision or go through the process of evicting someone.
For landlords, this is a big reason why they hire a property management company in the first place. They dread this process, and many struggle to follow through when it's time to serve the notice, terminate a rental agreement, and possibly file an unlawful detainer.
For tenants, receiving this notice can be scary, frustrating, and confusing. Perhaps you didn’t realize that your check bounced or your account had insufficient funds, which prevented the automatic rent payment from going through. Or maybe you had a financial emergency and you just don’t have the money for rent this month.
Landlords are not required to serve tenants with this notice as soon as they are late on rent, and most won’t. If there’s a good relationship between landlord and tenant, it’s much more likely that the landlord will call the tenant to figure out what’s going on and when the rent will be paid.
If there have been multiple late payments or there isn’t a good reason for the rent being late, tenants can likely expect one of these notices from their landlord. Legally, this notice can be served the day after rent is late or if the lease has a grace period, the day after that period has passed.
Key Takeaways
A 3 Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit is a legal document that gives tenants three days to pay overdue rent or vacate the property.
Accuracy in both content and service method is critical for the notice to be valid in court.
Tenants who pay within the three-day window keep their tenancy; landlords must halt eviction proceedings if payment is made on time.
California laws and recent court rulings have changed certain requirements for notices, timelines, and eviction processes.
Working with a qualified property management company can help landlords avoid costly legal mistakes.
What is a 3 Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit?
A 3 Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit is a form that notifies a tenant of lease violation due to non-payment of rent, giving them 3 days to settle the amount or vacate. It is the first legal step required before a landlord can move forward with an eviction by filing an unlawful detainer.
A lease is a legally binding contract, and this notice is a means of enforcing that contract.
What Needs to be Included on a 3 Day Notice?
If a landlord fills out a pay or quit notice incorrectly or leaves out information, the court will not recognize the notice, and the tenant will be able to maintain legal possession of the property, even if they owe unpaid rent, until the landlord serves the 3-day notice correctly.
A 3 Day Pay Rent or Quit Notice must be in writing and must contain the following information:
Full name of the tenant(s).
Address of the rental unit.
Date the notice was served to the tenant(s).
Total amount of rent owed (cannot go back more than 1 year, even if more than 1 year’s worth of rent is owed).
Dates for which the overdue rent is for.
A statement that the tenant(s) owes rent and that it must be paid within 3 days or else an unlawful detainer will be filed with the court.
The name, phone number, and address of the person or company that can receive the rent, as well as the days and hours that person or company is available to receive rent.
A certificate or statement of how the notice was served to the tenant(s).
The landlord cannot require the tenant to pay rent in cash and cannot demand other unpaid amounts, such as late fees, interest, utilities, damage, or anything else that is not rent money.
If the tenant pays within those 3 days (the first day the period begins being the day after the notice is served), then the tenancy continues as usual. Late fees can be charged in accordance with the rental agreement. However, even if those fees are not paid, eviction cannot be pursued after rent has been paid within the 3 days.
If the landlord attempts to continue with the eviction by filing an unlawful detainer, the tenant will be able to easily defend against it with proof of paying rent in the 3-day period after the notice was received.
If the tenant offers to pay at some point past the notice period, the landlord has the option to allow that, or they can proceed with an eviction once the 3 days have passed.
How a 3 Day Notice Can Be Served
Just as important as the content of a 3-day notice is how that notice is served to the tenant.
The landlord can serve the tenant in any of the following ways:
Hand deliver the notice to the tenant(s) at the rental or their place of work.
If the tenant(s) cannot be easily found, the landlord can give the notice to someone over the age of 18 at the rental or the tenant’s place of work. If this is done, the landlord must also mail the notice.
If the tenant(s) cannot be easily found and there is no one over 18 to hand deliver the notice to, the landlord can post the notice in a conspicuous place on the rental unit. If this is done, the landlord must also mail the notice.
Failing to serve the tenant in one of these ways can result in the court not recognizing the 3-day notice as valid.
What Happens Next?
Several different things can happen after the 3-day notice has been successfully delivered, depending on how the tenant responds.
The easiest and most straightforward way to resolve a 3-day notice to pay rent or quit is simply to pay the rent. The eviction process ends here, and the tenancy continues as normal.
This doesn’t always happen, and if the tenant contacts the landlord and arranges a day to pay the rent after the 3 days have passed, the landlord can choose not to continue with the eviction. However, if the landlord insists that rent must be paid within those 3 days and the tenant does not, the next step is to file an unlawful detainer.
Filing an Unlawful Detainer
Filing an unlawful detainer correctly is a lengthy process that requires extreme care, as any mistake will result in the case being thrown out by the court. Once an unlawful detainer is filed, the landlord can no longer accept rent payments from the tenant. If the landlord accepts any payments from the tenant, the eviction process will be cancelled.
The following three forms need to be filled out by the landlord:
This is the point where the landlord needs to seek legal advice in filling out these forms. If these forms are filled out incorrectly or if there is missing information, the tenant will have an easy defense against the eviction on that basis.
After the forms are filled out, they need to be filed with the court and served to the tenant. The method in which these forms must be served is extremely important, and advice should be received from a lawyer for this step as well.
After serving, the tenant is given an opportunity to respond. If they do respond, the landlord can ask for a trial and take the matter before a judge who will ultimately decide who should legally be in possession of the property.
Once decided, assuming possession is granted back to the landlord, a “lockout date” is scheduled with the county sheriff. The sheriff will post a notice to vacate 5 days prior to the lockout date. After those 5 days have passed, the landlord will meet the sheriff at the property, and the sheriff will enter and remove any remaining occupants and return possession back to the landlord.
The Eviction Aftermath
Evictions can be a nightmare, and the thought of dealing with an eviction will keep many investors from ever purchasing investment property. They cost thousands of dollars in legal fees, not to mention time and money lost by not receiving rental income during an eviction.
After regaining possession, the landlord may have to legally handle abandoned property left in the rental home by the tenant. This is another 15-day process that has several legal requirements, all of which are easy to mess up and can result in a lawsuit from the tenant. That’s right, even if a tenant owes thousands in back rent, is evicted, and leaves their belongings behind, they can still sue you for mishandling their property.
Many times after an eviction, the home has been trashed and will cost thousands in rehabilitation costs. This can take weeks, meaning the house is off the market and not generating rental income.
For tenants, an eviction is like a scarlet letter. It stays on your record for 7 years, and many landlords and property management companies can and will refuse to rent to you if you have one on your record.
If you don’t pay the rent and other charges you owe, your wages can be garnished or you may be sent to collections. Job applications and loan applications may also ask if you have ever been evicted.
Many tenants leave after an eviction feeling triumphant, as if they have really “stuck it to the landlord” by staying in the property for weeks without paying rent. In reality, they will have an extremely difficult time finding a new place to live after an eviction. A history of nonpayment of rent is one of the legal reasons given by Fair Housing for landlords to reject potential tenants.
Recent Updates to California Law Affecting 3 Day Notices to Pay or Quit
This section reflects new legal developments since the original publication of this article and is critical for California landlords to understand before serving a 3 Day Notice.
1. New Court Decision Impacting Notice Language (Developing)
A recent California court ruling has created new requirements for the language used in 3 Day Notices to Pay or Quit. While the exact impact is still developing, the decision suggests that notices must include more precise wording to comply with state law and avoid dismissal in court. Landlords should review their notice templates immediately and, if necessary, update them with legal guidance to reflect these changes. Even small errors in language could render a notice invalid.
2. Just Cause Eviction Requirements
Under California’s “Just Cause” eviction laws (Tenant Protection Act of 2019), landlords cannot evict rent controlled tenants without legally recognized reasons once they have been in place for more than 12 months (or 24 months in some shared tenancy situations). Non-payment of rent and lease violations remain valid “at-fault” just causes. Still, the notice and eviction process must align with just cause rules, including proper documentation and adherence to any local rent control or eviction protection ordinances.
3. AB 2347 – Extended Response Time and Motion Timelines
As of January 1, 2025, AB 2347 has made it so tenants (defendants) in California unlawful detainer actions have 10 court days to file a response after service of the summons and complaint, doubling the prior 5–5-court-day deadline. Court days exclude Saturdays, Sundays, and judicial holidays.
In addition, if the tenant responds with a demurrer or motion to strike, the court must set the hearing within 5–7 court days unless there’s good cause for a later date. Practically, expect longer overall case timelines to default or trial, with slightly more streamlined motion practice.
FAQs
Q: Can I include late fees in the 3 Day Notice to Pay or Quit?
No. Only rent amounts can be included. Late fees, utilities, or other charges must be handled separately.
Q: Does the 3-day period include weekends or holidays?
No, the 3-day period excludes Saturdays, Sundays, and all judicial holidays.
Q: Can I serve the notice by email?
No. California law requires personal delivery, substituted service plus mailing, or posting and mailing. Email is not a legally valid method.
Q: What happens if the tenant partially pays?
Landlords can choose to accept partial payment, but doing so may affect the ability to proceed with eviction for that specific notice.
Q: Do local city rules override state law?
Yes. Some cities have stricter rent control and eviction laws that take precedence over state rules.
Final Steps
A good property management company can do most of the above steps for you and will be able to screen tenants more thoroughly than you can on your own to prevent this from ever happening in the first place.
If you are a landlord staring down the long road of the eviction process and just don’t want to handle it, contact us today. At Mesa Properties, we’ve done this before, and we know what we’re doing to keep you and your investment safe and legally compliant.
Additional Resources:
11 New Laws for California Landlords In 2025
Changes to the California Tenant Protection Act
The Future of Cooling Ordinances and What They Mean for California Landlords
