Leaving a Lease Early
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-40 — a certified letter, seven days to answer, and a landlord who has to try to re-rent
When a tenant abandons the unit, the landlord sends a certified letter, return receipt requested, to the last known address saying the unit will be re-rented unless the tenant replies within seven days.
The landlord has to try. If the letter comes back or the tenant does not answer within seven days, the landlord makes reasonable efforts to rent the unit at a fair rental. The old lease ends when a new tenancy begins.
A landlord who makes no reasonable effort, or who accepts the abandonment as a surrender, is treated as having ended the lease on the date the landlord learned of the abandonment.
Rent owed for the time before the unit is re-rented is a separate question. A particular lease is a question for a licensed Rhode Island attorney.
Sources for this section (1)
- R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-40 — Remedies for abandonment
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Rhode Island attorney.