Alabama 7-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit

ALABAMA SEVEN (7) DAY NOTICE TO PAY RENT OR QUIT

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Notice Caption and Parties
2. Premises and Tenancy
3. Demand for Rent and Late Charges
4. Statutory Authority and Right to Cure
5. Election to Terminate; Demand for Possession
6. Reservation of Rights and Non-Waiver
7. Tenant Information and Defenses
8. Method of Service
9. Signature Block
10. Proof of Service / Certificate of Delivery
11. Alabama Practice Notes
12. Sources and References

1. NOTICE CAPTION AND PARTIES

SEVEN (7) DAY NOTICE TO PAY RENT OR QUIT

(Ala. Code § 35-9A-421(b))

TO: [TENANT FULL LEGAL NAME], and all other occupants in possession of the premises described below

FROM: [LANDLORD / OWNER FULL LEGAL NAME]

Capacity of sender: ☐ Owner ☐ Property Manager (authorized agent) ☐ Other: [________________________________]

Date of notice: [__/__/____]

2. PREMISES AND TENANCY

2.1. Premises. The premises subject to this notice are:

Street address: [________________________________]

Unit / apartment: [________________________________]

City: [________________________________] County: [________________________________] AL ZIP: [____________]

2.2. Rental agreement. The tenancy is governed by:

☐ A written lease dated [__/__/____]

☐ An oral rental agreement

☐ Holdover from expired written lease dated [__/__/____]

2.3. Tenancy type.

☐ Month-to-month

☐ Week-to-week

☐ Fixed term ending [__/__/____]

2.4. Periodic rent. Rent of $[____________] per ☐ month ☐ week is due on the [____] day of each ☐ month ☐ week.

3. DEMAND FOR RENT AND LATE CHARGES

YOU ARE HEREBY NOTIFIED that rent and other charges lawfully due under your rental agreement and Alabama law are unpaid as of the date of this Notice in the following amounts:

3.1. Tender address. Payment must be tendered in certified funds (cashier's check, money order, or attorney trust check) to:

Payee: [________________________________]

Address: [________________________________]

☐ Or by the electronic-payment portal designated in the lease at: [________________________________]

3.2. Form of payment. ☐ Personal checks accepted ☐ Personal checks NOT accepted (certified funds only) per lease § [____]

4. STATUTORY AUTHORITY AND RIGHT TO CURE

This Notice is issued under the authority of Ala. Code § 35-9A-421(b), which provides in relevant part:

"If rent is unpaid when due and the tenant fails to pay rent within seven days after written notice by the landlord of nonpayment and the landlord's intention to terminate the rental agreement if the rent is not paid within that period of time, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement."

YOUR RIGHT TO CURE. You have SEVEN (7) DAYS from the date you receive this Notice within which to pay the full balance set forth in Section 3 above. If the full balance is paid and received by the Landlord (or the designated payee) within that seven-day period, the rental agreement will continue in force and this termination notice will be of no further effect.

5. ELECTION TO TERMINATE; DEMAND FOR POSSESSION

If the full balance set forth in Section 3 is NOT paid and received within SEVEN (7) DAYS after your receipt of this Notice, the Landlord hereby elects to terminate the rental agreement effective on the eighth (8th) day after your receipt of this Notice and demands that you:

(a) Vacate the premises;

(b) Surrender all keys, parking passes, mail keys, garage remotes, and access devices to the Landlord at the address in Section 9; and

(c) Remove all personal property.

If you fail to vacate, the Landlord intends to file an action for unlawful detainer in the District Court of [________________________________] County, Alabama, pursuant to Ala. Code § 35-9A-461 seeking:

☐ Possession of the premises

☐ All unpaid rent and lawful charges through the date of judgment

☐ Per-diem rent or holdover damages of up to three months' periodic rent for willful holdover (Ala. Code § 35-9A-441(c))

☐ Court costs

☐ Reasonable attorney's fees (if the lease so provides or as authorized by statute)

6. RESERVATION OF RIGHTS AND NON-WAIVER

6.1. No waiver. Acceptance by the Landlord of partial payment, or of any payment after the cure period, does not waive (a) the Landlord's right to terminate the rental agreement, (b) the Landlord's right to pursue possession, or (c) any other right or remedy under the rental agreement, AURLTA, or Alabama law, except as expressly provided herein.

6.2. Reserved remedies. The Landlord reserves all rights and remedies, including those under Ala. Code §§ 35-9A-421, 35-9A-441, and 35-9A-461.

6.3. Federal-program tenancies. If the tenancy is subsidized under any federal program (Section 8 / Housing Choice Voucher, Public Housing, LIHTC, Rural Development, Section 202, Section 811, or HUD project-based), the Landlord acknowledges and reserves all federally-required notice rights of the tenant under the applicable federal program documents and 24 C.F.R. as applicable. The CARES Act, 15 U.S.C. § 9058(c), may require a thirty (30) day notice to vacate; this Notice is given without prejudice to the longer federal period if applicable.

7. TENANT INFORMATION AND DEFENSES

The Landlord is required by professional standards (and many local courts encourage as a matter of practice) to inform you that:

7.1. You have the right to consult an attorney. Free or reduced-cost legal services may be available through Legal Services Alabama (1-866-456-4995) and county bar referral services.

7.2. You may have defenses to eviction, including without limitation:

(a) Defective notice — improper amount, improper recipient, improper service, insufficient time;

(b) Warranty of habitability — Ala. Code § 35-9A-204 requires the landlord to maintain the premises in fit and habitable condition, comply with applicable building/housing codes, and supply running water, reasonable amounts of hot water, and reasonable heat;

(c) Retaliation — Ala. Code § 35-9A-501 prohibits the landlord from increasing rent, decreasing services, or filing for possession because the tenant complained to a code-enforcement agency, complained to the landlord, or organized a tenants' union;

(d) Discrimination — federal Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3601 et seq., and Alabama Fair Housing Law, Ala. Code § 24-8-1 et seq.;

(e) Self-help eviction — Ala. Code § 35-9A-407 prohibits lockout and shutoff of essential services and entitles the tenant to possession or termination plus three months' rent or actual damages plus attorney's fees;

(f) Security-deposit setoff — Ala. Code § 35-9A-201 limits the deposit to one month's periodic rent (excluding pet/damage/risk components), requires return within 60 days, and provides double damages for wrongful retention;

(g) Acceptance of rent with knowledge of default — partial waiver under § 35-9A-421(d);

(h) Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, 50 U.S.C. § 3901 et seq., for active-duty military tenants.

8. METHOD OF SERVICE

This Notice was served on the Tenant on [__/__/____] by the following method (check all that apply):

☐ Personal hand-delivery to Tenant

☐ Hand-delivery to a person of suitable age and discretion residing at the premises (Ala. Code § 35-9A-161)

☐ Posted in a conspicuous place at the premises AND mailed by first-class mail

☐ Sent by U.S. certified mail, return receipt requested, to the address held out for receipt of communications

☐ Sent by U.S. first-class mail (with proof of mailing)

☐ Delivered by electronic means (only if the rental agreement expressly authorizes electronic notice)

9. SIGNATURE BLOCK

Dated this [____] day of [__________], 20[____].

LANDLORD / AUTHORIZED AGENT

Signature: [________________________________]

Printed name: [________________________________]

Title / capacity: [________________________________]

Mailing address: [________________________________]

City, State, ZIP: [________________________________]

Telephone: [________________________________]

Email: [________________________________]

10. PROOF OF SERVICE / CERTIFICATE OF DELIVERY

I, the undersigned, declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of Alabama that on [__/__/____], at approximately [____] [☐ a.m. ☐ p.m.], I served the foregoing SEVEN (7) DAY NOTICE TO PAY RENT OR QUIT on the Tenant identified above by the method(s) checked in Section 8. I am over the age of nineteen (19) and not a party to this matter.

Server signature: [________________________________]

Printed name: [________________________________]

Address: [________________________________]

USPS tracking / certified-mail article number (if applicable): [________________________________]

11. ALABAMA PRACTICE NOTES

11.1. Forum for follow-on action. Ala. Code § 12-12-30 vests Alabama district courts with original concurrent jurisdiction over civil actions where the matter in controversy does not exceed $20,000, and exclusive original jurisdiction over unlawful detainer regardless of the amount in controversy. Most landlord-tenant possession cases are filed in district court. If the money judgment will exceed $20,000, the action may be filed in (or transferred to) circuit court.

11.2. Answer deadline. Once unlawful detainer is filed, the tenant has seven (7) calendar days after service of the summons to file a written answer (Ala. R. Civ. P. 12(dc); the Rule 6(a) exclusion of weekends and holidays does not apply to possessory actions). Failure to answer can result in default judgment for possession.

11.3. Appeal. Ala. Code § 35-9A-461(d) gives any party seven (7) days after entry of an eviction judgment to appeal to circuit court for trial de novo. Trial in circuit court must be set within sixty (60) days. Tenant appeal does not stay issuance of the writ of possession unless the tenant pays into the court clerk all rent that has come due since the action was filed and continues to pay rent as it comes due.

11.4. Writ of possession; seven-day automatic stay. Ala. Code § 35-9A-461(c) automatically stays issuance of the writ of restitution/possession for seven (7) days after judgment.

11.5. No "self-help." Outside a court-issued writ executed by the sheriff, the landlord may not change locks, remove possessions, or shut off essential services. Penalty: three months' rent or actual damages, whichever is greater, plus attorney's fees (Ala. Code § 35-9A-407).

11.6. Mobile-home park tenancies. Tenancies in mobile-home parks are governed by Ala. Code § 35-9-101 et seq., not AURLTA. Notice content and timelines may differ; consult that chapter for park tenants who own their home and rent the lot.

11.7. Federally-backed mortgage. If the property has a federally-backed mortgage (FHA, VA, USDA, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac) or is in a federally-subsidized program, the CARES Act 30-day notice-to-vacate requirement (15 U.S.C. § 9058(c)) likely still applies notwithstanding the lapsed moratorium. Use a 30-day notice in those cases.

12. SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• Ala. Code § 35-9A-101 et seq. — Alabama Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (AURLTA), eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
• Ala. Code § 35-9A-141 — Definitions.
• Ala. Code § 35-9A-161 — Notice; manner of giving.
• Ala. Code § 35-9A-201 — Security deposits and prepaid rent.
• Ala. Code § 35-9A-204 — Landlord to maintain premises (warranty of habitability).
• Ala. Code § 35-9A-407 — Tenant's remedies for landlord's unlawful ouster, exclusion, or diminution of service (self-help bar).
• Ala. Code § 35-9A-421 — Noncompliance with rental agreement; failure to pay rent.
• Ala. Code § 35-9A-441 — Periodic tenancy; holdover remedies.
• Ala. Code § 35-9A-461 — Landlord's action for eviction, rent, monetary damages, or other relief.
• Ala. Code § 35-9A-501 — Retaliatory conduct prohibited.
• Ala. Code § 35-9-1 et seq. — Older non-AURLTA tenancy provisions (still applicable to certain tenancies).
• Ala. Code § 35-9-101 et seq. — Mobile-home park tenancies.
• Ala. Code § 6-6-310 et seq. — Statutory unlawful detainer.
• Ala. Code § 12-12-30 — District court civil jurisdiction.
• Ala. Code § 24-8-1 et seq. — Alabama Fair Housing Law.
• Ala. R. Civ. P. 12(dc) — Seven-day answer in district court possessory actions.
• Ala. R. Civ. P. 6(a) — Computation of time (with district-court eviction carve-out).
• 42 U.S.C. § 3601 et seq. — Federal Fair Housing Act.
• 50 U.S.C. § 3901 et seq. — Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.
• 15 U.S.C. § 9058 — CARES Act 30-day notice-to-vacate (covered properties).
• Alabama Legal Help — Evictions resource page.