CHAPTER XXIV.

REAL PROPERTY, CONtinued.

Estates at Will-Emblements-How a Landlord May Terminate an Estate at Will-Statutory Regu lations-Termination of Estate at Will by Sale or Lease-How a Tenant May Terminate an Estate at Will-Estates from Year to Year-Estates at Sufferance-How to Eject a Tenant at Sufferance— Trespassers.

Estates at Will.

Premises are frequently hired without any formal lease. In such case, the tenant has what is called an estate at will in the premises.

That is, the agreement that the tenant may occupy the premises is a good one so long only as both parties continue to abide by it; and it may be broken at will by either party. If the landlord wants to get rid of the tenant, he can give him notice to quit; if the tenant wishes to leave, he can do so at any time.

A tenant at will may let part of the premises to another, but he can only guarantee that his tenant shall remain in possession as long as he himself shall do so. He cannot assign his own interest at all, for he has nothing assignable, his own possession being subject to termination at any time.

Tenant at Will May Take Emblements.

If a tenant at will plant crops, and is expelled by the landlord before they are ripe, he may enter upon the land and gather them when they are in proper condition, and they will be his own. He may also enter within a reasonable time after expulsion, to remove his other property from the premises. But if he voluntarily leaves, instead of being expelled, before the crops are ripe, he cannot claim them.

How a Landlord May Terminate the Tenancy.

As has been said, either party may terminate the tenancy at will.

The landlord may terminate it by giving the tenant proper notice to quit. That is, he may serve a notice (which in some states must be, and always should be, in writing) upon the tenant in person, distinctly setting forth the day on which the premises must be vacated.

The length of such notice depends upon the time which elapses between two rent days. If the tenant pays rent by the month, the notice must be given a month in advance; if he pays by the week, only a week's notice need be given. If he pays by the year, six months' notice is sufficient in most states, and in some three months. The statutes regulating the matter of giving notice to tenants to quit should be examined by all who control real property, for the shades of difference between them can scarcely be given in this work. In illustration, however, it may be well to state the rule on the subject in Massachusetts, where a statute provides that to terminate an estate at will by notice, it must be in writing, and if the tenancy be for three months or longer, the

notice must be that of a quarter; if for a shorter time, or if the rent is payable oftener than quarterly, the notice must be equal to the interval between two payments. If the notice to quit be given for non-payment of rent, only two weeks' notice need be given, whatever the time of payments.

Termination by Sale or Lease of Property.

The landlord may also terminate a tenancy at will by selling the property, or even by giving a lease of it to another party.

This will have the effect of instantly terminating the tenant's estate, because he was the tenant of the particular landlord of whom he hired the premises, and who gave him no binding agreement that he should have them for any certain time; therefore he has a perfect right to sell or lease them at any time to another, and that other has the right of immediate possession, and can oust the tenant at once, giving him only time to remove his family and his goods.

The time for such removal may be very short. In Massachusetts, it has been held that forty-eight hours' notice is sufficient in such a case, and if at the end of that time, the tenant has not removed his goods, they may be taken out of the house, and placed on the sidewalk.

This method is often resorted to by landlords in order to expel tenants promptly. Frequently the party who thus takes a lease is a friend of the landlord, who has no intention of really occupying the premises or retaining any personal interest in them, but who merely goes through the form to aid the latter in securing the immediate expulsion of an undesirable tenant. Then, after this object is attained the

lease may be destroyed, and the landlord may make such further disposition of the premises as he sees fit.

This summary process is sometimes severe on tenants who are compelled to leave a house without having opportunity to find another into which to move; but there are also occasions when it is very useful, as where a landlord suddenly discovers that a tenant has been using a house for gambling, prostitution, or other illegal purposes, and it is very necessary to clear the premises immediately, without waiting the three months or more which might be necessary in giving the ordinary notice to quit. There may be statutes in some states restricting this right of the landlord, and before attempting to act upon it, one should carefully examine them for himself. Also it should not be forgotten that if the property of a tenant is removed from the premises by the landlord, or by his new lessee, or by order of either of these parties, and is injured owing to carelessness in such removal, as for example, if furniture is put out of doors in a pouring rain and left there, such party is responsible for the damage. So if a sick person is removed against his will, and is injured thereby.

How a Tenant May Terminate the Estate.

The tenant may terminate an estate at will by any attempt to sell it, or to assign his interest in it, as well as by actually leaving the premises and giving the landlord notice that he has quit, or by giving notice that he intends to quit at a certain time.

Estates from Year to Year.

In some states--as in Massachusetts, for instance-all tenancies which are not under written leases, are estates at

will; but in others, premises may be let orally for a certain stated time. An interest of this kind is called an estate from year to year. It can generally be ended by six months' notice, terminating at the close of the year. In some states shorter notice is sufficient.

Estates at Sufferance.

Sometimes premises are occupied by tenants who have no agreement whatever with the landlord, yet who entered rightfully in the first place. They are called tenants at sufferance.

Thus one who enters under a lease, but remains after the term of the lease expires, is a tenant at sufferance. A tenant at will becomes a tenant at sufferance if his landlord leases the premises to another.

A tenant at sufferance is usually liable for rent for the time he remains.

To Eject a Tenant at Sufferance.

Such a tenant must always vacate the premises immediately upon request. If he does not do so, the landlord may remove the windows and doors from the dwelling, and may even remove the tenant's goods. To do this, however, in any case, the landlord must first gain "peaceable entry" into the house. If he commit a breach of the peace, either in entering or afterward, he will be criminally liable therefor. He must also use due care in handling the tenant's goods, as has been already mentioned.

Tenants at sufferance are not entitled to any notice to quit. Summary proceedings may be begun at once to eject them. But the statutory provisions in one's own state touching the subject of ejectment of tenants should always be consulted before any step is taken