Free Arkansas Lease Termination Letter Template

An Arkansas lease termination letter is the written notice the Arkansas Residential Landlord-Tenant Act of 2007 requires to end a periodic tenancy. Either party may send one. Because the statute counts the notice period back from the termination date you name, that date becomes the most important line in the letter.

The rule is short: written notice, counted back from the date the tenancy ends.

Notice Periods

Arkansas Code Section 18-17-704 sets the periods. Subsection (b) lets the landlord or the tenant end a month-to-month tenancy with written notice given at least 30 days before the termination date specified in the notice. For week-to-week tenancies, subsection (a) takes the same approach with at least seven days’ notice. Since statutes are amended from time to time, confirm the current periods before you send.

The Count Runs From Your Stated Date

This detail separates Arkansas from a generic template. The statute measures those 30 days against the termination date written into the notice, so leaving the date blank leaves the notice period undefined. Always name it.

No Reason Required by the Statute

Section 18-17-704 does not ask either party to explain the decision. On proper notice, therefore, a month-to-month tenancy can end without a stated reason. Local ordinances may still add requirements, so check with your city or county.

Sixty days, where the deposit rules apply at all. Arkansas Code Section 18-16-305 requires money held as security to be returned within 60 days of termination of the tenancy. If anything is withheld for unpaid rent or damages, the itemized written notice and the remaining balance are due within that same 60 days after termination and delivery of possession. Mailing the notice and payment first class to the tenant’s last known address counts as compliance.

The qualifier matters more here than the deadline does. Section 18-16-303 exempts dwelling units owned by an individual, together with their spouse, minor children, and related entities, who collectively own five or fewer dwelling units. However, subsection (b) removes that exemption where a third party handles management or rent collection for a fee.

An Arkansas lease termination letter turns on the date you write into it, so settle that first.

1. Confirm whether the tenancy runs monthly, weekly, or for a fixed term.
2. Choose the termination date, then count back 30 days, or seven for a weekly tenancy.
3. Write that termination date into the letter clearly.
4. Deliver it so the date of delivery is recorded.
5. Provide a forwarding address for the deposit and any itemized notice.

Arkansas prescribes no statutory form, so completeness is what protects you.

• The rental property address and unit
• All tenants named in the agreement
• The termination date, stated in full
• The rental period the notice covers
• A forwarding address
• The sender’s signature, with the date signed

Holding over is costly. Under Section 18-17-704(c), a landlord may bring an action for possession, may recover reasonable attorney’s fees where the holdover is not in good faith, and may recover up to three months’ periodic rent or twice the actual damages, whichever is greater, where the holdover willfully violates the chapter or the agreement. Get your Arkansas lease termination letter out well ahead of the date.