Leasehold Estates

Leasehold estates are the result of the rights given to a tenant by the fee owner or someone with the authority to do so. These are created when the landlord and tenant enter into a rental agreement which gives possessory interest to the tenant. At that time the tenant becomes the owner of the leasehold with the rights to possess and use the entire property until the lease expires. The landlord is still the owner of the property, but with the right of possession being transferred to the tenant.  The landlord exchanges this right to occupy for rental or lease income for the period of time set forth in their agreement.

There are four types of leasehold estates that a tenant may hold:

• The fixed term tenancy   These last for a specific period of time, which is stated in the lease contract that the tenant and landlord have entered into. On the expiration of the lease, the tenants’ rights of possession automatically terminates unless its extended, or renewed by another agreement the had been entered into.

• Periodic tenancy   These likewise have a specific time period, a week, a month , a year, however with these the landlord and tenant have agreed to automatically turn over the new time interval.  These stop when written notice is given the other party of the termination date.

• Tenancy at will   Also known as an estate at will. The tenant has the right to possess the given property by the consent of the fee owner and they can terminate at any time by giving advance notice to the other party. They do not have a fixed time period and usually doo not require the rental obligation.

• Tenancy at sufferance   These occur when the tenant retains possession after the tenancy granted has terminated.

Note with a sublease on a commercial property, the master tenant is the landlord of the subtenant.

When you lease or rent your property there is a convinces of rights which pass to the renter and you must honor these rights.

Note: Images on this blog site are from a free source or taken by the author. No image or group of photos is intended to represent the people the author serves. The author does not care about Race (that is a politically correct term that he does not like because we are all of the same Race, the Human Race. He prefers the term ethnicity, color, religion, sex, gender, marital status, disability, genetic information, national origin, source of income, Veteran or military status, ancestry, citizenship, primary language or immigration status.) He is a service provider for all people. We will all rise together when we band together and help one another. Joseph Erwin is a Real Estate Broker, DRE # O2131799, and a CA general contractor # B 696662. He’s a member of the CRMLS and The East Valley Association of Realtors located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California.