If you’re a property owner, landlord, or property management company seeking to evict a tenant for violating one or more terms of your lease agreement (such as not paying rent), use a North Dakota (ND) Eviction Notice to begin the process.
What is an Eviction Notice?
An eviction notice is legally binding document landlords send to tenants to begin removing the renters from leased property.
The notice must be written according to state law and give your tenant the legally required amount of time to respond (cure violations of your rental agreement) or move out.
In North Dakota, Chapter 47-32 of the North Dakota Century Code governs the eviction process. Before filing an eviction lawsuit against your tenants, you need to serve them a state law-compliant notice like those offered below.
North Dakota Eviction Notices by Type
Download a free eviction notice customized for North Dakota state law below in MS Word (.docx) or Adobe PDF format.
30-Day Lease Termination: Use this notice to vacate to let a tenant know that you’re ending a month-to-month lease and that they must prepare to leave your property. The state of North Dakota has laws that govern the eviction process, and they state that landlords must give tenants 30 days’ notice to move out if they’re on a month-to-month lease.
Download: Word (.docx) or Adobe PDF
3-Day Notice to Quit for Non-Compliance: Use this notice to quit to begin evicting a tenant if they’ve broken the terms of your lease agreement. The laws governing the eviction process state that landlords must give tenants a three (3) day notice period before the eviction process can proceed in court. During that time, tenants may have the option to fix (or “cure”) the problem.
Download: Word (.docx) or Adobe PDF
3-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit: Use this notice to evict a tenant if they haven’t paid rent on time. In North Dakota, landlords must give tenants a three (3) day notice period to pay rent before the eviction process can proceed in court.
Download: Word (.docx) or Adobe PDF
If you wish to send a letter simply reminding your tenant that rent is late (without the threat of eviction), use a late rent notice.
Eviction Laws & Requirements
- Eviction Laws: North Dakota Century Code Chapter 47-32
- Rent Payment Grace Period: No statute
- Late or Non-Payment of Rent Notice: 3 days (NDCC § 47-32-01)
- Violation of Material Lease Term Notice: 3 days (NDCC § 47-32-01)
- Lease Termination (Month-to-Month): 30 days (NDCC § 47-16-07)
What is the Eviction Process in North Dakota?
Landlords should keep the following North Dakota eviction process in mind when faced with the need to remove a tenant from a rental property.
Step 1: Serve Notice
To begin the eviction process, you must first serve your tenant with the appropriate notice (via first-class mail, registered or certified mail, process server, or personal service).
Service of process in eviction cases is governed by Rule 4 of North Dakota Rules of Civil Procedure.
The eviction notice must contain the tenant’s full name and sufficient information to let the tenant know which lease term they’ve violated and what they can do to avoid evicting.
Step 2: File and Serve Eviction Summons and Complaint
At this point, the tenant has three choices:
- Pay their late rent (if applicable)
- Fix (or “cure”) the violation (if applicable)
- move out of the property,
If the tenant doesn’t meet the demands stated in the notice within the given time period, the landlord can start the court eviction process.
The landlord files the Eviction Summons and Complaint with the district court in the county where the rental property is located and serves a copy of the Summons and Complaint on the tenant
Step 3: Eviction Hearing
After the landlord files the Eviction Summons and Complaint and pays the filing fee, the court will schedule a hearing.
The Summons will notify the tenant of the hearing date, time, and location and that they must attend.
The case could be dismissed if the landlord fails to attend the hearing. The court could enter a default judgment in the landlord’s favor if the tenant fails to attend.
Step 4: Outcome
If the district court finds that the landlord has proven the right to repossess the property and collect damages, it will enter a judgment for possession.
A tenant’s failure to promptly vacate the property after this judgment has been entered can result in additional financial sanctions.
This is particularly true if the landlord must return to court to seek a writ of possession or writ of execution.
Related Court Forms
Instructions: Informational packet to help landlords understand what to do and expect during the eviction.
Notice of Intention to Evict (Form 1a): This form demands payment of rent by a tenant, or else they must vacate the property.
Notice of Intention to Evict (Form 1b): This form states that the tenant has violated the lease agreement and they must move out.
Affidavit of Identification: This document sets forth the landlord’s identification information, the tenant’s identification information, and whether the tenant is in the military.
Statement of Costs & Disbursements: This document allows the landlord to collect damages associated with the eviction action and those associated with the underlying eviction itself.
The summons and complaint forms below are court documents used when the notice goes unheeded, and the landlord seeks a court order to remove the tenant.
Landlords- Tenant Eviction Information
Landlords
The North Dakota Apartment Association (NDAA) has prepared a brochure detailing landlord and tenant rights and responsibilities under state law.
Meanwhile, the North Dakota Legal Self-Help Center has many sample forms (including examples of a summons and complaint) and instructions to help you get started if you’ve never completed an eviction notice.
Remember that you must never evict a tenant for reasons that violate Fair Housing Laws, such as discriminating based on color, creed, race, national origin, sex, family status, religion, or disability.
Tenants
Legal centers can typically offer a tenants’ rights booklet containing much of the same information noted here.
Depending on the circumstances, tenants may be able to fight back against eviction (and help you answer a summons and complaint) to stay in the home.
It’s extremely important to read all notices that arrive at your home, even if you’d rather not think about eviction at that time. Only by reading these notices will you know what comes next and what you should do.
For tenants facing eviction, the following websites can provide more extensive information on how to access legal help:
- Vulnerable Adult Protective Services (VAPS)
- Legal Services of North Dakota
- North Dakota Office of the Attorney General
How to Write an Eviction Notice (Notice to Pay Rent or Quit) in North Dakota
Follow the steps below to write an eviction notice in North Dakota.
Step 1 – Fill Out Date of Eviction Notice
Write the date of the eviction notice.
Step 2 – Enter the Tenant Information and Property Address
Provide the name of all tenants listed on the original lease or rental agreement. Enter the full street address for the rental property.
Step 3 – Enter Lease/Rental Agreement Information
Provide the name (or title) and the original lease or rental agreement date.
Step 4 – Enter Late Rent Details
Provide the beginning and end dates for the time period in which the rent is past due. Write the amount of the past due rent, the number of late fees (if any), and the total amount the tenant owes to the landlord.
Step 5 – Sign Notice and Enter Landlord Information
The landlord will sign and date the eviction notice. Provide the landlord’s current contact information so the tenant can contact the landlord if necessary.
Step 6 – Provide Proof of Service
Proof of service is an affidavit that shows that the Eviction Notice was served to the tenant.
Enter the date of delivery. This is important because it provides evidence of the date the notice is delivered to the tenant, which starts the number of days the tenant has to pay the past due rent (3 days) or vacate the property.
The person delivering the eviction notice, the server, should complete the delivery method, the fields for the person receiving the notice, and the address of the location where the notice was delivered.
The server signs, prints their full name, and dates the proof of service.
North Dakota Eviction Notice Sample
Use the free form below to evict a tenant or take the next step in the eviction process by creating a customizable form using our document builder.