New Hampshire Eviction Notice Laws: The Landlord and Tenant Guide
7-Day Notice to Quit · Demand for Rent · 30-Day Other Good Cause · Good-Cause Requirement · No Self-Help · Possessory Action
In New Hampshire, the eviction notice is step one, and a defective notice sinks the whole case. Before a landlord can file in court, the law requires the right written notice to quit, stating the reason with specificity, given for the right number of days — and, for most rental housing, resting on a statutory good cause. Choose the wrong ground, skip the demand for rent, miscount the days, or serve a notice that does not tell the tenant the reason, and the tenant can defeat the possessory action and force the landlord to start over. This guide walks the whole framework end to end — every notice type, how many days each needs, why good cause is required to evict restricted property, how to serve, what makes a notice valid, and what happens after — in plain English, with every rule tied to a concrete action.
The New Hampshire framework has one feature that sets it apart from a simple month-to-month state: for restricted property — most residential rentals that are not small owner-occupied buildings or single-family homes held by tiny landlords — there is no pure no-cause eviction. The landlord must fit the situation into one of the good-cause grounds in New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated section 540:2, and only then serve the matching notice. Because the grounds, the day-counts, and the pay-to-cure rules all trace to specific statutes, treat every figure in this guide as a starting point and verify the current statute before you serve or file anything.
Below, an overview video summarizes the New Hampshire framework; the sections that follow break down each piece — the notice types and their day-counts, the good-cause requirement, how to serve a notice, what makes a notice valid, the possessory action and writ of possession, retaliation and tenant defenses, local practice, a landlord playbook, and defensible-versus-fatal scenarios — plus a New Hampshire-specific FAQ.
New Hampshire Eviction Notices at a Glance
Nonpayment
7-day notice to quit plus demand for rent
Damage or Conduct
7-day notice to quit
Other Good Cause
30-day notice to quit
Good Cause
Required for restricted property
The Notice Is Step One — and It Can Sink the Case
Every New Hampshire eviction begins with a written notice to quit, and that notice is the single most common point of failure. The statute requires the notice to state with specificity the reason for the eviction, and for restricted property the reason must be one of the good-cause grounds the law recognizes. A notice that gives the wrong ground, omits the required pay-to-cure language in a nonpayment case, gives too few days, or fails to state the reason clearly gives the tenant a clean defense — the court can rule for the tenant, and the landlord has to start over from a fresh notice, losing weeks.
This is why the notice deserves more care than any other step. The rest of the process — filing the possessory action, the hearing, the writ — is largely mechanical once the notice is right. Get the notice wrong and none of it matters. Throughout this guide, the theme repeats: the exactness of the notice and the strength of the good-cause ground decide the case long before a judge ever reads the writ.
A nonpayment notice must tell the tenant how to cure
New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated section 540:3 requires that when the eviction is for nonpayment of rent, the notice inform the tenant of the right, if any, to avoid the eviction by paying the arrears in accordance with section 540:9. A nonpayment notice that omits this pay-to-cure language, or that is served without the accompanying demand for rent, is vulnerable. State the reason as nonpayment, make the demand for rent, and include the section 540:9 cure language so the tenant knows exactly how to keep the home.
Takeaway
In New Hampshire the notice is step one and the whole case rides on it. The notice must state the reason with specificity, rest on a recognized good cause for restricted property, and — for nonpayment — carry the pay-to-cure language of section 540:9. A defective notice is a complete defense that forces the landlord to start over.
The New Hampshire Eviction Notice Types
New Hampshire uses one instrument, the written notice to quit, but the required notice period turns on why the landlord wants the tenant out. For restricted property, the reason must be a good-cause ground in New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated section 540:2, and section 540:3 sets the days. Using a ground that does not fit, or the wrong number of days, is itself a fatal defect.
7-Day Notice to Quit and Demand for Rent (Nonpayment)
When a tenant neglects or refuses to pay rent due and in arrears, the landlord serves a seven-day notice to quit under section 540:2, II(a), together with a demand for rent under section 540:3. The demand for rent may be served at any time after the rent becomes due and at or before the eviction notice. The notice must state that the reason is nonpayment and must inform the tenant of the pay-to-cure right under section 540:9. If the tenant pays the arrears in time, the case ends — so the seven-day nonpayment notice is really a demand-and-cure notice, not an unconditional demand to leave.
7-Day Notice to Quit for Damage or Health-and-Safety Conduct
A seven-day notice to quit also applies to the more serious tenant-conduct grounds in section 540:2: substantial damage to the premises by the tenant, household members, or guests under subsection II(b); conduct that adversely affects the health or safety of other tenants or the landlord under subsection II(d); and a termination tied to a cotenant’s domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking under subsection II(h). These grounds move quickly precisely because the harm is serious. The notice must still state the specific conduct with enough detail that the tenant understands the reason.
30-Day Notice to Quit (Failure to Comply and Other Good Cause)
For the remaining good-cause grounds on restricted property, the notice period is thirty days. These include a tenant’s failure to comply with a material term of the lease under section 540:2, II(c), and other good cause under subsection II(e). New Hampshire defines other good cause broadly: subsection V says it includes any legitimate business or economic reason and need not be based on anything the tenant did or failed to do. So a landlord who wants the unit back for a lawful business reason still may act — but only with a thirty-day notice, and only because the statute treats that reason as good cause.
Nonrestricted property can be ended without cause — and, since 1 July 2026, one restricted-property route exists too
The section 540:2, II(i) lease-expiration ground. Effective 1 July 2026, a landlord of restricted property may terminate at the expiration of the lease term where the lease had an original term of twelve months or longer, or a shorter term renewed for a total period of twelve months or longer. Two conditions are mandatory and cumulative: the landlord must have given the tenant written notice at least sixty days in advance of the lease termination date that the lease will not be renewed and that the tenant must vacate at the end of the term; and the landlord must file the possessory action within six months of the lease expiring. Section 540:2, II(i)(2) preserves the tenant’s retaliatory-eviction defense under section 540:13-a and the statutory discrimination protections. Section 540:2, VIII, effective the same day, provides that such a no-fault termination is not an eviction for the purposes of rental applications and tenant screening reports, and directs the court to note that in its documentation. Note the sixty days: this is the only New Hampshire residential notice period that is neither the seven nor the thirty days set by section 540:3.
If the unit is nonrestricted — an owner-occupied building of four or fewer units, a single-family home owned by a landlord who holds no more than three single-family units, or a bank-foreclosed single-family house under section 540:1-a — the landlord may terminate the tenancy without one of the section 540:2 good-cause grounds, giving a written notice to quit under section 540:3. Even then, the notice must be in writing and the landlord must still use the court process; self-help remains illegal. When in doubt about which category a unit falls in, assume restricted and require good cause.
Takeaway
The notice period follows the ground: a 7-day notice to quit plus demand for rent for nonpayment, a 7-day notice for substantial damage or health-and-safety conduct, and a 30-day notice for a material-term breach or other good cause on restricted property. For restricted property the reason must fit a section 540:2 good-cause ground; using a ground that does not fit is a fatal defect.
How Many Days Each Notice Requires
The day-count follows the good-cause ground. The serious tenant-conduct grounds get seven days; the remaining good-cause grounds get thirty. Use this table as the quick reference, then read the notes below it.
| Ground | Days required | Statute |
|---|---|---|
| Nonpayment of rent (after demand) | 7 days, with a demand for rent | New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated section 540:2, II(a); 540:3 |
| Substantial damage to the premises | 7 days | New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated section 540:2, II(b) |
| Conduct affecting health or safety | 7 days | New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated section 540:2, II(d) |
| Cotenant domestic violence / stalking | 7 days | New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated section 540:2, II(h) |
| Failure to comply with a material lease term | 30 days | New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated section 540:2, II(c) |
| Other good cause (business or economic reason) | 30 days | New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated section 540:2, II(e); V |
| Federally backed / subsidized dwelling | Often 30 days — verify CARES Act | Federal law layers on top of state law |
The demand for rent is a separate, required step for nonpayment
In a nonpayment case the seven-day notice to quit is not enough by itself. Section 540:3 says a demand for rent is sufficient if served on the tenant at any time after the rent becomes due and prior to or simultaneously with the eviction notice. Skip the demand, and the nonpayment eviction can fail. Serve the demand for rent, state the amount in arrears, and pair it with the seven-day notice that carries the section 540:9 cure language.
Count the full period before you file
Whether the notice is a seven-day or a thirty-day notice, the landlord may not bring the possessory action until the stated period has fully run. Filing even one day early hands the tenant a defense. Count from service, give the tenant the full number of days, and confirm the period has expired before you take the landlord and tenant writ to the circuit court.
Takeaway
The serious grounds — nonpayment, substantial damage, health-and-safety conduct, and a cotenant’s domestic violence — get seven days; a material-term breach and other good cause get thirty days. Nonpayment also needs a separate demand for rent, and a federally backed unit may need a thirty-day notice under the CARES Act. Never file before the period fully passes.
Good Cause Under Section 540:2
For most New Hampshire tenants, a landlord cannot simply end the tenancy at will. New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated section 540:2 imposes a good-cause requirement on restricted property: the landlord may terminate the tenancy only for one of the grounds the statute lists. There is no free-standing no-cause eviction of restricted property — the landlord must name a good cause, and it must genuinely fit.
Which Property Is Restricted
Under section 540:1-a, nonrestricted property — which the landlord may terminate without a statutory good cause — means owner-occupied buildings with four or fewer dwelling units, single-family homes owned by a landlord who holds no more than three single-family units, and single-family houses acquired by a bank through foreclosure. Everything else residential is restricted property and carries the good-cause protection. That sweeps in most apartment buildings and larger rental portfolios. Vacation and recreational rentals are handled separately under Chapter 540-C.
The Good-Cause Grounds
Section 540:2, paragraph II lists the good-cause grounds a landlord may use for restricted property: nonpayment of rent due and in arrears after a demand; substantial damage to the premises by the tenant, the tenant’s household, or guests; failure to comply with a material term of the lease; conduct that adversely affects the health or safety of other tenants or the landlord; certain lead-hazard abatement and infestation-remediation circumstances; a termination tied to a cotenant’s domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking; and the catch-all, other good cause. If the situation does not fit one of these, the landlord may not evict restricted property.
“Other good cause” is broad but still a stated reason
Section 540:2, paragraph V says other good cause includes, but is not limited to, any legitimate business or economic reason, and need not be based on the tenant’s action or inaction. So a landlord who wants to take the unit off the market, use it differently, or make a legitimate business change generally has a lawful ground — but must still state that reason in a thirty-day notice to quit. Other good cause is a real category, not a loophole to skip the notice or the court process.
Takeaway
Under section 540:2, a landlord may end a tenancy of restricted property only on a listed good-cause ground — nonpayment, substantial damage, a material-term breach, health-and-safety conduct, certain lead and infestation situations, a cotenant’s domestic violence, or other good cause. Restricted property under section 540:1-a is most residential housing that is not a small owner-occupied building, a small-landlord single-family home, or a foreclosed single-family house.
How to Serve a Notice and Make a Demand for Rent
A notice that names the right ground still fails if the tenant is never properly given it, or, in a nonpayment case, if the demand for rent is missing. The notice to quit must be in writing and must state the reason with specificity. There is no valid “just tell them” or “just text it” option — an oral notice does not satisfy the statute.
| Step | How it works | When it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Written notice to quit | Deliver a written notice that states the good-cause reason with specificity and the number of days | Every eviction; the reason must fit a section 540:2 ground for restricted property |
| Demand for rent | Serve a demand stating the arrears, at any time after rent is due and at or before the notice | Required in a nonpayment case under section 540:3 |
| Pay-to-cure language | Tell the tenant of the right to avoid eviction by paying arrears under section 540:9 | Required in the notice for nonpayment |
| Proof of service | Record who delivered the notice, how, when, and where | Needed to prove the notice period ran if the tenant contests |
The order matters in a nonpayment case: the demand for rent and the seven-day notice go together, and the notice must carry the section 540:9 cure language. Landlords commonly deliver the notice in hand to the tenant or leave it at the tenant’s home, then keep a dated record of how service was accomplished. Because a defective or unprovable notice can sink the later possessory action, treat service as carefully as the content itself, and confirm the current practice with the circuit court.
Keep dated proof of the notice and the demand
Whoever serves the notice and the demand for rent should record who was served, how, when, and where. Without proof, the landlord may be unable to show the notice period ever started — and an unprovable notice is a losing one. A dated, witnessed delivery, or delivery by a neutral person followed by a written record, is the strongest foundation for the possessory action.
Takeaway
The notice to quit must be written and must state the reason with specificity. For nonpayment, pair it with a demand for rent and the section 540:9 cure language. An oral notice is not valid, and a notice that cannot be proven served is a losing one. Always keep dated proof of service.
What Makes a Notice Valid
Beyond picking the right ground and serving it properly, the notice’s content has to be right. A valid New Hampshire notice to quit is a written document — never oral — and generally includes the following.
| Required element | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Tenant name(s) and property address | Identifies who is being noticed and which unit; a wrong name or address can undermine the notice |
| The specific reason (good cause) | Nonpayment, the specific damage, the material breach, or the specific health-and-safety conduct — stated with enough detail to respond, and fitting a section 540:2 ground for restricted property |
| The correct notice period | Seven days for the serious grounds, thirty days for a material-term breach or other good cause |
| Pay-to-cure language (nonpayment) | Notice of the right to avoid eviction by paying arrears under section 540:9, plus a demand for rent |
| Date and signature | The date of the notice and the signature of the landlord or authorized agent |
For a nonpayment not