How much notice does a landlord have to give a tenant to move out in Arizona

In Arizona, once a tenant stops paying their rent the eviction process can be started by the property owner or property manager. Before the landlord can file an eviction Complaint against the tenant, there are rules and laws that apply to each step of the eviction process.

If you are behind on your rent, financial assistance may be available. Visit the Get Help section of the website to find rental and utility assistance programs in your community.

No matter where in the eviction process you might be, a lawyer may be able to help. Arizona has a variety of free and reduced cost legal help programs to help with eviction and housing issues. Visit the Legal Help section of the website to connect with legal programs in your community.

Notice of Nonpayment

Before a landlord can go to court to file an eviction Complaint against the tenant, the landlord must give the tenant a written Notice.

A Notice of Nonpayment of Rent is often called a "5-Day" or “Pay or Quit” Notice, because the tenant is given a choice: either pay or move out. The landlord or property manager is able to give notice to the tenant as soon as the rent is late or past due.

When the landlord gives a Notice of Nonpayment of Rent to the tenant, the notice must include:

How much money the tenant owes.
The amount of money the tenant owes can include rent, late payment fees, and any other charges described in the lease or rental agreement.

Under Arizona law, the landlord cannot charge late fees unless they are reasonable, and the lease or rental agreement gives the tenant a specific dollar amount. The charges have to be specified in the lease or rental agreement.
A.R.S. § 33-1368(B)

If you are not sure what late payment fees or other charges are allowed, check your lease or rental agreement paperwork. A judge would have to be the one to determine whether a late fee is considered a reasonable amount.

A statement telling the tenant they have 5 calendar days to pay the entire amount owed or the landlord may go to court to file an eviction Complaint.
A.R.S. § 33-1368(B)

The 5-day period begins on the day after the date the Notice of nonpayment is issued. 
R.P.E.A. Rule 3(c)

All calendar days – including Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays – count toward the 5-day period.
A.R.S. § 33-1368(G)  |   R.P.E.A. Rule 3(a)

The landlord must deliver the Notice to the tenant in one of two ways:

In person (either to the tenant or to another person of suitable age and discretion who lives with the tenant).
A.R.S. § 33-1313(B)  |   R.P.E.A. Rule 18(f)

By registered or certified mail.
A.R.S. § 33-1313(B)  |  R.P.E.A. Rule 18(f)

A Notice is not an official document from the court and does not need to be signed by a Judge or notarized.

Eviction Complaint & Summons

On the day after the 5-day Notice for Nonpayment of rent ends, and not a day before, the landlord or their attorney can file an official eviction Complaint with the court that has jurisdiction. When the court receives a valid Complaint, the court will schedule a court hearing and issue a Summons.

The Summons will provide the tenant with the date, time, and location of the hearing. The date of the court hearing will be 3-6 days after the date the Summons is issued by the court.
R.P.E.A. Rule 5(a) |  A.R.S. § 33-1377(B) |  A.R.S. § 33-1485(B)

If you have received an eviction Summons, free or reduced cost legal assistance may be available to help. The eviction process in Arizona can move very quickly. It is important to apply for or contact legal help as early in the process as possible. Visit the Legal Help section of the website to connect with legal programs in your community.

If the tenant owes less than $10,000, the local Justice Court has jurisdiction. If the tenant owes more than $10,000 the county Superior Court has jurisdiction.

A Complaint tells the court what the landlord or property manager believes the tenant did to violate the lease or rental agreement.

A Complaint filed in court by the landlord must include:

The specific reason(s) why the landlord wants to have the tenant evicted.

The date the tenant was served or given the required Notice.

How the tenant was served or given the required Notice.

If the tenant’s rent is subsidized, a statement indicating that the tenant’s rent is subsidized.

R.P.E.A. Rule 5(b)(7)  |  R.P.E.A. Rule 5(b)(8)

If the landlord is asking for money the Complaint must also include:

How often the tenant was supposed to pay rent.

The date(s) when the tenant’s rent was due.

How much rent was due on each date.

How late fees are calculated according to the lease or rental agreement.

The total amount owed by the tenant on the date the landlord filed the eviction Complaint.

If the rent is subsidized - a breakdown of the total amount of the rent each month, the tenant’s portion of the rent, and how much the tenant owes.

R.P.E.A. Rule 5(c)(1-5, 8)

Once the landlord or their attorney files the eviction Complaint with the court, the court will issue a Summons to the tenant.

A Summons is an official notice of a lawsuit. A Summons provides information about the landlord’s Complaint and details about the hearing so the tenant can go to court and respond to the Complaint.

The landlord is responsible for getting a copy of the Summons to the tenant.

The landlord must have a sheriff, constable, or certified private process server deliver the Summons to the tenant at least 2 days before the court hearing.

If the Summons is not delivered to the tenant at least 2 days before the date of the court hearing, the court may (but is not required to) dismiss the landlord’s Complaint.

R.P.E.A. Rule 5(e) and Rule 5(f) | A.R.C.P. Rule 4(d)(1) | A.R.S. § 33-1377(B) | A.R.S. § 33-1485(B)

The sheriff, constable, or certified process server must deliver the Summons to the tenant in one of two ways:

In person (either to the tenant or to another person of suitable age and discretion who lives with the tenant).

By posting one copy on the tenant’s door (or another place where the tenant is very likely to find it) then sending another copy to the tenant by certified mail, return receipt requested.

R.P.E.A. Rule 5 (e)  |  A.R.C.P. Rule 4.1(d)

If within one day after the court has issued the Summons, a certified private process server attempts to deliver the Summons to the tenant in person, but no one is home, and the process server posts a copy of the Summons on the tenant’s door then sends another copy to the tenant by certified mail, return receipt requested, the court will assume that the tenant received the Summons three days after it was mailed.
A.R.S. § 33-1377(B)   |   A.R.S. § 33-1485(B)

When the landlord has the tenant served with the Summons, the landlord must also include each of the following documents to the tenant:

An official (court-stamped) copy of the landlord’s Complaint

A copy of the Notice that the landlord gave to or posted for the tenant.

A copy of the Residential Eviction Information Sheet (or another document containing the same information).

A copy of any items on the lease or rental agreement and/or any lease addendums (add-ons or changes) that are directly related to the landlord’s claims against the tenant.

If the landlord wants to legally have the tenant evicted for Nonpayment of Rent, a copy of a financial record showing the tenant’s charges and payments for the prior 6 months.

R.P.E.A. Rule 5(b) and 5(b)(7) and 5(a)(5) | R.P.E.A. Appendix A | R.P.E.A. Rule 5(d)(3) and (d)(4)

Responding to the Landlord’s Complaint

In Arizona, once a tenant stops paying their rent the eviction process can be started by the property owner or property manager. Before the landlord can file an eviction Complaint against the tenant, there are rules and laws that apply to each step of the eviction process.

Answer

An Answer is a written statement from the tenant given to the court. The Answer should be based on facts and evidence about the allegations made in the landlord’s Complaint. Tenants have the right to file a written Answer or Answer on the record in open court.

There is a fee for filing a written Answer, but the tenant may file a Fee Waiver/Deferral at the same time and ask not to pay the fee due to financial hardship. There is no fee required when the Answer is brought in open court.

Defenses used to file an Answer to the landlord’s complaint of nonpayment may be:

The tenant paid rent.

If you paid your rent in full and on time, you have a defense to the eviction Complaint. A.R.S. § 33-1368(B)

If you have witnesses or evidence of the payment, bring it to court.

If there is no evidence beyond your own testimony, you can ask the judge to require the landlord to provide you with a list of all charges and payments for the past 6 months.
R.P.E.A. Rule 10

The landlord accepted partial rent.

If you paid part of your rent and your landlord accepted it without requiring you to sign a document stating that you still owe rent and must pay it by a particular date, you have a defense to the eviction Complaint.

To raise this defense in court, you must show:

• You paid part of your rent
• Your landlord accepted it

The tenant lives in subsidized housing and pays less than what the landlord claims the tenant owes.

If you live in subsidized housing, your landlord cannot claim more rent from you than you actually owe. This is a federal law.
24 C.F.R. 982.451(B)(4)(iii)

If this happens, it is important to review the Complaint provided with the Summons.

The landlord is required to list in the complaint the total amount of rent, your portion of the rent, and the amount you still owe.

The tenant can report a landlord for seeking more money than the tenant owes by calling HUD’s fraud hotline at (800) 347-3745.

The tenant can Answer the landlord’s Complaint in two ways:

By filing an Answer with the court clerk, delivering a court-stamped copy of the Answer to the landlord before the court hearing, then appearing at the court hearing to argue against the landlord’s claims.
R.P.E.A. Rule 7

By taking part in the court hearing either in-person, over the phone, or online, to argue against the landlord’s claims.
R.P.E.A. Rule 11(b)

If the tenant has a legal defense to eviction the tenant uses an Answer form to let the court know. An Answer will only be considered if the tenant appears at the court hearing, even if they file it with the court before the hearing occurs.

The landlord’s Notice of Nonpayment of Rent, the eviction Complaint filed by the landlord, and the Summons received by the tenant must meet the requirements of Arizona’s laws and rules.

If the Notice, Complaint, and Summons (or the delivery of the Notice, Complaint, and Summons) from the landlord did not follow the law or rules, the tenant may let the judge know they did not receive enough time or sufficient notice.

Violations of Arizona’s laws or rules include:

The landlord did not give proper Notice of Nonpayment to the tenant.

Your landlord did not properly serve or deliver the Notice to you.
A.R.S. § 33-1313(B) | R.P.E.A. Rule 18(f)

The Notice did not tell you how much money was owed or how many days you had to make the payment.
A.R.S. § 33-1368(A),(B)

The landlord improperly filed the eviction Complaint.

You had already moved out and returned your keys to the landlord when the Complaint was filed.
A.R.S. § 33-1368(A),(B) | A.R.S. § 33-1310(3)

Your landlord filed the Complaint before the required 5-day Notice period ended.
A.R.S. § 33-1368(A),(B)

The Summons was not properly served or delivered to the tenant.

The Summons was not properly served or delivered to you.
R.P.E.A. Rule 5(e) | A.R.C.P. Rule 4.1(d)

The Summons was not delivered to you at least 2 days before the date of the court hearing.
A.R.S. § 33-1377(B) | R.P.E.A. Rule 5(f)

An unauthorized person (not a sheriff, constable, or process server) delivered the Summons to you.
R.P.E.A. Rule 5(e) | A.R.C.P. Rule 4(d)(1)

The required documents were not included with the Summons.

A conformed (court-stamped) copy of the Complaint was not included with the Summons.
R.P.E.A. Rule 5(b)

A copy of the required Notice was not included with the Summons.
R.P.E.A. Rule 5(b)(7)

A copy of the Residential Eviction Information Sheet (or another document containing the same information) was not included with the Summons.
R.P.E.A. Rule 5(a)(5)

A copy of any items on the lease or rental agreement and/or any lease addendums(add-ons or changes) that are directly related to the landlord’s claims against the tenant was not included with the Summons.
R.P.E.A. Rule 5(d)(3)

A copy of a ledger or accounting record showing the tenant’s charges and payments for the prior 6 months was not included with the Summons.
R.P.E.A. Rule 5(d)(4)

If any of the above are true, the court may dismiss the Complaint.
R.P.E.A. Rule 13(a)(1)

Counterclaim

A landlord is required to keep a rental unit in a “fit and habitable” condition and not violate the lease agreement. If a landlord has not kept the unit “fit and habitable“ or if the landlord has violated the lease or rental agreement, a tenant can file a Counterclaim. Counterclaims are fact-based complaints that the tenant can prove with evidence (examples: printed photographs, witnesses).

In a nonpayment case, tenants have the right to Counterclaim for any amount you can recover if your landlord has violated your rental agreement or Arizona law.
A.R.S. § 33-1365

This might include problems with electricity, heating and cooling, insect or pest infestations, leaky pipes, or other unsafe conditions.

Tenants are required to prove that they told the landlord about these problems and that the landlord failed to correct them within a reasonable time.

If the tenant wants to make a Counterclaim:

The tenant files a written Counterclaim with the Clerk of the Court

The tenant delivers a court-stamped copy of the Counterclaim to the landlord before the court hearing

The tenant appears at the court hearing to tell the Judge why the court should grant the Counterclaim.

R.P.E.A. Rule 8(a)

Before the Hearing

Before the court eviction hearing, a tenant and landlord may come to an agreement or negotiate a way to avoid an eviction.

If your landlord does not have a legal basis for having you evicted, you may want to contact the landlord or the landlord’s attorney and provide the landlord or attorney with a copy (not the original) of whatever evidence you have. If the landlord and tenant agree to a settlement, the landlord or landlord’s attorney must ask the court to dismiss the eviction action since the landlord brought the Complaint.

Any agreement between you and your landlord should be made in writing, signed and dated by you and the landlord. Make sure to keep a copy of the agreement for your records.

If your landlord agrees to stop the eviction, the written agreement between you and your landlord should include a promise by the landlord to ask the court to dismiss the Complaint.
R.P.E.A. Rule 9(f)

A stipulated judgment is a judgment evicting the tenant without a hearing.

Sometimes, before the eviction hearing takes place, the landlord’s attorney will approach or contact the tenant and ask the tenant to sign a written judgment. By signing the written judgment, the tenant agrees to whatever the judgment says.

It is called a “stipulated” judgment because both the landlord and the tenant agree (or “stipulate”) to whatever the judgment says without waiting to argue their cases in front of the judge.

Once the tenant has signed the stipulated judgment, the tenant cannot change their mind. The tenant loses their right to present a legal defense to eviction or to make a Counterclaim against the landlord. The tenant also loses their right to appeal the judgment against them.

After the tenant has signed the stipulated judgment, the landlord’s attorney will present it to the judge, the judge will sign it, and the tenant will be evicted.

Preparing for an Eviction Hearing

Eviction hearings in Arizona are often limited in the time available before a judge for each case. If you have an eviction hearing scheduled, a lawyer may be better able to address the legal issues during a hearing. Free or reduced cost legal assistance may be available to help. Visit the Legal Help section of the website to connect with legal programs in your community.

See the What to Bring to Court for an Eviction Hearing Checklist