Law Office of Jonathan J. Moriarty: TENANT AT SUFFERANCE

     A Tenant at Sufferance is a "hold-over" tenancy after a lease has expired, but before the landlord has demanded that the tenant quit (vacate) the premises. During a tenancy at sufferance the tenant is bound by the terms of the lease that existed before it expired. The only difference between a "tenancy at sufferance" and a "tenancy at will" is that the latter was created by agreement. A Tenant at Sufferance may also be defined as a tenant which occupies a property against the intentions of the landlord, but subject to the tenant's right of possession.

     Most often, this issue arises as a result of a good faith purchaser for value at a foreclosure sale. The Buyer purchases the property subject to the occupants. The successful Buyer must bear the responsibility of taking the proper legal actions to evict the occupants. The relevance to defining the status of the tenant is crucial because Tenants at Sufferance are entitled to very little notice prior to filing the complaint for eviction. Not every tenant occupying a property purchased at foreclosure is a Tenant at Sufferance. Massachusetts law requires a careful examination of many factors including, but not limited to the following: length of continued occupation; relationship to the prior owners; communications (written and oral) between all persons involved with the property; careful examination of the ‘‘Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act of 2009’’; and, the existence of a lease (current or expired).

     Failure to provide proper notice and abide by the laws of the Commonwealth may result in the dismissal of your Summary Process (eviction) action and a complete waste of your time, money and resources. As always, I strongly recommend consulting an attorney prior to undertaking any legal action against an occupant or tenant. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly.

Jonathan J. Moriarty, Esq.

Law Office of Jonathan J. Moriarty

53 South Main Street, Ste. 3

Randolph, MA 02368

Telephone: (781) 961-2200

Facsimile: (781) 961-0017

Email: jjmoriarty@verizon.net

Website: www.attorneymoriarty.com