Holdover Clause
in Your Lease
How this page is sourced
Statutes verified against primary state sources
Every statute cited here was read in its published text before this page went live: on the state's own site where that site can be reached, otherwise on a republished copy of the code. Court decisions are quoted from the published opinion and linked to it, so you can read the original yourself.
Primary sourcesNot legal advice
Content verified against primary state statutes before publicationLast updated: November 2026
What it actually means, what Virginia law says, what's specific to Richmond - and exactly what to do. In plain English.
Short answer for Richmond
A holdover penalty is a lease term with a state ceiling: your lease may set a reasonable penalty of up to 150 percent of your daily rent for each day past the termination date in your landlord's notice (Va. Code § 55.1-1253(C)). Without consent, your landlord can sue for possession, actual damages, attorney fees and court costs, unless you prove staying was reasonable. With consent, the old lease terms carry on (§ 55.1-1253(D)). First step: ask in writing to stay.
Copy the request to stay longerWhat is your situation?
My lease ended and I haven't moved out
Without your landlord's consent, they can sue for possession and recover actual damages, reasonable attorney fees and court costs, unless you prove that failing to vacate on time was reasonable (Va. Code § 55.1-1253(C)); keep dated messages that show why you stayed. They cannot take the unit by locking you out or cutting an essential service without a court order for possession (§ 55.1-1252). Note the day any notice arrived.
See what to do nextMy landlord says I owe holdover rent or a fee
Only if your lease includes it: Va. Code § 55.1-1253(C) allows a reasonable lease penalty of up to 150 percent of your daily rent for each day after the termination date in your landlord's notice. A $40 per diem caps it at $60 a day. The section does not say whether the penalty replaces rent or adds to it, so ask in writing how any total was worked out.
Read the Virginia law sectionMy landlord took rent after the lease ended
No section we read says what accepting rent after the term creates by itself. If your landlord agrees to your staying and no new lease is signed, the old lease terms stay in effect (Va. Code § 55.1-1253(D)), and a new rent set by written notice waits for the next rent due date coming 30 days after the notice. Get your landlord's agreement in writing and keep it.
See your rightsI need a few more weeks
Ask your landlord in writing before your end date whether you can stay until a set date and at what daily rent, and keep the reply as proof of what was agreed. With consent, the old lease terms carry on (Va. Code § 55.1-1253(D)). If your lease has a holdover penalty, ask which paragraph, the daily amount, and whether it replaces rent for those days or is added to it.
Work out prorated rentI'm the landlord and my tenant stayed
If the tenant stays without consent, sue for possession; actual damages, reasonable attorney fees and court costs follow unless the tenant proves staying was reasonable (Va. Code § 55.1-1253(C)). A holdover penalty must be in the lease, reasonable, and capped at 150 percent of the per diem rent per day after the termination date in your notice. No lockout or service cut without a court order for possession (§ 55.1-1252).
Read the Virginia law sectionQuick summary: 5 key points
- Your lease may set a penalty of up to 150 percent of daily rent per day (§ 55.1-1253(C)).
- In public housing or a HUD-regulated unit, the cap is your daily rent itself.
- Without consent, landlords can sue for possession, actual damages, attorney fees and court costs unless you prove staying was reasonable.
- With consent, old terms continue; new rent waits for the next rent due date coming 30 days after written notice.
- No lockout without a court order, and no cutting essential services to take the unit (§ 55.1-1252).
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Step by step
How it plays out
- Lease endsYou stay without consentYour landlord may sue for possession, actual damages, attorney fees and court costs, unless you prove staying was reasonable (§ 55.1-1253(C)).
- Each extra dayA lease penalty may applyOnly if your lease includes one: a reasonable penalty up to 150 percent of daily rent per day after the termination date in the landlord's notice, or up to the daily rent itself in public housing or a HUD-regulated unit (§ 55.1-1253(C)).
- With consentOld lease terms carry onA new rent set by written notice waits for the next rent due date coming 30 days after the notice (§ 55.1-1253(D)).
- Landlord wants possessionNo lockout or shut-offNo taking the unit by willfully interrupting an essential service, or refusing access without a court order for possession (§ 55.1-1252).
Count it for your dates
30 days before: the last day to act
What it means: This is the last day to give written notice at least 30 days before the next rent due date you entered, to end a month-to-month tenancy. Applies to either you or your landlord ending a month-to-month tenancy in Richmond, unless the rental agreement provides a different notice period (Va. Code § 55.1-1253(A)). Calendar arithmetic only; check how the section counts days before you rely on a date.
Copy and send: Before your lease ends, as soon as you know you need extra days
Ask to stay past your end date
Fill in the brackets and keep a copy of what you send.
How Virginia compares
Statutory holdover rent multiplier, state by state
1.5x2x3xNo figureGuide coming soonYou are here
See all 28 cities as a chart
Figures are the state rule, or the stronger city ordinance where one exists. Verify the current law for your own situation before relying on it.
Understanding the Holdover Clause
This page is for Richmond renters who need to stay a little past the end of their lease, or who found a holdover penalty in the lease they signed. In Virginia that penalty is a lease term with a state ceiling, not a charge the state adds on its own.
So read your holdover paragraph before your end date, and ask your landlord in writing what you will owe for any extra days. Get the answer on paper while you still have time to plan.
What renters assume
Virginia law charges a tenant 1.5 times the rent for every day spent in the unit after the lease ends.
What is actually true
The 1.5x figure is a ceiling on a lease term, not an automatic charge. § 55.1-1253(C) lets a lease include a reasonable penalty of up to 150 percent of the daily rent, counted from the termination date in the landlord's notice.
Richmond's row is drawn at 1.5, labelled "Up to 1.5x daily rent (lease term)". Ten of the 28 rows in the comparison on this page carry a 2: New York City, Miami, Chicago, Phoenix, Washington, Newark, Baltimore, Milwaukee, Kansas City and Oklahoma City.
Louisville's row carries a 3, and sixteen of the 28 rows carry no multiplier.
Four of the labels open with "Up to", Richmond's among them. Phoenix reads "Up to 2 months' rent (willful)", Oklahoma City "Up to 2x rent (willful)" and Louisville "Up to 3 months' rent (willful)", each tied to a willful holdover. Richmond's ceiling is tied to a lease term instead.
The figure on Richmond's row leaves out the unit Virginia counts in. § 55.1-1253(C) measures the penalty by the day, against the per diem of the monthly rent, and for public housing or a HUD-regulated unit the cap falls to the per diem rent itself.
Holdover Clause Example - What the Wording Looks Like in Richmond, VA
The sample clause below comes from an Illinois court case, and the notes explain what Virginia law says about each part. It is real lease language - a court quoted it word for word, and then ruled on it. What the judge decided is at the bottom of this block.
Find the equivalent paragraph in your own lease and read the two side by side. The wording will differ; the moving parts rarely do.
If the Lessee retains possession of the Premises after the term of this lease expires, the Lessor may either accept further rent payments by the Lessee, in which case a month-to-month tenancy shall be created, or sue for possession; and Lessor shall be entitled to recover from Lessee all damages sustained by him as a result of Lessee's failure to vacate the Premises, including but not limited to lost rent, court costs and attorneys fees. In no case shall a holdover tenancy be created. In the event Lessee retains possession without Lessor[']s consent beyond the term of this lease, the monthly rental shall be 150% of the rental for the original term.
Quoted from the published opinion in Roth v. Dillavou, No. 2—04—0840 (Ill. App. Ct., 2d Dist., Sept. 8, 2005). Judicial opinions are not subject to copyright; the lease language is reproduced in limited part for commentary under 17 U.S.C. § 107.
What the 4 highlighted phrases mean
“accept further rent payments by the Lessee, in which case a month-to-month tenancy shall be created”
This branch is the landlord's consent, and Virginia has a subsection for it. Under § 55.1-1253(D), where the tenant stays with the landlord's agreement “either as a hold-over tenant or a month-to-month tenant” and no new agreement is signed, “the terms of the terminated agreement shall remain in effect”. § 55.1-1204(F) makes a tenancy month-to-month, or week-to-week for a tenant who pays weekly rent, except as the written rental agreement provides.
See the example
“as a result of Lessee's failure to vacate the Premises”
Virginia's statute frames the same loss, and adds a defense this lease leaves out. Under § 55.1-1253(C) a landlord whose tenant stays without consent may sue for possession and “also recover actual damages, reasonable attorney fees, and court costs”. That holds “unless the tenant proves by a preponderance of the evidence that the failure of the tenant to vacate the dwelling unit as of the termination date was reasonable.”
See the example
“In the event Lessee retains possession without Lessor[']s consent”
Consent is the hinge in Virginia too. Without it, § 55.1-1253(C) gives the landlord an action for possession, and § 55.1-1233 requires a tenant to “promptly vacate the premises” at the end of the term. Self-help has limits: § 55.1-1252 bars a landlord from taking possession by willfully interrupting an essential service required by the rental agreement, or by refusing access to the unit unless a court order for possession allows it.
See the example
“beyond the term of this lease, the monthly rental shall be 150%”
Virginia lets a lease name a holdover premium, and caps it in a different unit. § 55.1-1253(C) allows “a reasonable liquidated damage penalty, not to exceed an amount equal to 150 percent of the per diem of the monthly rent”, for each day after “the termination date specified in the landlord's notice”. For public housing or a unit regulated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the cap is the per diem rent itself.
See the example
The clause was enforced exactly as written. Because the lease itself said no holdover tenancy would arise - only a month-to-month one - the court held the original lease terms carried straight through the post-term period, which kept the tenant's co-signer on the hook for it. One judge dissented, warning that reading it this way exposes a guarantor to open-ended liability.
How this state's law treats this clause
One court, one lease, one state. That answer is not automatically yours, and your lease may be worded to land differently. Use this to know what to look for and what to ask - your state's tenant hotline or a local tenant attorney can answer it for your document.
Virginia Law on Holdover Clause
- The 1.5x figure is a ceiling on a lease term, not an automatic charge.
Read the law's words
Section 55.1-1253(C) says "The landlord may include in the rental agreement a reasonable liquidated damage penalty, not to exceed an amount equal to 150 percent of the per diem of the monthly rent, for each day the tenant remains in the dwelling unit after the termination date specified in the landlord's notice." For a public housing unit or other housing unit subject to regulation by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, "any liquidated damage penalty shall not exceed an amount equal to the per diem of the monthly rent set out in the lease agreement." The section does not say whether that penalty is charged in place of or in addition to rent for the same days, so check the lease and the current statute text before relying on a total. - Staying without consent opens a possession suit.
Read the law's words
Section 55.1-1253(C) lets the landlord "bring an action for possession" and "also recover actual damages, reasonable attorney fees, and court costs, unless the tenant proves by a preponderance of the evidence that the failure of the tenant to vacate the dwelling unit as of the termination date was reasonable." Section 55.1-1233 requires a tenant to "promptly vacate the premises" at the end of the term, and § 8.01-128(A) has an unlawful detainer judgment cover the premises plus the damages the landlord proves and "such rent as he may prove to have been owing to him." - Staying with consent keeps the old lease running.
Read the law's words
Section 55.1-1253(D) says that where the tenant remains with the landlord's agreement "either as a hold-over tenant or a month-to-month tenant" and no new agreement is signed, "the terms of the terminated agreement shall remain in effect", except that the rent is either the old amount or the amount in a written notice, which "shall not take effect until the next rent due date coming 30 days after the notice." Section 55.1-1204(F) makes a tenancy month-to-month, or week-to-week for a tenant who pays weekly rent, except as provided in the written rental agreement, and § 55.1-1253(A) lets either side end a month-to-month tenancy by written notice at least 30 days before the next rent due date, unless the rental agreement provides a different notice period. - Limits sit on top of whatever the lease says.
Read the law's words
Section 55.1-1252 bars a landlord from taking possession by willfully interrupting an essential service required by the rental agreement or by refusing the tenant access to the unit unless a court order for possession allows it, and § 55.1-1208(A)(1) and (B) make unenforceable a lease term in which the tenant agrees to waive or forgo rights or remedies under the Act. Section 55.1-1201(C) lists occupancies that are not residential tenancies under the Act, and § 55.1-1201(D) exempts a hotel or motel guest who does not live there as a primary residence; under § 55.1-1400(B), Chapter 14 of Title 55.1 applies to nonresidential tenancies.
Sources include Va. Code § 55.1-1253(C); Va. Code § 55.1-1253(D); Va. Code § 55.1-1253(A); Va. Code § 55.1-1204(F); Va. Code § 55.1-1233; Va. Code § 55.1-1251; Va. Code § 55.1-1252; Va. Code § 55.1-1208(A)(1); Va. Code § 55.1-1208(B); Va. Code § 55.1-1201(A); Va. Code § 55.1-1201(C); Va. Code § 55.1-1201(D); Va. Code § 55.1-1201(E); Va. Code § 55.1-1400(B); Va. Code § 8.01-128(A) - statutes change; verify the current text for your situation.
Read the full state law section
Virginia answers the holdover question in Va. Code § 55.1-1253 and splits it by whether your landlord agreed to the stay. Four rules shape what happens next:
- A capped lease penalty. A lease may include "a reasonable liquidated damage penalty, not to exceed an amount equal to 150 percent of the per diem of the monthly rent" for each day after the termination date in the landlord's notice. In public housing or a HUD-regulated unit, the cap is the per diem rent. The section does not say whether the penalty replaces rent for those days or is added to it.
- Without consent. The landlord may sue for possession and recover actual damages, reasonable attorney fees and court costs, unless you prove by a preponderance of the evidence that staying was reasonable.
- With consent. The old lease terms stay in effect (§ 55.1-1253(D)). A new rent set by written notice waits for the next rent due date coming 30 days after the notice. Either side may end a month-to-month tenancy with written notice at least 30 days before the next rent due date, unless the lease sets a different period (§ 55.1-1253(A)).
- No self-help. § 55.1-1252 bars taking possession by willfully interrupting an essential service, or by refusing access unless a court order for possession allows it.
What's Specific to Richmond
Our Richmond record finds no Richmond holdover rent rate or holdover penalty. The rules here are Virginia's. The one city section we read tied to holding over, City Code § 8-2(b)(3), covers City-owned real estate leases of 90 calendar days or less and sets no holdover rent rate.
Va. Code § 55.1-1201(E) says the Act supersedes local landlord and tenant ordinances, with room for a mediation commission and property maintenance ordinances; we take no position on how it applies. Check the current Richmond code before relying on the absence of a city rule.
Treat it as a lease term. The 1.5x figure in § 55.1-1253(C) is a ceiling, not an automatic charge.
The statute counts each day after the termination date in the landlord's notice, so a daily figure is one you can check.
§ 55.1-1253(C) does not say. A clause that answers it gives you a total you can check.
§ 55.1-1252 bars taking possession by willfully cutting an essential service, or by locking you out without a court order for possession.
Sources
The law this guide relies on, and where to read it. Statutes change, so confirm the current text before you act on it.
- Va. Code § 55.1-1253(C); Va. Code § 55.1-1253(D); Va. Code § 55.1-1253(A); Va. Code § 55.1-1204(F); Va. Code § 55.1-1233; Va. Code § 55.1-1251; Va. Code § 55.1-1252; Va. Code § 55.1-1208(A)(1); Va. Code § 55.1-1208(B); Va. Code § 55.1-1201(A); Va. Code § 55.1-1201(C); Va. Code § 55.1-1201(D); Va. Code § 55.1-1201(E); Va. Code § 55.1-1400(B); Va. Code § 8.01-128(A), read on law.lis.virginia.gov. The Virginia General Assembly's Legislative Information System prints § 55.1-1253 with the history line "1974, c. 680, § 55-248.37; ... 2019, c. 712; 2023, c. 679" and no delayed effective date, and the section is not on its list of Code sections updated effective July 1, 2026.
Red Flags to Watch Out For
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A 1.5x rate presented as automatic
Wording that says Virginia or Richmond charges 1.5 times rent on its own. It is a ceiling on a lease term, and our Richmond record finds no city holdover rate.
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A monthly penalty for a stay of a few days
§ 55.1-1253(C) measures the penalty for each day. A clause that bills a full month at a premium for a short stay deserves a close read.
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A premium above the daily rent in public housing
In public housing or a HUD-regulated unit, any liquidated damage penalty may not exceed the per diem of the monthly rent set out in the lease.
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A lockout or shut-off the day after the lease ends
§ 55.1-1252 bars taking possession by willfully interrupting an essential service, or by refusing access unless a court order for possession allows it.
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A waiver of your rights under the Act
§ 55.1-1208(A)(1) and (B) make unenforceable a lease term in which you agree to waive or forgo rights or remedies under the Act.
Your Rights as a Richmond Tenant
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A ceiling on any holdover penalty
No more than 150 percent of your daily rent per day, and reasonable (§ 55.1-1253(C)). Public housing and HUD-regulated units cap it at the daily rent.
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A defense of reasonableness
Actual damages, attorney fees and court costs do not apply if you prove by a preponderance of the evidence that failing to vacate on time was reasonable.
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Old terms if your landlord agrees
With consent, the old lease terms stay in effect, and any new rent waits for the next rent due date coming 30 days after written notice.
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No lockout, even after the term
No taking possession by willfully cutting an essential service, or by refusing access without a court order for possession (§ 55.1-1252).
What To Do - Step by Step
Find the end date and the penalty term
Write down your lease end date and any liquidated damage penalty the holdover paragraph names. Check it against the daily cap in § 55.1-1253(C).
Ask in writing before your end date
If you need more time, ask whether your landlord agrees and what rent applies. Keep the reply as proof of what was agreed.
Keep the landlord's notice and its date
The penalty counts from the termination date in the landlord's notice. Photograph the notice and note the day it arrived.
Ask whether the penalty replaces rent
The statute does not say whether the penalty replaces rent for those days or is added to it. Ask in writing how any total was worked out.
Keep proof of why you stayed
If you can prove staying was reasonable, actual damages, attorney fees and court costs do not apply. Keep dated messages and documents.
Get advice before paying a penalty
Take the lease, the notice and any court papers to a Richmond tenant lawyer or legal aid office. Check the current text of § 55.1-1253 first.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Holdover rules near Virginia
The same clause in the nearest states we cover.