Housing & Tenant · Eviction Notice
Eviction Notice in Tennessee
How many days of written notice a landlord must give before filing an eviction in Tennessee, broken down by reason, and what you can do about it, cited to the statute.
Every notice period in Tennessee
The written notice for each reason a landlord can end a tenancy, and what each one means.
| Reason for the notice | Notice in Tennessee | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Nonpayment of rent (covered counties) | Can fix and stay14 days | In a covered county, the rental agreement terminates if the breach is not remedied within fourteen days after receipt (T.C.A. 66-28-505). Paying within the 14 days keeps the tenancy. |
| Breach not remediable by payment (covered counties) | 14 days | A breach that cannot be cured by paying terminates the agreement on a date not less than fourteen days after receipt (T.C.A. 66-28-505). |
| Repeated violation (covered counties) | 7 days | A repeated violation supports a 7-day notice with no chance to cure (T.C.A. 66-28-505). |
| Local ordinance | Varies | This is the Tennessee story, and it runs like Kentucky. T.C.A. 66-28-102 says the Act applies only in counties having more than 75,000 people according to the 2010 federal census. Coverage is a fixed list frozen against a census that is now over fifteen years old, so a county that grew past 75,000 after 2010 is still outside the Act, and its renters are governed by a different chapter. |
| After the notice | Court | A written notice, then a detainer warrant. In counties outside the Act, the governing provision is a different chapter of the Tennessee code rather than chapter 28. Only a court can order a tenant removed. |
| Statute | Tenn. Code Ann. §66-28-505; §66-28-102 | The controlling statute for these notice periods. Read the full text through the source link below. |
The census year is written into the statute, so the covered-county list does not move with population. Any statement of which counties are covered needs a named source and a review date.
What you can do right now
Concrete, neutral steps if you have received an eviction notice in Tennessee. This is legal information, not legal advice.
- Find out if your county is covered
In Tennessee the 14-day rule only applies in counties over 75,000 people by the 2010 census. Your first question is whether your county is covered, because renters in uncovered counties fall under a different chapter with different rules.
- If covered, pay or cure within 14 days
In a covered county, paying the rent or fixing a curable breach within the 14 days keeps the tenancy. A repeated violation is different, with a 7-day no-cure notice. Keep proof once you pay or cure.
- If not covered, get advice on the other chapter
If your county is outside the Act, the 14-day figure does not apply to you, and your notice comes from a different Tennessee chapter. Do not assume the widely quoted 14 days is your rule until you confirm coverage.
- Get local legal help
A local Tennessee legal aid office can tell you whether your county is covered by the Act, which decides everything else. Search for legal aid in your area and act before any court date.
This is general legal information, not legal advice. Read your own lease and check for a local ordinance, since either can change the notice that applies to your home.
What Tennessee renters get wrong
Tennessee is the second state in this topic where the answer depends on the county, and it is stranger than Kentucky because the line is drawn by a census that stopped being current a long time ago. The Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, which sets the 14-day pay-or-cure notice, applies only in counties with more than 75,000 people according to the 2010 federal census (T.C.A. 66-28-102). A renter in a county that crossed 75,000 people in 2015 still falls outside the Act, and their notice comes from a different chapter of the code entirely. So a page that prints Tennessee 14 days without that caveat is wrong for a meaningful share of the state, which is why this page is marked as cited until the covered-county list can be sourced and dated. In a covered county, unpaid rent and other curable breaches get fourteen days, a breach that cannot be cured by paying gets fourteen days with no cure, and a repeated violation gets seven. After the notice, a detainer warrant follows, and only a court can order a tenant out.
Common questions
Does the Tennessee landlord tenant act cover my county?
It depends on population. T.C.A. 66-28-102 applies the Act only in counties with more than 75,000 people by the 2010 federal census. If your county was above that in 2010 it is covered, and if not, a different chapter governs your notice, so you have to check.
Why does Tennessee law use the 2010 census?
The statute writes the 2010 federal census into its coverage test, so the list of covered counties is frozen to 2010 population figures. A county that grew past 75,000 people after 2010 is still outside the Act, which is a quirk worth knowing.
What notice applies outside the covered Tennessee counties?
Renters in counties not covered by the Act are governed by a different chapter of the Tennessee code, not by the 14-day rule in chapter 28. Because the out-of-Act provision differs, confirm your notice period with a local legal aid office.
Is the Tennessee 14 days a cure period or a deadline to move?
For a curable breach such as unpaid rent, it is a cure period: fixing the problem within 14 days keeps the tenancy. For a breach that cannot be cured by paying, it functions as a deadline before the tenancy ends. A repeated violation drops to 7 days with no cure.
Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.