Breaking a Lease in North Dakota

Domestic violence termination (§ 47-16-17.1)

• A tenant who is a victim of domestic violence, or who fears imminent domestic violence against the tenant or the tenant's minor children, may terminate without penalty by giving advance written notice stating the fear of imminent domestic violence from a person named in a court order or other court record, the need to terminate, and the termination date.
• The tenant pays rent for the full month in which the tenancy ends plus an amount equal to one month's rent, subject to the landlord's duty to mitigate. That extra month must be paid on or before the termination.
• The landlord may not disclose the documentation, and may not refuse to rent or retaliate because a tenant used this right. A court may award $1,000 in statutory damages plus actual damages and attorney's fees.

Other early termination (§ 47-16-17)

• A lessee may terminate when the lessor does not, within a reasonable time after request, secure the lessee in quiet possession or put the property in good condition or repair it, or when the greater part of the property perishes from causes other than the lessee's ordinary negligence.

Mitigation (§ 47-16-13.7)

• A lessee evicted according to law is liable for rent for the remainder of the term, but this does not relieve the landlord of the duty to mitigate damages.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• N.D.C.C. ch. 47-16 (official text)