Know Your Rights

Under the SCRA (50 U.S.C. §§ 3955), servicemembers and their dependents have the right to terminate a residential lease early without penalty under the following conditions:

• Permanent Change of Station (PCS) Orders — If you receive PCS orders requiring you to move more than 90 days, you may terminate your lease effective 30 days after the next rent payment is due.
• Deployment Orders of 90+ Days — If you are deployed for a period of 90 days or more, the same lease termination rights apply. This includes both domestic and overseas deployments.
• Entry into Military Service — If you signed the lease before entering active duty, you may terminate the lease at any time after entering active duty.

To properly invoke your SCRA protections, you must follow these notice requirements:

1. Written Notice — Deliver written notice to your landlord or property manager stating your intent to terminate the lease under the SCRA.
2. Copy of Orders — Include a copy of your military orders (PCS, deployment, or activation orders) with your written notice.
3. Effective Date — The lease terminates 30 days after the date that the next rental payment is due following delivery of the notice. For example, if you deliver notice on March 15 and rent is due April 1, the lease terminates April 30.

SCRA protections extend to the servicemember's dependents, including spouses:

• Joint Leases — If the lease is in both names (servicemember and spouse), the spouse can exercise the early termination right on behalf of the servicemember.
• Spouse-Only Leases — If only the dependent spouse signed the lease, they may still be covered if the lease was signed to be near the servicemember's duty station.
• No Early Termination Fees — Landlords cannot charge early termination penalties, and any prepaid rent beyond the termination date must be refunded.