How to evict a tenant in Montana: the notice, the hearing and the writ
Montana ties the notice to the reason. Unpaid rent gets 3 days, an unauthorized pet or occupant gets 3 days, and most other lease breaches get 14. A month-to-month tenancy without a breach takes 30 days' written notice. If the tenant stays, the court must hear the case within 10 business days of the answer date, rule within 5 days, and issue the writs at once; the sheriff then has 5 business days to carry out the writ of assistance.
Which notice period applies in Montana?
Section 70-24-422 of the Montana Code Annotated sets the periods. When rent is unpaid and the tenant does not pay within 3 days after written notice of nonpayment and your intention to terminate, you may terminate the rental agreement (subsection 2). Other noncompliance runs through subsection 1: an unauthorized pet or unauthorized persons living in the unit is a 3-day notice, verbal abuse of the landlord is a 3-day notice, and anything not listed there is 14 days. If the problem can be fixed by repairs, paying damages or the landlord's written approval, and the tenant fixes it before the date in the notice, the rental agreement does not end.
If substantially the same act that you gave notice of recurs within 6 months, you may end the agreement on at least 5 days' written notice. Subsections 3 and 4 allow a 3-day notice when the tenant damages the premises or creates a reasonable potential for damage or injury to neighbors.
Without any breach, 70-24-441 lets either side end a week-to-week tenancy with 7 days' written notice and a month-to-month tenancy with at least 30 days' written notice, and the tenancy ends on the date named, with rent apportioned from day to day unless agreed otherwise.
How can you serve the notice?
Section 70-24-108 says a person has notice of a fact if they have actual knowledge of it, if it is delivered in hand, or if it is mailed with a certificate of mailing or by certified mail to the place the person designated or the last known address. Mailed notice counts as served 3 days after mailing. Email counts too, if the address is in the rental agreement, but only when you have a read receipt from the mail system or a reply that is not automatic. That makes email slower to prove than hand delivery.
How fast does the case move after you file?
Under 70-24-427, if the rental agreement is terminated you have a claim for possession, rent and actual damages. The action must be heard within 10 business days after the tenant's appearance or the answer date in the summons, or within 5 business days when the termination was for the 70-24-321(3) conduct. Section 70-24-429(4) gives the tenant 5 business days after service to answer. If the case is appealed to district court, the hearing is held within 10 business days after transmittal. A claim for damages for breach is heard separately, within 45 days after possession and rent are decided, and both sides may agree to a later hearing date without posting an undertaking.
The court must rule within 5 days after the hearing. If you win possession, the court issues a writ of possession and a writ of assistance immediately, and the sheriff executes the writ of assistance within 5 business days of receiving it, or at a time within 5 business days that you and the sheriff agree.
Example a made-up landlord files, and the answer date in the summons is Monday, December 7, 2026. Ten business days later is Monday, December 21, so the hearing must be held by then. If the court grants possession, both writs issue that day, and the sheriff has five business days after receiving the writ of assistance to carry it out.
What if the tenant simply stays past the notice?
Under 70-24-429, a tenant who remains without consent after the term or termination can be sued for possession. For a month-to-month tenant who stays after a lawful 30-day notice that gave no cause, the holdover counts as purposeful, and you may recover up to 3 months' periodic rent or treble damages, whichever is greater. If the term is longer than month-to-month and you ended it with cause, the same recovery applies when the holdover is purposeful and not in good faith. If you consent to the tenant staying, the rules about continued occupancy in 70-24-201 apply instead.
What may a Montana landlord not do?
Section 70-24-428 says that except for abandonment, surrender or what the chapter permits, a landlord may not recover or take possession of the dwelling by action or otherwise, including purposeful diminution of services by interrupting heat, running water, hot water, electricity, gas or other essential services. The only road to getting the unit back is a notice, a case and a writ.
- Serving a 3-day notice by email without a read receipt or a real reply.
- Using the 14-day period for an unauthorized pet or occupant, which the statute puts at 3 days.
- Waiting on the writ of assistance: it issues with the writ of possession, so ask the clerk for both at once.
Where does DoorKeeping fit?
DoorKeeping keeps each property's lease, rent ledger and the notices you send together, which is the paper trail a court asks for. You still serve the notice and file the case yourself. DoorKeeping gives general information, not legal advice. Check the current statute and your court's local rules, and talk to a local attorney if the case is contested.
Sources
Questions
- How many days of notice does a Montana landlord give for unpaid rent?
- Three days after written notice of nonpayment and the landlord's intention to terminate (70-24-422(2)).
- How long does a Montana eviction hearing take to get scheduled?
- Within 10 business days after the tenant's appearance or the answer date (5 for certain serious conduct), under 70-24-427.
- Can a Montana landlord cut off heat to force a tenant out?
- No. Section 70-24-428 bars taking possession by interrupting heat, water, electricity, gas or other essential services.