Pennsylvania Eviction Process: Notice Periods, Timeline, and Costs

Under 68 P.S. § 250.501, when the tenant fails on demand to pay rent that is due, the notice to quit must give the tenant 10 days from the date of service to pay or move out. Count from the day after service. The statute permits only three service methods: handing the notice to the tenant, leaving it at the principal building on the property, or posting it conspicuously on the leased premises — mailing or emailing it alone does not satisfy the statute. Note that a residential lease may shorten or waive the notice entirely, and most Pennsylvania leases do.

For a breach of the lease conditions or expiration of the term, 68 P.S. § 250.501 requires 15 days' notice when the lease runs one year or less or is for an indeterminate time, and 30 days' notice when the lease is for more than one year. Pennsylvania does not build in a statutory cure period, so whether the tenant can fix the violation depends on what the lease says.

A month-to-month tenancy is an indeterminate term, so the notice to quit under 68 P.S. § 250.501 is 15 days; leases longer than one year require 30 days. Pennsylvania has no statewide just-cause requirement, but Philadelphia's Good Cause Eviction ordinance restricts non-renewal of covered leases within the city.

Landlord-tenant complaints go to the Magisterial District Court for the district where the property is located, or to Philadelphia Municipal Court in Philadelphia. Filing fees generally fall between about $55 and $130 depending on the amount claimed, with constable or sheriff service typically adding $35-$75.

The tenant does not file a written answer. A hearing is scheduled roughly 7 to 15 days after the landlord-tenant complaint is filed, the complaint and hearing notice must be served at least 5 days before the hearing, and the tenant simply appears and raises defenses that day.

Even an uncontested case takes time because of layered waiting periods: notice to quit, hearing in 7-15 days, a 10-day appeal window after judgment, then an order for possession that gives the tenant another 10 days after it is served before the constable can act. Appeals to the Court of Common Pleas, a supersedeas, or a Philadelphia diversion requirement add weeks or months.

Pennsylvania landlords may not lock out a tenant, remove belongings, or shut off utilities to force a move-out; the only lawful route is a judgment and an executed order for possession served by a constable or sheriff. Shutting off or interfering with utility service violates the Utility Service Tenants Rights Act, 68 P.S. § 399.1 et seq., which lets the tenant recover two months' rent or actual damages, whichever is greater, plus attorney fees and costs, and exposes the landlord to civil penalties. Illegal lockouts also expose you to a suit for damages and an order restoring the tenant to possession.

No statewide changes to the Landlord and Tenant Act's notice periods took effect in 2024-2026. Philadelphia continues to require Eviction Diversion Program participation before most residential filings and has been expanding its Good Cause Eviction and rental-license prerequisites, so confirm current city requirements with Philadelphia Municipal Court before filing there.

Pennsylvania is unusual in letting a lease waive the notice to quit, and most standard PA leases contain that waiver — read your lease before you spend ten days waiting, and read it again before you assume you can skip the notice. Service by mail or email is not one of the three methods the statute allows, so document hand delivery or posting with photographs. Under 68 P.S. § 250.503(c) a tenant in a nonpayment case can pay the rent in arrears plus costs at any point before the order for possession is actually executed and stay, which surprises landlords who thought the case was over. Philadelphia adds prerequisites that will get a case thrown out if missed: a current rental license, a Certificate of Rental Suitability, and participation in the city's Eviction Diversion Program before filing, plus the Good Cause Eviction ordinance.

• 68 P.S. § 250.501
• 68 P.S. § 250.503
• Utility Service Tenants Rights Act, 68 P.S. § 399.1 et seq.