West Virginia Residential Lease Agreement

• No statewide deposit limit. The landlord must return the deposit, less itemized deductions, within 60 days after the tenancy ends, or within 45 days after a new tenant moves in if that is sooner; if damage exceeds the deposit and needs a contractor, notice within that period gives 15 more days to itemize (W. Va. Code §§ 37-6A-1, 37-6A-2).

Reviewed 5 Oct 2026 · W. Va. Code §§ 37-6A-1, 37-6A-2

Reviewed 5 Oct 2026 · W. Va. Code §§ 37-6A-1, 37-6A-2

• W. Va. Code 37-6-5: a periodic tenancy with a period of less than one year may be terminated by written notice 'for one full period before the end of any period' (one month for month-to-month) — or by the year-to-year rule (three months before the end of a year).
• Does not apply 'where, by special agreement, some other period of notice is fixed, or no notice is to be given'.

Quoted from the source: “may be terminated by like notice, or by notice for one full period before the end of any period”

Reviewed 27 Sep 2026 · W. Va. Code 37-6-5

• 37-6-5: notice 'for one full period before the end of any period' — one week for week-to-week.

Quoted from the source: “by notice for one full period before the end of any period”

Reviewed 27 Sep 2026 · W. Va. Code 37-6-5

• No just-cause requirement found; periodic tenancies end on 37-6-5 notice and the lease may even dispense with notice.

Quoted from the source: “This section shall not apply where, by special agreement, some other period of notice is fixed, or no notice is to be given”

Reviewed 27 Sep 2026 · W. Va. Code 37-6-5; 55-3A-1

• No statutory pre-suit notice or demand: W. Va. Code 55-3A-1(a) lets a landlord petition the magistrate or circuit court for summary relief once the tenant 'is in arrears in the payment of rent', with no notice-to-quit prerequisite in the text.
• Post-filing process: court schedules a hearing not less than 5 nor more than 10 judicial days after filing (55-3A-1(b)); tenant is served under W. Va. R. Civ. P. 4 or by certified mail, return receipt requested, and may file written defenses within five days of receipt (55-3A-1(c)).
• A lease may itself require notice; the statute does not.

Quoted from the source: “the tenant is in arrears in the payment of rent, has breached a warranty or a leasehold covenant, or has deliberately or negligently damaged the property”

Reviewed 27 Sep 2026 · W. Va. Code 55-3A-1(a)-(c) (as amended by 2025 HB 3272, eff. 2025-07-11)

• No statutory comply-or-quit notice: breach of 'a warranty or a leasehold covenant' is itself a ground for the 55-3A-1 petition without prior notice; any cure right must come from the lease.

Quoted from the source: “has breached a warranty or a leasehold covenant”

Reviewed 27 Sep 2026 · W. Va. Code 55-3A-1(a)(3)

• Deliberate or negligent damage to the property (or knowingly permitting another to do so) is a direct ground for the summary petition, no notice required (55-3A-1(a)(3)).

Quoted from the source: “has deliberately or negligently damaged the property or knowingly permitted another person to do so”

Reviewed 27 Sep 2026 · W. Va. Code 55-3A-1(a)(3)

• No pre-suit notice to serve for nonpayment/breach. The 55-3A-1(c) notice of petition/hearing is served on the tenant 'in accordance with Rule 4 of the West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure or by certified mail, return receipt requested'. A 37-6-5 termination notice must be 'in writing'; no delivery method is prescribed in that section.

Quoted from the source: “in accordance with Rule 4 of the West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure or by certified mail, return receipt requested”

Reviewed 27 Sep 2026 · W. Va. Code 55-3A-1(c); 37-6-5

• No pre-suit notice exists for nonpayment/breach; the court's notice of hearing under 55-3A-1(c) must tell the tenant that written defenses may be filed within five days of receipt.

Quoted from the source: “any written defense to the petition may be filed and served upon the petitioner within five days of the receipt by the tenant of the notice”

Reviewed 27 Sep 2026 · W. Va. Code 55-3A-1(c)