14-Day Notice to Pay Rent: Service, Deadlines, and Tenant Defenses

In New York, a 14-day notice to pay rent is the written demand a landlord must serve on a tenant before filing a non-payment eviction case. It gives the tenant 14 days to pay every dollar of overdue rent or move out. If neither happens, the landlord can then start a court proceeding. The requirement comes from RPAPL § 711(2), and the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 expanded the deadline from the old three-day window to the current 14 days.¹

Small mistakes on the notice can end the case before it starts. Judges treat the 14-day demand as a jurisdictional prerequisite, meaning a defective or missing notice usually results in dismissal regardless of how much rent is actually owed.

What the 14-Day Rent Demand Must Say

The notice needs to identify the landlord, name every adult tenant on the lease, and state the exact address of the rental unit. It must clearly tell the tenant that they have 14 days to either pay the full amount or vacate.¹ The New York State Unified Court System publishes standardized forms that meet the statutory language, and using one is the safest route.²

The financial breakdown is where cases most often fall apart. Each month of unpaid rent should be listed separately, not lumped into one number. Late fees and other charges belong on their own line items. Any overstatement of what is owed, even by mistake, can result in the court dismissing the petition at the hearing.²

For rent-regulated apartments in New York City, late fees are capped at the lesser of $50 or 5% of the monthly rent, and only when the original vacancy lease contains a late-fee clause.³ Padding a demand with an inflated late fee is a common way landlords accidentally overstate the total and lose the case.

How the Notice Must Be Served

Service on the 14-day demand follows RPAPL § 735, the same rules that govern court papers in a summary proceeding. The methods must be attempted in order:⁴

Personal delivery. The notice is handed directly to the tenant. This is the strongest form of service and the hardest to challenge.
Substituted service. If the tenant cannot be found, a copy is left with another person of suitable age and discretion who lives or works at the property, with additional copies mailed to the tenant by certified mail and by regular first-class mail within one day.
Conspicuous place service. If no one will accept the papers after reasonable attempts, a copy is affixed to the door or slid under it, with copies also mailed by certified and first-class mail within one day of posting.

Whoever serves the papers must complete a sworn affidavit describing the date, time, and method of service. That affidavit is the landlord’s proof in court. Without it, there is no evidence service happened.

Email and text messages on their own do not count as valid service, even where the parties have communicated electronically. Digital delivery may work as a supplement when the tenant has explicitly agreed to electronic notices in the lease, but it cannot replace the physical service methods the statute requires.

The Five-Day Notice That Must Come First

Before the 14-day demand is even on the table, New York Real Property Law § 235-e requires a separate step. If a tenant fails to pay rent within five days of the date specified in the lease, the landlord must send a written notice by certified mail stating that rent was not received.⁵ If the lease has a grace period, the five days run from the end of that grace period, not the first of the month.

Skipping this step is not a technicality. A landlord’s failure to send the certified-mail notice gives the tenant an affirmative defense in any later eviction case, meaning the tenant can raise it in court and potentially have the case dismissed even when rent is genuinely owed.⁵

What Happens If the Tenant Doesn’t Pay in 14 Days

If the tenant neither pays the full amount nor moves out within 14 days, the landlord can file a non-payment case. That means preparing two documents: a Notice of Petition and a Petition. The notice of petition can only be issued by an attorney, a judge, or the clerk of the court. A landlord acting without a lawyer cannot issue it.⁶

The petition must set out the landlord’s interest in the property, the tenant’s relationship to it, a description of the unit, the facts of the non-payment, and the relief sought.⁷ The 14-day rent demand should be attached as an exhibit. If the landlord also wants a money judgment for the unpaid rent, the notice of petition must include that demand. Once the court processes the filing, it assigns a hearing date and an index number, and the papers are served on the tenant before the hearing under the timing rules in RPAPL § 732.⁸

A Tenant’s Right to Pay and Stop the Eviction

This part surprises many people. In a non-payment case, the tenant can stop the eviction at any point before the warrant of eviction is actually executed by paying the full amount of rent owed. When the tenant pays or deposits the total with the court, the judge must vacate the warrant unless the landlord proves the tenant withheld rent in bad faith.⁹ The New York Attorney General’s office confirms that a tenant can have a non-payment case dismissed by paying all rent owed before the warrant is carried out.¹⁰

The court also keeps the power to stay or vacate a warrant for good cause at any time before execution.⁹ A tenant close to paying, say waiting on a rental assistance check, can ask the judge for additional time.

Defenses a Tenant Can Raise

A 14-day notice is not the last word. Several defenses can defeat or reduce a non-payment case.

Warranty of habitability. New York law requires every residential rental to be fit for human habitation and free from conditions dangerous to health or safety. If the landlord has allowed serious problems like no heat, mold, pest infestation, or broken plumbing, the tenant can argue for a rent reduction reflecting the diminished value of the apartment. The court can calculate damages without expert testimony. The defense does not erase the rent, but it can significantly reduce what is owed.¹¹
Missing five-day notice. If the landlord never sent the certified-mail notice required by RPL § 235-e, that is a statutory affirmative defense.⁵
Defective rent demand. If the 14-day notice was served improperly, overstated the rent, included charges not permitted under the lease, or failed to offer the tenant the alternative of paying or vacating, the court can dismiss the petition.
Rent already paid. Receipts, bank records, or money order stubs can defeat the petition. Landlords must provide receipts for cash and money order payments under RPL § 235-e.⁵

One argument that does not work on its own: the idea that a landlord who accepted a partial payment automatically waived the right to evict. Accepting partial rent can complicate a case depending on timing and circumstances, but it does not by itself end the proceeding.

Federal Notice Rules That Can Add Time

The state 14-day demand is not always the only notice requirement. For properties with a federally backed mortgage, including loans backed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, VA, and USDA, the CARES Act adds a 30-day notice-to-vacate requirement that has continued past the pandemic-era moratorium.¹²

HUD regulations impose a similar 30-day notice requirement for tenants in public housing and those receiving housing choice vouchers. As of early 2026, HUD proposed revoking this requirement but delayed the change following litigation, and the 30-day rule remains in effect during the comment period. Tenants in federally subsidized housing should be aware that both the state 14-day demand and a separate federal 30-day notice may be required before an eviction case can go forward.

1
New York State Senate. New York Code RPA 711 – Grounds Where Landlord-Tenant Relationship Exists
2
New York State Unified Court System. Landlord’s Guide to Nonpayment Eviction Proceedings for Courts Outside New York City
3
Rent Guidelines Board. Miscellaneous FAQs
4
New York State Senate. New York Code RPA 735 – Manner of Service; Filing; When Service Complete
5
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law 235-E – Duty to Provide a Written Receipt
6
New York State Senate. New York Code RPA 731 – Commencement; Notice of Petition
7
New York State Senate. New York Code RPA 741 – Petition; Contents
8
New York State Senate. New York Code RPA 733 – Time of Service
9
New York State Senate. New York Code RPA 749 – Warrant
10
New York State Attorney General. Residential Tenants’ Rights Guide
11
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law 235-B – Warranty of Habitability
12
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 9058 – Temporary Moratorium on Eviction Filings