Estate for years

Key Takeaways

• An estate for years is a leasehold with a fixed, definite start date and end date, such as a lease running January 1 through December 31.
• The term does not have to be measured in years. A 30 day lease with set dates and a five year commercial lease are both estates for years.
• A leasehold is a non-freehold estate because it is time bound, and the leasehold interest itself is treated as personal property.
• In Washington a fixed-term residential tenancy does not simply stop on its last day. Under RCW 59.18.650 it becomes a month-to-month tenancy.

What It Means

An estate for years is one of the four leasehold estates, and it is the one with a calendar attached. The lease names a definite beginning and a definite ending, so both sides know on day one when possession starts and when it stops. A lease running March 1 through the last day of February is an estate for years, and so is a 90 day lease on a furnished condo. The name misleads people: the term does not have to be a year or longer, and it does not have to be a round number of years.

The tenant under an estate for years holds a leasehold, which is a non-freehold estate. The tenant gets exclusive possession and use of the property for the term without owning it, and the lease itself is personal property. Compare that with a Periodic Tenancy, which renews period after period until someone gives notice, and with an estate at will, which often appears after an estate for years runs out. Our guide to estates in land lines all of them up side by side.

Under classic common law the estate for years expires on its own, with no notice from the Lessor or the Lessee. Washington has changed that result for residential rentals, and that is where students get tripped up.

How It Works in Washington

Washington's Residential Landlord-Tenant Act rewrites the ending. RCW 59.18.220(1) says a tenancy for a specified time is deemed expired at the end of that time only upon notice consistent with RCW 59.18.650, and RCW 59.18.650(1)(d) states that upon the end date of a tenancy of a specified period, the tenancy becomes a month-to-month tenancy. RCW 59.18.650(1)(a) then bars a landlord from evicting a tenant, refusing to continue a tenancy, or ending a periodic tenancy except for the causes the statute lists.

The practical effect is that a Washington residential estate for years does not clear itself out on the last night of the term. It rolls into a month-to-month arrangement, and the landlord needs a statutory cause plus proper notice to end it. RCW 59.04.010 adds a related wrinkle: tenancies from year to year are abolished in Washington except when created by express written contract. Chapter 59.18 RCW reaches dwelling units, which RCW 59.18.030 defines as structures used as a home, residence, or sleeping place, so a commercial Lease Agreement is governed by the document and the parties' own notice terms instead. Brokers who work both sides should read this deep dive on commercial leases before assuming the residential rules carry over.

Example

Dana Cho signs a 12 month lease on a Tacoma duplex at $2,150 a month, running September 1, 2026 through August 31, 2027, with a $2,150 security deposit and no renewal language. That is an estate for years: definite start, definite end. Dana takes exclusive possession on September 1 and the landlord, Harbor Line Properties, keeps the reversion.

On August 31, 2027 the fixed term runs out. Under the common law rule Dana would have to be out that night. Under RCW 59.18.650(1)(d) the tenancy instead becomes month to month at the same $2,150, and Harbor Line needs one of the causes listed in RCW 59.18.650(2) plus proper written notice to end it. If Dana wants to go, she gives the notice a month-to-month tenancy requires. If Harbor Line wants another fixed term, it offers Dana a fresh 12 month lease at, say, $2,275, and signing that document starts a brand new estate for years.

Common Mistakes and Exam Traps

• An estate for years does not have to last a year. A lease with definite start and end dates qualifies even if the term is 30 days.
• Do not swap an estate for years with a periodic tenancy. A periodic tenancy renews on its own period after period until notice ends it, while an estate for years names its own end date.
• A leasehold is not a freehold. The tenant holds possession for a set time, and the leasehold interest is personal property rather than real property.
• The common law answer that a fixed-term lease ends without notice is still correct on a general principles question, but Washington residential law converts the tenancy to month to month on the end date.