# Lease renewal and expiration tracking for small landlords

By James Grokman, CEO, TapeAndFloat · 2026-10-25 · Canonical: https://pm.tapeandfloat.com/guides/lease-renewal-expiration-tracking.html

**Lease expiration tracking means listing every lease's end date and the notice deadline written in that lease, then working back to the dates you must decide, send a renewal offer and get an answer. Small landlords lose rent and good tenants when a lease ends or rolls to month-to-month before anyone noticed.**
**Not legal advice.** General information for small-office staff, current as of October 25, 2026. Texas statutes are cited as examples; your state and your contracts control the details.

**Free download:** [Lease expiration & renewal tracker (Excel)](https://tapeandfloat.com/downloads/TapeAndFloat_Lease_Renewal_Expiration_Tracker.xlsx). One row per lease; enter the end date and the notice period written in that lease, and it calculates the notice deadline, a decide-by date and a reminder, and flags leases you need to decide on, notice deadlines that passed with nothing sent, leases past their end date with no renewal, offers with no answer and renewals accepted but not signed. It never assumes a notice period for you. No email required.

## 1. One row per lease

List each unit, tenant, lease start and end date, current rent, and what the lease says happens at the end: does it end, renew automatically, or convert to month-to-month? Write down the notice period the lease requires, for example 30 or 60 days before the end date, and who must give it. The lease controls these details, so copy them from the signed document, not from memory.

## 2. Work back from the end date

For each lease, calculate three dates: the notice deadline (end date minus the lease's notice period), a decision date a few weeks before that, and a reminder date before the decision. A common rhythm is 90 days out to decide, 60 days out to send the renewal offer, and 30 days out to have a signed answer, but use whatever your leases require.

## 3. Decide early: renew, change rent, or end

At the decision date, look at the unit's rent history, repairs and payment record, and decide whether to offer a renewal, at what rent and term, or to end the lease. Deciding early gives the tenant time to answer and gives you time to plan a turnover if they leave.

## 4. Send the offer in writing and log the answer

Send renewal offers in writing and keep a copy with the date sent. Log the tenant's answer and the date of the signed renewal. An offer with no answer two weeks before the notice deadline gets a follow-up that day.

## 5. Review the list every month

- Leases ending in the next 90 days with no decision yet.
- Notice deadlines in the next 30 days with no offer sent.
- Offers sent with no answer.
- Leases that already passed their end date with no renewal signed (now month-to-month or holdover under your lease).
- Tenants leaving: schedule the move-out inspection and deposit steps.

When a tenant is leaving, the next steps are in [tracking security deposits and move-out deductions](security-deposit-move-out-tracking.html). Notice rules differ by state and by lease; this is general information, not legal advice.

Before deciding on a renewal, check the [lease violation and notice log](lease-violation-notice-log.html) for that unit so the decision rests on dated facts, applied the same way for every tenant.

## Where an assistant helps

Lease dates live in signed PDFs and the answers arrive as texts and emails. TapeAndFloat reads the leases and messages you forward, keeps each unit's end and notice dates in your own Google Sheet, reminds you before each decision date, and drafts the renewal offer for you to approve before anything goes out.

**Free 60-day pilot:** forward your job emails to the assistant, keep working in your own Sheet, and we flag what is slipping. During the pilot we set it up one piece at a time and a real person reviews everything. No new app, no card. [Request a pilot spot](../#pilot).

## Frequently asked questions

### How far ahead should I track lease expirations?

Start about 90 days before each end date, or earlier if your lease requires a longer notice period. That leaves time to decide, send an offer and get an answer before the notice deadline.

### What notice period applies to a lease renewal?

Whatever your signed lease and your state's law require. Copy the notice period from each lease into your tracker so the deadline is calculated from the lease, not a rule of thumb.

### What happens if a lease ends and nobody renews it?

It depends on the lease and state law. Many leases convert to month-to-month; read yours, and track any lease past its end date with no renewal signed.

### Do I need property management software to track lease renewals?

No. A spreadsheet with one row per lease and the dates worked back from the end date works if someone keeps it current; keeping it current is what TapeAndFloat automates.