Wisconsin permits no-fault non-renewal of month-to-month and term tenancies with 28 days written notice. Wisconsin Act 76 (2018) bars Madison from requiring just cause, so most non-renewals end the tenancy without stated reason.
Under Wis. Stat. Sec. 704.19, a landlord may end a periodic tenancy in Wisconsin with 28 days written notice and need not give a reason if rent is current. Term leases simply expire without renewal duties. Wisconsin Act 76 (2018) preempts Madison from layering a just-cause regime over that framework, distinguishing the city sharply from Milwaukee, Minneapolis, and Chicago peers that adopted local protections elsewhere. Tenants still benefit from anti-retaliation rules and protected-class fair housing protections under MGO Ch. 39. The Tenant Resource Center counsels tenants on whether a non-renewal is genuine or pretext for unlawful retaliation.
A non-renewal that masks retaliation or discrimination can be challenged through the Department of Civil Rights or as a defense in eviction court under Wis. Stat. 704.45.
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See how Madison's no-fault evictions rules stack up against other locations.
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