South Dakota Subletting, Lease Endings & Tenant Death
South Dakota rules on subletting, lease endings & tenant death for renters and landlords, with the statute or official page behind each answer. Last verified: 2026-10-22.
Short answer: South Dakota has no state law in its lease chapter that sets a consent standard for a residential tenant to sublet or assign. SDCL ch. 43-32 (reviewed); SDCL 43-32-20
The rules in South Dakota
| Subletting | South Dakota has no state law in its lease chapter that sets a consent standard for a residential tenant to sublet or assign. The chapter provides that a landlord has the same remedies against the tenant's assignees, for claims arising while they hold the lease, as against the original tenant (except an assignment made only as security for a loan without possession). Reviewed SDCL chapter 43-32 on 2026-10-28; no provision found. |
|---|---|
| When the lease ends | If a tenant stays after the lease ends and the landlord accepts rent, the lease is presumed renewed on the same terms and for the same length of time, up to one year. A lease with no stated term renews automatically unless either party gives notice at least as long as the rental period, up to one month. A tenant who holds over after the lease ends can be removed through an eviction (forcible entry and detainer) action. SDCL 43-32 sets no holdover rent penalty and no rule on automatic renewal clauses. Reviewed SDCL chapter 43-32 on 2026-10-28; no provision found. Eviction grounds: https://sdlegislature.gov/api/Statutes/21-16.html?all=true |
| If a tenant dies | A lease that either party can end at will is terminated when the other party receives notice of the tenant's death; in other cases the lease is not ended by the tenant's death. The lease chapter has no separate procedure for a deceased tenant's belongings or deposit. Reviewed SDCL chapter 43-32 on 2026-10-28; no provision found. (deceased tenant's belongings and deposit) |
South Dakota vs. neighboring states
| State | Subletting | When the lease ends | If a tenant dies |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Dakota | South Dakota has no state law in its lease chapter that sets a consent standard for a residential tenant to sublet or assign. The chapter provides that a landlord has the same remedies against the tenant's assignees, for claims arising while they hold the lease, as against the original tenant (except an assignment made only as security for a loan without possession). SDCL ch. 43-32 (reviewed); SDCL 43-32-20 | If a tenant stays after the lease ends and the landlord accepts rent, the lease is presumed renewed on the same terms and for the same length of time, up to one year. A lease with no stated term renews automatically unless either party gives notice at least as long as the rental period, up to one month. A tenant who holds over after the lease ends can be removed through an eviction (forcible entry and detainer) action. SDCL 43-32 sets no holdover rent penalty and no rule on automatic renewal clauses. SDCL 43-32-14, 43-32-15; SDCL 21-16-1(4) | A lease that either party can end at will is terminated when the other party receives notice of the tenant's death; in other cases the lease is not ended by the tenant's death. The lease chapter has no separate procedure for a deceased tenant's belongings or deposit. SDCL 43-32-23; SDCL ch. 43-32 (reviewed) |
| Iowa | Iowa has no state law that sets a rule on subletting or assigning a residential lease, such as requiring the landlord's consent. Iowa Code chs. 562A and 562 (reviewed) | Either side may end a month-to-month tenancy with written notice at least 30 days before the rental date, and a tenancy longer than month-to-month with written notice at least 30 days before the end of the term. If a tenant stays without the landlord's consent after the lease ends, the landlord may sue for possession and, if the holdover is willful and not in good faith, recover actual damages and attorney fees. If the landlord consents to the tenant staying, the tenancy becomes month-to-month. Iowa's general landlord-tenant chapter also makes a tenant who willfully holds over after the term and after notice to quit liable for double the rental value. Iowa Code §§ 562A.34, 562A.9(5), 562.2 | Not verified yet |
| Minnesota | Not verified yet | For an automatic-renewal clause in a lease of two months or more that renews the lease for two months or more unless the tenant gives notice, the landlord can enforce it only by giving the tenant written notice calling attention to the clause, served personally or by certified mail 15 to 30 days before the tenant's notice deadline (Minn. Stat. §504B.145). When a tenant stays after the lease expires without the landlord's express agreement, the only tenancy implied is for the shortest interval between rent payments under the expired lease (§504B.141). A tenant who holds over after the lease term can be evicted (§504B.285, subd. 1). Minn. Stat. §§504B.145, 504B.141, 504B.285 subd. 1 | When the tenant dies (or all tenants die), either the landlord or the personal representative of the tenant's estate may end a residential lease (other than a lease at will) early with at least two months' written notice, effective on the last day of a calendar month, delivered by hand or first-class mail (the landlord may mail it to the unit). The estate still owes rent and other sums due before and during the notice period and the cost of restoring the unit beyond ordinary wear and tear. Lease clauses waiving this right or requiring longer notice are void. Minn. Stat. §504B.265 |
| Montana | Landlord's written consent is required. A tenant who moves out during the tenancy may not let possession pass to someone else or sublet the unit unless the landlord or the landlord's agent has agreed in writing. The statute sets no standard for when the landlord must agree. Mont. Code Ann. § 70-24-305 | If the lease does not set a default extension period and neither side gives 30 days' written notice to end the tenancy before the original end date, the tenancy continues month to month. A tenant who stays without the landlord's consent after the lease ends can be sued for possession. If the landlord consents to continued occupancy, the tenancy is month to month (week to week for a roomer paying weekly). For a lease longer than month to month that the landlord ended for cause, a purposeful, bad-faith holdover lets the landlord recover up to 3 months' periodic rent or treble damages, whichever is greater; the same applies when a month-to-month tenant stays past a lawful 30-day no-cause termination. Mont. Code Ann. §§ 70-24-205, 70-24-429, 70-24-201(2)(e) | Montana's Residential Landlord and Tenant Act has no provision on what happens to a lease, the deposit, or the tenant's belongings when the tenant dies. Mont. Code Ann. Title 70, ch. 24 (reviewed); Title 70, ch. 25 (reviewed) |
| Nebraska | Nebraska's Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act has no provision on subletting or assigning a lease. Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 76-1401 to 76-1449 (reviewed) | If the tenant stays without the landlord's consent after the lease ends or is terminated, the landlord may sue for possession. If the holdover is willful and not in good faith, the landlord may also recover up to three months' periodic rent or three times actual damages, whichever is greater, plus reasonable attorney's fees. If the landlord agrees to the tenant staying, the tenancy is week to week for a roomer paying weekly rent and month to month in all other cases. Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 76-1437(3), 76-1414(4) | A landlord may ask the tenant to name a person authorized to enter and retrieve the tenant's belongings if the tenant dies. After a tenant's death, the landlord must make a reasonable attempt to contact that person within 10 days. The person has 20 days after contact to say they will claim the property and then 20 more days to remove it, with reasonable access on showing valid government ID. Property not removed, or unclaimed if the person cannot be reached or does not respond within 20 days, may be disposed of under the Disposition of Personal Property Landlord and Tenant Act. Neb. Rev. Stat. § 76-1414(5) |
| North Dakota | North Dakota has no state law in its lease chapter that sets a consent standard for subletting or assigning a residential lease (for example, a rule that consent may not be unreasonably withheld). The chapter provides only that a landlord keeps its remedies against a tenant's assignee for claims arising while the assignee holds the lease. N.D.C.C. ch. 47-16 (reviewed); § 47-16-30 | If a residential tenant stays after the lease ends and the landlord accepts rent, the tenancy is presumed to continue as month to month (unless the lease has an automatic renewal clause). A landlord may enforce an automatic renewal clause in a residential lease of two months or more only if it notified the tenant in writing, personally or by first-class mail, at least 30 days before the lease expires; otherwise the lease converts to month to month. A month-to-month tenancy that results can be ended on the last day of a month with at least one calendar month's notice. N.D.C.C. §§ 47-16-06, 47-16-06.1, 47-16-15(5) | When a residential tenant dies, any surviving tenant or the tenant's estate may choose to end the lease on the last day of the month following the month of death, unless the lease ends sooner. Deposit return then follows the general security-deposit rule, and belongings left behind are subject to the abandoned-property rule. N.D.C.C. §§ 47-16-18, 47-16-07.1, 47-16-30.1 |
| Wyoming | Wyoming's residential rental statutes do not set a rule on whether a landlord must consent to subletting or assignment. They do require the renter not to increase the number of occupants above what the rental agreement allows without the owner's written permission. W.S. 1-21-1204(a)(v); W.S. 1-21-1201 to 1-21-1211 (reviewed) | A tenant who holds over after the lease term can be removed through a forcible entry and detainer case, which requires a written notice to leave served at least three days before the case is filed. Wyoming's residential rental and eviction statutes do not address automatic-renewal clauses, the notice needed to end a month-to-month tenancy, or a holdover rent penalty. W.S. 1-21-1002(a)(i), 1-21-1003; W.S. 1-21-1001 to 1-21-1211 (reviewed) | Wyoming's residential rental and eviction statutes do not address what happens to a lease when a renter dies. After the rental agreement ends, the general abandoned-property rules apply: the owner must send written notice describing valuable property and may dispose of it after seven days if no one claims it. W.S. 1-21-1210(a); W.S. 1-21-1001 to 1-21-1211 (reviewed) |
City rules that may add to state law
More South Dakota rental law
- South Dakota Security Deposit Law
- South Dakota Eviction Laws
- South Dakota Notice to Vacate Rules
- Landlord Entry Rules in South Dakota
- South Dakota Repairs & Tenant Remedies
- South Dakota Rent Increase & Late Fee Laws
- Breaking a Lease in South Dakota
- Squatters' Rights in South Dakota
- South Dakota Rental Fee Rules
- South Dakota Section 8, Records & Right to Counsel
- South Dakota Mold, Pests, Heat & AC Rules
- South Dakota Privacy, Guests & Animal Rules
- South Dakota Landlord Selling the House
- South Dakota Lockouts, Utility Shutoffs & Retaliation
- All South Dakota landlord-tenant rules
- Free legal help in South Dakota
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South Dakota Subletting, Lease Endings & Tenant Death FAQ
Can I sublet my apartment in South Dakota?
South Dakota has no state law in its lease chapter that sets a consent standard for a residential tenant to sublet or assign. The chapter provides that a landlord has the same remedies against the tenant's assignees, for claims arising while they hold the lease, as against the original tenant (except an assignment made only as security for a loan without possession). (SDCL ch. 43-32 (reviewed); SDCL 43-32-20)
What happens when my lease ends in South Dakota?
If a tenant stays after the lease ends and the landlord accepts rent, the lease is presumed renewed on the same terms and for the same length of time, up to one year. A lease with no stated term renews automatically unless either party gives notice at least as long as the rental period, up to one month. A tenant who holds over after the lease ends can be removed through an eviction (forcible entry and detainer) action. SDCL 43-32 sets no holdover rent penalty and no rule on automatic renewal clauses. (SDCL 43-32-14, 43-32-15; SDCL 21-16-1(4))
What happens to a lease when a tenant dies in South Dakota?
A lease that either party can end at will is terminated when the other party receives notice of the tenant's death; in other cases the lease is not ended by the tenant's death. The lease chapter has no separate procedure for a deceased tenant's belongings or deposit. (SDCL 43-32-23; SDCL ch. 43-32 (reviewed))
General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.