What happens if a tenant breaks a lease in Wisconsin?
In Wisconsin, a landlord whose tenant leaves early without justification and stops paying rent can recover rent and damages only after subtracting the net rent obtainable by reasonable efforts to re-rent, and must allege and prove those efforts. Reasonable efforts are the steps the landlord would have taken to rent the premises if they had been vacated in due course, in line with local rental practice for similar properties. The tenant has the burden of proving that the landlord’s efforts were not reasonable. The rule does not apply if the landlord expressly agreed to accept a surrender of the premises and end the tenant’s liability. Separately, federal law lets a servicemember end a lease early after receiving qualifying military orders. This is Wis. Stat. § 704.29.
| What | Wisconsin |
|---|---|
| Landlord’s duty to re-rent | Required by statute |
| What it means | The landlord must make reasonable efforts to re-rent |
Source
Wis. Stat. § 704.29
Read the statute in the Wisconsin Statutes (Wisconsin State Legislature): docs.legis.wisconsin.gov.
Checked against the statute on November 13, 2026.
This is a summary of a published statute, not legal advice. Rules change, local ordinances can add to them, and the terms of a specific lease may differ. Check the citation and speak to a lawyer before acting.
How Seayora uses this rule
Seayora keeps every lease’s term, rent and signers in one record and dates every change to it. This page states the state’s rule so a lease’s own early-termination and sublet clauses can be checked against it before the lease is signed.
Guides on this rule
- Breaking a Lease by State: What the Tenant Owes — What a tenant owes after leaving a lease early, and the 34 states whose statutes say whether the landlord must try to re-rent the home.
Compare this rule in every state
More Wisconsin rules
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- How much notice must a landlord give to end a tenancy in Wisconsin?
- How much can a landlord charge for a rental application fee in Wisconsin?
- What are squatters’ rights in Wisconsin?
- Is there rent control in Wisconsin?
- Can a landlord refuse a Section 8 voucher in Wisconsin?
- Can a landlord retaliate against a tenant for complaining in Wisconsin?
- Can a tenant sublet in Wisconsin?
- Do contractors charge sales tax in Wisconsin?
- Every Wisconsin rule on one page
The same question in other states
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- California
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Iowa
- Kansas