Late Rent Fees and Other State Rules on Paying Rent

State

When Rent Is Due

Grace Period

Where Rent Is Due

Late Fees

Alabama

Alaska

Arizona¹

Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§ 33-1314(C), 33-1368(B)

Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 33-1314(C)

Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 33-1368(B)

Arkansas

California²

Colorado

Connecticut³

Conn. Gen. Stat. Ann. § 47a-3a

Conn. Gen. Stat. Ann. § 47a-15a

Conn. Gen. Stat. Ann. § 47a-3a

Conn. Gen. Stat. Ann. §§ 47a-4(a)(8), 47a-15a

Delaware⁴

Del. Code Ann. tit. 25, § 5501(b)

Del. Code Ann. title 25, § 5501(b)

Del. Code Ann. tit. 25, § 5501(d)

D.C.⁵

Florida

Georgia⁶

Hawaii

Late charge cannot exceed 8% of the amount of rent due.

Idaho

Illinois

735 Ill. Comp. Stat. Ann. § 5/9-218

735 Ill. Comp. Stat. Ann. § 5/9-218

Indiana

Iowa⁷

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

Maine⁸

Me. Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 14, § 6028

Me. Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 14, § 6028

Maryland⁹

Md. Code Ann. [Real Prop.] § 8-208(d)(3)

Massachusetts¹⁰

Mass. Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 186, § 15B(1)(c)

Michigan

Hilsendegen v. Scheich, 21 N.W.2d 894 (1885)

Minnesota¹¹

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Nevada¹²

Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 118A.210

Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§ 118A.200, 118.210(4)

New Hampshire¹³

N.H. Rev. Stat. § 540:8

New Jersey¹⁴

New Mexico¹⁵

New York¹⁶

North Carolina¹⁷

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma¹⁸

Okla. Stat. Ann. tit. 41, § 132(B)

Sun Ridge Investors, Ltd. v. Parker, 956 P.2d 876 (1998)

Oregon¹⁹

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina

South Dakota

S.D. Codified Laws Ann. § 43-32-12

Tennessee²⁰

Texas²¹

Tex. Prop. Code Ann. § 92.019

Utah

Vermont

Virginia²²

Washington²³

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

¹ Late fees must be set forth in a written rental agreement and be reasonable. (Arizona)

² Late fees will be enforced only if specified language is included in a written lease or rental agreement. (California)

³ Landlords may not charge a late fee until 9 days after rent is due. (Connecticut)

⁴ To charge a late fee, landlord must maintain an office in the county where the rental unit is located at which tenants can pay rent. If a landlord doesn’t have a local office for this purpose, tenant has 3 extra days (beyond the due date) to pay rent before the landlord can charge a late fee. Late fee cannot exceed 5% of rent and cannot be imposed until the rent is more than 5 days late. (Delaware)

⁵ Fee policy must be stated in the lease, and cannot exceed 5% of rent due, nor be imposed until rent is five days late (or later, if lease so provides). Landlord cannot evict for failure to pay late fee (may deduct unpaid fees from security deposit at end of tenancy). (D.C.)

⁶ Although there is no specific statute regarding late fees, Georgia law states that all contracts for rent bear interest from the time rent is due. (Georgia)

⁷ When rent is $700 per month or less, late fees cannot exceed $12 per day, or a total amount of $60 per month; when rent is more than $700 per month, fees cannot exceed $20 per day or a total amount of $100 per month. (Iowa)

⁸ Late fees cannot exceed 4% of the amount due for 30 days. Landlord must notify tenants, in writing, of any late fee at the start of the tenancy, and cannot impose it until rent is 15 days late. (Maine)

⁹ Late fees cannot exceed 5% of the rent due. (Maryland)

¹⁰ Late fees, including interest on late rent, may not be imposed until the rent is 30 days late. (Massachusetts)

¹¹ Late fee policy must be agreed to in writing, and may not exceed 8% of the overdue rent payment. The “due date” for late fee purposes does not include a date earlier than the usual rent due date, by which date a tenant earns a discount. (Minnesota)

¹² A court will presume that there is no late fee provision unless it is included in a written rental agreement, but the landlord can offer evidence to overcome that presumption. Landlord may charge a reasonable late fee as set forth in the rental agreement, but it cannot exceed 5% of the amount of the periodic rent, and the maximum amount of the late fee must not be increased based upon a late fee that was previously imposed. (Nevada)

¹³ Landlord cannot demand an amount greater than the the whole rent in arrears when rent is late. (New Hampshire)

¹⁴ Landlord must wait 5 days before charging a late fee, but only when the premises are rented or leased by senior citizens receiving Social Security Old Age Pensions, Railroad Retirement Pensions, or other governmental pensions in lieu of Social Security Old Age Pensions; or when rented by recipients of Social Security Disability Benefits, Supplemental Security Income, or benefits under Work First New Jersey. (New Jersey)

¹⁵ Late fee policy must be in the lease or rental agreement and may not exceed 10% of the rent specified per rental period. Landlord must notify the tenant of the landlord’s intent to impose the charge no later than the last day of the next rental period immediately following the period in which the default occurred. (New Mexico)

¹⁶ Landlord must wait five days after the rent due date before imposing a late fee. A late fee may not be more than $50 or 5% of the rent, whichever is less. (New York)

¹⁷ Late fee when rent is due monthly cannot be higher than $15 or 5% of the rental payment, whichever is greater (when rent is due weekly, may not be higher than $4.00 or 5% of the rent, whichever is greater); and may not be imposed until the rent is 5 days late. A late fee may be imposed only one time for each late rental payment. A late fee for a specific late rental payment may not be deducted from a subsequent rental payment so as to cause the subsequent rental payment to be in default. (North Carolina)

¹⁸ Preset late fees are invalid. (Oklahoma)

¹⁹ Landlord must wait 4 days after the rent due date before imposing a late fee, and must disclose the late fee policy in the rental agreement. A flat fee must be “reasonable.” A daily late fee may not be more than 6% of a reasonable flat fee, and cannot add up to more than 5% of the monthly rent. (Oregon)

²⁰ Landlord can’t charge a late fee until the rent is 5 days late (the day rent is due is counted as the first day). If day five is a Sunday or legal holiday, landlord cannot impose a fee if the rent is paid on the next business day. Fee can’t exceed 10% of the amount past due. (Tennessee)

²¹ Late fee provision must be included in a written lease and cannot be imposed until the rent remains unpaid two full days after the date it is due. The fee must be reasonable: For properties that have four or fewer units, it cannot be more than 12% of the rent; for properties that have more than four units, it cannot be more than 10% of the rent; OR it must be related to the late payment of rent (such as expenses, costs, and overhead associated with the collection of late payment). Landlord may charge an initial fee and a daily fee for each day the rent is late--the combined fees are considered a single late fee. Tenants can ask landlords to provide statement of whether they owe late fees. (Texas)

²² When landlord has not offered a written lease, a tenancy of twelve months is created by law, and reasonable late fees may be imposed when rent is five or more days late. (Virginia)

²³ Nonrefundable fees must be described in lease or rental agreement; otherwise, they will be considered to be deposits. (Washington)