How Scranton Handles Rental Property Rules: A Practical Guide

Scranton maintains 100 local ordinances across all categories, and 5 of those deal specifically with rental property rules. Here is a breakdown of what the city actually requires, what is prohibited, and where Scranton falls on the strict-to-permissive spectrum compared to other cities.

Rent Control

Scranton does not have a rent-control ordinance and Pennsylvania law does not authorize a home-rule city of the second class A like Scranton to enact one. Pennsylvania has no statewide rent-control enabling statute outside the Philadelphia-specific framework, and rent levels at Scranton apartments, duplexes, and multi-unit conversions are set by free agreement between landlord and tenant under the Pennsylvania Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951 at 68 P.S. §250.101 et seq. The Scranton City Code at ecode360.com/SC1148 does not cap rent increases, does not require advance notice of rent increases beyond what the lease specifies, and does not require landlord registration of rent rolls.

Key details: Local Rent Control: None - not authorized for PA home-rule cities outside Philadelphia framework. Statewide Rent Control: None outside Philadelphia-specific framework. Governing Statute: PA Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951, 68 P.S. §250.101 et seq.. Rent Increase Cap: None - set by lease agreement. Notice Required (month-to-month): 15 days under 68 P.S. §250.501 (statutory minimum for termination).

Because Scranton has no rent-control ordinance, no violation exists for charging or increasing rent at any amount. The only rent-related enforcement framework in Scranton is the security-deposit cap at 68 P.S. §250.511a/b (two months' rent in the first year, one month thereafter), enforced in the Magisterial District Court that serves the rental address within Lackawanna County, and the self-help eviction prohibition at 68 P.S. §250.501 (a landlord may not lock out or remove a tenant without a court order). A rent-board petition, hardship-petition appeal, or rent-rollback action of the kind that exists in New Jersey or California has no analog in Scranton. Discriminatory rent increases (based on race, sex, familial status, or other protected class) are independently actionable under the federal Fair Housing Act at 42 U.S.C. §3604 and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act at 43 P.S. §955.

If you are coming from a city with tighter rules, you will find Scranton gives residents more flexibility on rent control.

Just Cause Eviction

Scranton does not have a just-cause eviction ordinance, and Pennsylvania law does not require landlords to state a cause to terminate a residential tenancy. Under the Pennsylvania Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951 at 68 P.S. §250.501, a landlord may terminate a month-to-month tenancy on 15 days' written notice and may decline to renew a fixed-term lease at its end without stating a reason. Cause-based grounds (non-payment, lease breach, illegal use) carry shorter notice periods. Evictions proceed in the Magisterial District Court that serves Scranton within Lackawanna County; the Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas hears appeals.

Key details: Local Just-Cause Ordinance: None codified. Statewide Just-Cause Law: None - Pennsylvania permits no-fault non-renewal. Notice Statute: 68 P.S. §250.501 (15 days <1 year; 30 days >1 year; 10 days non-payment). Court: Magisterial District Court serving Scranton; Lackawanna County CCP on appeal. Habitability Defense: Pugh v. Holmes, 405 A.2d 897 (Pa. 1979) - implied warranty.

Because Pennsylvania does not require just cause, an MDJ eviction complaint cannot be dismissed on a 'no statutory ground' theory the way a New Jersey or Oregon eviction can. The remaining defenses are: (a) defective notice (wrong period, wrong form, wrong service) under 68 P.S. §250.501; (b) habitability counterclaim under the implied warranty of habitability recognized by Pugh v. Holmes, 405 A.2d 897 (Pa. 1979); (c) discriminatory motive under the PA Human Relations Act or the federal Fair Housing Act; (d) retaliation under Pennsylvania case law where the tenant reported code violations to Scranton's Department of Licensing, Inspections, and Permits under the Residential Rental Registration Program; and (e) self-help eviction prohibition under 68 P.S. §250.501 (a landlord who locks out a tenant, removes belongings, or shuts off utilities may face a civil action and possession-restored remedy). Self-help eviction may also draw a response from Scranton Police on a disturbance call.

Scranton is more permissive than most cities when it comes to just cause eviction. That said, there are still limits.

Rental Registration

Scranton operates a mandatory Residential Rental Registration Program codified in the Scranton City Code at ecode360.com/SC1148 and administered by the Department of Licensing, Inspections, and Permits (LIP). Every residential rental property in the city must be registered with the City, the owner must designate a local agent for service of process if the owner does not reside in or near Lackawanna County, and rental units are subject to periodic inspection under the City's property-maintenance framework, which adopts the International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC) as the substantive habitability standard. Operating an unregistered rental is enforceable through code-enforcement citations and, under PA Act 90 of 2010, through Scranton's Quality of Life Ticketing Program.

Key details: Authorizing Code: Scranton City Code - Rental Registration / Property Maintenance chapters. Code Portal: ecode360.com/SC1148 (Scranton City Code). Administering Office: Scranton Department of Licensing, Inspections, and Permits (LIP). Required Filings: Annual registration + license + local agent designation for absentee owners. Substantive Standard: International Property Maintenance Code (adopted by reference).

Operating an unregistered or unlicensed residential rental in Scranton is a code-enforcement violation enforceable at the Magisterial District Court that serves the property within Lackawanna County. Under Scranton's Quality of Life Ticketing Program (authorized by Pennsylvania Act 90 of 2010, 53 P.S. §38001 et seq.), LIP staff and Scranton Police may issue civil-fine tickets in lieu of, or in addition to, criminal-summons citations; tickets that go unpaid escalate to Magisterial District Court enforcement. Fines escalate per the Scranton Code general-penalty schedule, with each day of continued non-compliance chargeable as a separate offense. Failure to correct documented International Property Maintenance Code violations within the notice deadline draws additional citations and, in serious cases, an order to vacate the unit until repairs are made. Repeated non-compliance is grounds for suspension or revocation of the rental license; an unlicensed rental cannot lawfully be occupied. Pennsylvania law permits the City to pursue equitable relief in the Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas where Magisterial District Court enforcement is inadequate. Tenants in an unregistered unit retain all Landlord-Tenant Act and habitability protections under 68 P.S. §250.101 et seq. and Pugh v. Holmes, and may raise the landlord's non-registration as a defense or counterclaim in any landlord-initiated eviction.

This is not one of those rules that cities tend to ignore. Scranton actively enforces its rental registration requirements.

Security Deposit Rules

Scranton has not codified a separate local security-deposit ordinance; deposits are governed by the Pennsylvania Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951 at 68 P.S. §250.511a et seq. The statute caps the deposit at two months' rent during the first year of the tenancy and at one month's rent during the second and subsequent years. Deposits over $100 held for more than two years must be placed in an escrow account at a federally or state-regulated banking institution, and the tenant must be given written notice of the institution's name and address. The landlord must return the deposit (less itemized deductions) within 30 days of the tenant's vacating; failure to do so exposes the landlord to a doubled-deposit penalty plus attorney fees under 68 P.S. §250.512.

Key details: Local Ordinance: None - deferred to PA Landlord-Tenant Act. Governing Statute: 68 P.S. §250.511a / §250.511b / §250.512. Year-1 Deposit Cap: Two months' rent. Year-2+ Deposit Cap: One month's rent. Escrow Requirement: Required after 2 years for deposits >$100 (§250.511b).

Charging a deposit above the §250.511a cap (two months in year one, one month thereafter) is a statutory violation; the tenant may recover the excess in the Magisterial District Court. Failure to deposit funds over $100 in escrow after the two-year holding period is a violation of §250.511b, exposing the landlord to the doubled-deposit remedy where the failure is willful. Failure to return the deposit or to provide the written damages list within 30 days of vacancy under §250.512(a) forfeits all deductions and triggers the §250.512(c) penalty: double the amount wrongfully withheld, plus the tenant's reasonable attorney fees and court costs in a successful action. Self-help offset (the landlord applying the deposit to alleged damages without itemization) is impermissible. Where the landlord is also operating in violation of Scranton's Rental Registration requirement, the deposit failure can be cited in the Magisterial District Court action alongside the registration violation and can support a Quality of Life ticket under Pennsylvania Act 90 of 2010 for the underlying registration breach.

This is not one of those rules that cities tend to ignore. Scranton actively enforces its security deposit rules requirements.

Rental Inspection Programs

Scranton's Residential Rental Registration Program, codified in the Scranton City Code at ecode360.com/SC1148, authorizes the Department of Licensing, Inspections, and Permits (LIP) to conduct periodic interior and exterior inspections of every registered residential rental in the city. The substantive standard is the International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC), adopted by reference in the Scranton City Code. Where the owner or tenant withholds consent, Pennsylvania law authorizes the City to obtain an administrative warrant from a Magisterial District Judge before entry. Violations documented at inspection are issued as notices of violation with a stated correction deadline; non-compliance leads to citation under the general-penalty schedule and under Scranton's Quality of Life Ticketing Program (PA Act 90 of 2010).

Key details: Authorizing Code: Scranton City Code - Residential Rental Registration / Property Maintenance. Substantive Standard: International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC) - adopted by reference. Inspecting Office: Scranton Department of Licensing, Inspections, and Permits (LIP). Inspection Cycle: Periodic multi-year cycle by occupancy class. Refused-Consent Pathway: Administrative warrant from MDJ (Pottstown Borough v. Suber-Aponte).

An IPMC violation documented at inspection is issued as a written notice of violation under the Scranton City Code, with a stated correction deadline based on the severity of the condition (immediate for life-safety items like inoperative smoke alarms, no heat, or unsanitary plumbing; 30 days or longer for non-emergency items like exterior paint, fence repair, or yard maintenance). Failure to correct by the deadline is enforceable at the Magisterial District Court that serves the property in Lackawanna County, with fines under the Scranton Code general-penalty schedule and each day of continued non-compliance chargeable as a separate offense. Under Scranton's Quality of Life Ticketing Program (PA Act 90 of 2010, 53 P.S. §38001 et seq.), LIP may issue civil-fine tickets directly without the criminal-summons pathway, accelerating enforcement for routine property-maintenance violations. Refusal of access without administrative-warrant compliance is independently chargeable. Serious life-safety violations can support an order to vacate the unit until repaired, and pattern non-compliance is grounds for suspension or revocation of the rental license. Tenants in an uninspected or unrepaired unit retain habitability protections under 68 P.S. §250.101 et seq. and Pugh v. Holmes, and may raise IPMC defects as a defense or counterclaim in any landlord-initiated eviction in the Magisterial District Court.

This is not one of those rules that cities tend to ignore. Scranton actively enforces its rental inspection programs requirements.

The Bottom Line

Scranton is tougher than many cities when it comes to rental property rules. Out of the 5 rules covered here, 3 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in Scranton, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

This guide is based on Scranton's current municipal code. Local rules can and do change, so check the individual ordinance pages for the latest details, penalties, and FAQs.