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CityRuleLookup

Rent Control

Rental Property Rules

Local limits on how much landlords can raise rent each year, including which properties are covered and exemptions for newer buildings.

48% permissive25% moderate6% strict(300 locations)

How Rent Control Rules Differ by Place

300 places covered18 strict75 moderate144 permissive

Rent Control Rules by State

Statewide law governs this topic in many states. Each entry links to that state's full page.

Alabama

Few Restrictions

Rent control is illegal at the local level in Alabama. Ala. Code § 11-80-8.1 preempts the field, barring any county, city, town, or municipality from enacting, maintaining, or…

Arizona

Few Restrictions

Arizona prohibits local rent control. State law makes rent regulation on private residential property a matter of statewide concern and preempts the field, so cities, charter cities…

Arkansas

Few Restrictions

Rent control is illegal at the local level in Arkansas. Ark. Code § 14-16-601 bars any local governmental unit, including a county, city, village, or township, from enacting…

California

Heavy Restrictions

California limits annual rent increases statewide to 5% plus the local change in the cost of living, capped at 10%, under the Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (AB-1482). It also lets…

Colorado

Few Restrictions

Colorado prohibits rent control statewide. Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-12-301 declares rent control a matter of statewide concern and bars any county or municipality from enacting an…

Connecticut

Some Restrictions

Connecticut has no statewide rent cap and no classic rent control. Instead, Conn. Gen. Stat. § 7-148b lets municipalities create fair rent commissions that review tenant complaints and…

Delaware

Few Restrictions

Delaware has no statewide rent control and no statutory limit on how much rent can rise. The Landlord-Tenant Code (Title 25) does not expressly preempt local rent control, so cities…

District of Columbia

Heavy Restrictions

Washington, D.C. has rent control ("rent stabilization") under the Rental Housing Act of 1985 (D.C. Code § 42-3501.01 et seq.). For most covered units, annual rent increases are capped…

Florida

Few Restrictions

Florida effectively bans local rent control. State law bars any city or county from imposing controls on rents, and the 2023 Live Local Act removed the old narrow exception that had…

Georgia

Few Restrictions

Georgia has no statewide rent control and no limit on how much a landlord may raise rent. Under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-19, no county or municipality may enact or enforce any ordinance that…

Idaho

Few Restrictions

Idaho prohibits local rent control. Idaho Code 55-307 bars any local governmental unit from enacting, maintaining, or enforcing an ordinance or resolution that would regulate rent…

Illinois

Few Restrictions

Illinois has no statewide rent control and no cap on rent increases. The Rent Control Preemption Act, 50 ILCS 825, bars every unit of local government, including home rule cities, from…

Indiana

Few Restrictions

Indiana prohibits local rent control. Indiana Code 32-31-1-20 bars any unit of local government from regulating rental rates for privately owned real property unless authorized by an…

Iowa

Few Restrictions

Iowa preempts local rent control. Iowa Code 364.3(9) bars any city from adopting or enforcing an ordinance that limits the amount of rent charged for leasing private residential or…

Kansas

Few Restrictions

Kansas prohibits rent control. Under K.S.A. 12-16,120, no county, city, township, or other political subdivision may enact or enforce any ordinance that controls the amount of rent…

Kentucky

Few Restrictions

Kentucky prohibits any local government from enacting rent control on private residential property. KRS 65.875 reserves authority over rents exclusively to the state General Assembly…

Louisiana

Few Restrictions

Louisiana has no statewide rent control and no statute capping rent or rent increases. No Louisiana city or parish operates a rent-control program. La. R.S. 9:3258 declares that a…

Massachusetts

Few Restrictions

Massachusetts prohibits rent control statewide. Voters abolished it through a 1994 ballot referendum codified as Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 40P, the Massachusetts Rent Control Prohibition…

Michigan

Few Restrictions

Michigan has no statewide rent control and no cap on rent increases. A 1988 state law, MCL 123.411, bars every local government from enacting, maintaining, or enforcing any ordinance…

Minnesota

Some Restrictions

Minnesota has no statewide rent cap and generally bars local rent control under Minn. Stat. § 471.9996, but it carves out one exception: a city, county, or town may control rents if…

Mississippi

Few Restrictions

Rent control is barred at the local level in Mississippi. Miss. Code § 21-17-5(2)(h) prohibits a municipality from regulating, directly or indirectly, the amount of rent charged for…

Missouri

Few Restrictions

Missouri expressly preempts local rent control. Under Mo. Rev. Stat. § 441.043, no county or city may enact, maintain, or enforce any ordinance regulating the rent charged for…

Montana

Few Restrictions

Rent control is prohibited at the local level in Montana. Mont. Code Ann. § 7-1-111(26) denies every local government any power to control the amount of rent charged for private…

Nebraska

Few Restrictions

Nebraska preempts local rent control. Neb. Rev. Stat. 13-331, enacted by LB266 in 2025, bars any city, village, county, or other political subdivision from enacting or enforcing an…

New Mexico

Few Restrictions

New Mexico expressly preempts local rent control. State law bars any city, county, or home rule municipality from enacting an ordinance that controls rents on privately owned property…

North Carolina

Few Restrictions

North Carolina law preempts local rent control. Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-14.1, no county or city may enact, maintain, or enforce any ordinance that regulates the amount of rent…

North Dakota

Few Restrictions

North Dakota expressly preempts local rent control. N.D. Cent. Code 47-16-02.1 bars any political subdivision from enacting, maintaining, or enforcing an ordinance or resolution that…

Ohio

Few Restrictions

Ohio preempts local rent control. Effective September 23, 2022, Ohio Rev. Code 5321.19 (added by H.B. 430) bars counties, townships, and municipalities from imposing rent control or…

Oregon

Some Restrictions

Oregon is unusual: it bans cities and counties from passing their own rent control, yet imposes a statewide annual rent-increase cap that applies almost everywhere. The cap is the…

South Carolina

Few Restrictions

South Carolina law preempts local rent control. Under S.C. Code Ann. § 27-39-60, no county or municipal corporation may enact or enforce any ordinance regulating the rent charged for…

South Dakota

Few Restrictions

South Dakota expressly preempts local rent control. SDCL 6-1-13 bars any local governmental unit from enacting, maintaining, or enforcing any ordinance or resolution that would control…

Tennessee

Few Restrictions

Tennessee has no statewide rent control and no cap on rent increases. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-35-102, no local government may enact, maintain, or enforce an ordinance controlling…

Texas

Few Restrictions

Texas law forbids cities from adopting rent control. A municipality may not establish rent control unless its governing body finds a housing emergency caused by a disaster and the…

Utah

Few Restrictions

Utah prohibits local rent control. State law bars any county, city, or town from enacting an ordinance or resolution that controls rents or fees on private residential property unless…

Washington

Some Restrictions

Washington bars cities from passing local rent control under RCW 35.21.830, and that preemption still stands. But in 2025 the state enacted its first statewide rent-increase cap. Under…

Wisconsin

Few Restrictions

Wisconsin prohibits rent control statewide. Wis. Stat. § 66.1015 bars every city, village, town, and county from regulating the amount of rent charged for a residential rental unit…

Other Rental Property Rules Topics

Just Cause Eviction

Protections requiring landlords to have a valid reason to evict tenants, such as nonpayment of rent, lease violations, or owner move-in.

Rental Registration

Requirements for landlords to register rental properties with the city, including inspection programs, fees, and occupancy standards.

Relocation Assistance

Required tenant relocation payments for no-fault evictions and Ellis Act withdrawals, typical amounts, qualifying triggers, and how cities enforce payment.

Security Deposit Rules

Caps on how much landlords may collect as security deposits, return deadlines, itemized-deduction requirements, and tenant remedies for wrongfully withheld deposits.

Cash-for-Keys Agreements

Rules around buyout agreements where landlords pay tenants to vacate, including required disclosures, cooling-off periods, and city filing requirements.

No-Fault Evictions

Allowable no-fault eviction grounds (owner move-in, Ellis Act, substantial remodel) and the relocation/notice obligations that come with each.

Pass-Through Charges

Rules limiting landlord ability to pass utility, capital improvement, or seismic-retrofit costs through to rent-controlled tenants, and the petition process.

Tenant Anti-Harassment

Cities like LA prohibit specific landlord conduct (lockouts, utility shutoffs, threats), penalties, private right of action, and how to document violations.

Source-of-Income Discrimination

Rules barring landlords from refusing to rent to applicants because of Section 8 vouchers, SSI, or other lawful income, protected categories and remedies.

Section 8 Voucher Acceptance

Landlord obligations when accepting Housing Choice Vouchers, including HACLA inspection, lease addenda, and rent reasonableness.

Right of Return

Tenant right to re-occupy a unit after no-fault eviction (substantial remodel, owner move-in failure) at original rent, qualifying triggers and notice rules.

AB-1482 Notice Disclosure

California statewide rent-cap and just-cause notices required on month-to-month leases, separate from local RSO disclosures, and how cities enforce them.

Eviction Moratorium History

Status of pandemic-era eviction protections, what sunset, what carries forward as permanent rules, and tenant defenses still available for COVID-rent-debt.

Council District Preference

Local preference policies giving residents of a Council District priority for affordable housing units developed in their district, eligibility and waitlist mechanics.

Just Cause Appeal Process

How tenants and landlords appeal Just Cause eviction determinations, administrative hearing procedures, evidence rules, and judicial review.

Mold Disclosure

Landlord obligations to disclose known mold conditions before lease signing, plus tenant remedies when mold is discovered or made worse during a tenancy.

Rent Increase Notice

How much advance written notice a landlord must give before raising the rent on a month-to-month or expiring lease, and how state notice rules differ from any local rent-control caps.

Landlord Entry & Notice

How much advance notice a landlord must give before entering an occupied unit, the permitted reasons (repairs, showings, inspections), allowed hours, and the emergency exceptions under…

Repairs & Habitability

The implied warranty of habitability, how long a landlord has to fix essential services (heat, water, plumbing, mold), and tenant remedies such as repair-and-deduct, rent withholding…

Late Fees & Grace Periods

Whether late rent fees are capped, any required grace period before a fee can be charged, and limits on bounced-check (NSF) and other add-on charges under state law.

Lease Termination & Notice to Vacate

Notice required to end a month-to-month tenancy, the rules and penalties for breaking a fixed-term lease early, and early-termination protections for active-duty military…

Eviction Notice & Process

The notice a landlord must give before filing to evict, pay-or-quit and cure-or-quit periods, no-cause termination notice, how long the court eviction process takes in this state, and…

Squatter's Rights & Adverse Possession

When an occupant without a lease gains legal protections, the line between a trespasser and a squatter, how many years of continuous possession adverse possession requires in this…