District of Columbia Ordinances (2026)

For condominiums, the D.C. Condominium Act gives the unit owners' association an automatic lien for unpaid assessments with a limited priority over a first mortgage. D.C. has no comprehensive non-condo HOA statute, so non-condo associations collect under their recorded declaration plus general law.

The D.C. Condominium Act requires open meetings and broad owner access to records for condominium associations. D.C. has no general non-condo HOA act, so a standalone HOA's board procedures are set by its declaration and the D.C. Nonprofit Corporation Act (Title 29).

D.C. condo associations enforce recorded instruments and rules through charges, reasonable fines, liens, and legal action under the Condominium Act, with rules required to be consistent with the declaration and bylaws. Non-condo HOAs enforce covenants under their declaration and the Nonprofit Corporation Act, since D.C. has no general HOA act.

The D.C. Condominium Act expressly authorizes a unit owners' association to impose late charges and to fine owners for rule violations, but only after notice and an opportunity to be heard. There is no statewide non-condo HOA fining statute, so standalone HOAs fine under their declaration and corporate law.

Under D.C. Code § 8-1774.51 a condo, co-op, or homeowners association may not prohibit solar collectors on an owner's unit or a single-unit roof, and may not use aesthetic guidelines. Flag display is protected by the federal Freedom to Display the American Flag Act; D.C. has no separate flag or sign statute.

D.C. requires just cause to evict and gives strong tenant protections. For nonpayment, a landlord must serve written notice and may file only if at least $600 in rent is owed. A tenant can stop the eviction any time before it occurs by paying the full balance, and weather halts evictions.

Every D.C. lease carries an implied warranty of habitability under 14 DCMR § 301.1 that the owner will maintain the premises in compliance with the Housing Code. The duty cannot be waived. Tenants may demand repairs, withhold rent, or pay rent into the court registry until violations are fixed.

D.C. has an express statutory entry rule. Under D.C. Code § 42-3505.51 a housing provider must give at least 48 hours' written notice and may enter only for a reasonable purpose, at a reasonable time — between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. and not on a Sunday or holiday — except in emergencies.

Under D.C. Code § 42-3505.31, a residential late fee may not exceed 5% of the full monthly rent and may be charged only after rent is at least 5 days late. The fee must be disclosed in the lease, may be charged only once, and is never grounds for eviction.

D.C. Code § 42-3505.01 forbids ending a tenancy merely because a lease expires — a tenant who keeps paying rent may stay unless the landlord proves one of the statute's just causes. Required notice to vacate ranges from 30 days for lease violations to 90–180 days for owner move-in, sale, or rehab.

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 at the CPI-W plus 2%, but no more than 10%. For elderly tenants (62+) and tenants with disabilities, the cap is far lower (no more than 5%).

D.C. requires at least 60 days' written notice before any rent increase under D.C. Code § 42-3509.04, and rent for the roughly 90,000 rent-controlled units may rise only once per 12 months, tied to the CPI-based adjustment of general applicability. Elderly and disabled tenants receive an even lower cap.

In Washington, D.C., a landlord may charge no more than one month's rent as a security deposit. Within 45 days after a tenancy ends, the landlord must either return the deposit plus interest or give written notice of intent to withhold. Bad-faith withholding exposes the landlord to treble (triple) damages.

In D.C., adverse possession requires 15 years of open, continuous, hostile possession, matching the 15-year limitations period to recover land under D.C. Code § 12-301(a)(1). Section 16-1113 offers an alternative tax-payment path for vacant land. Squatters without that history are removed through the courts, not self-help.