Rental Property Rules in Iowa (2026)
41 rules on the books across Iowa, 13 cities and counties. Select a rule to read the full details.
Severity: Few Restrictions · Light Restrictions · Some Restrictions · Significant Restrictions · Heavy Restrictions
Rent Control
Local limits on how much landlords can raise rent each year, including which properties are covered and exemptions for newer buildings.
Iowa: statewide
StatewideFew RestrictionsIowa preempts local rent control. Iowa Code 364.3(9) bars any city from adopting or enforcing an ordinance that limits…
Read full rule →Davenport
Few RestrictionsDavenport has no rent control. Iowa Code §364.3(9) bars every Iowa city from capping rent, so landlords may raise rent…
Read full rule →Iowa City
Few RestrictionsIowa City has no rent-control ordinance and cannot adopt one. Iowa Code section 364.3(9) bars any city ordinance…
Read full rule →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.
Cedar Rapids
Some RestrictionsCedar Rapids follows state landlord-tenant law for evictions. Landlords must follow proper notice procedures but may…
Read full rule →Johnson County
Some RestrictionsIowa is landlord-friendly and has no just-cause eviction law, so no Johnson County city can add one. But the security…
Read full rule →Des Moines
Few RestrictionsDes Moines does not impose a just-cause eviction standard. Under the Iowa URLTA, Iowa Code Ch. 562A, landlords may end…
Read full rule →Iowa City
Few RestrictionsIowa City has no just-cause eviction ordinance. Termination of residential tenancies is governed by the Iowa Uniform…
Read full rule →Rental Registration
Requirements for landlords to register rental properties with the city, including inspection programs, fees, and occupancy standards.
Iowa: statewide
StatewideSome RestrictionsIowa Code 364.3(5) restricts how cities regulate rental manufactured or mobile homes: a city cannot impose…
Read full rule →Ames
Significant RestrictionsIn the City of Ames, Iowa, no owner or operator may rent or offer to rent a dwelling unit for human habitation unless…
Read full rule →Cedar Rapids
Significant RestrictionsCedar Rapids requires every residential rental owner to register each unit with the code official before renting it…
Read full rule →Council Bluffs
Significant RestrictionsIn the City of Council Bluffs, every owner or operator of rental property must register with the Building Official…
Read full rule →Des Moines
Significant RestrictionsEvery rental dwelling or rooming unit in Des Moines needs a rental business license before an owner can lease it…
Read full rule →Dubuque
Significant RestrictionsIn the City of Dubuque, no property owner, manager, or licensed real estate professional may rent out a dwelling…
Read full rule →Iowa City
Significant RestrictionsIowa City bars anyone from renting out a dwelling unit, duplex, rooming unit, or type III unit without both a…
Read full rule →Sioux City
Significant RestrictionsSioux City landlords must register every rental dwelling and pay a $50 per-structure registration fee before offering…
Read full rule →Waterloo
Significant RestrictionsEvery rental unit in the City of Waterloo needs its own annual permit before a landlord can rent it out. City Code §…
Read full rule →West Des Moines
Significant RestrictionsIn the City of West Des Moines, no one may rent or let any dwelling, dwelling unit or even a single room, short-term or…
Read full rule →Ankeny
Some RestrictionsEvery person, firm or corporation that rents out a dwelling in Ankeny must apply to the Community Development…
Read full rule →Johnson County
Some RestrictionsRental permits are a city job, not a county one. Iowa City runs a mandatory rental-permit program with a two-year…
Read full rule →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.
Iowa: statewide
StatewideSome RestrictionsIowa caps a security deposit at two months' rent. Under Iowa Code 562A.12, a landlord must return the deposit, or a…
Read full rule →Des Moines
Some RestrictionsIowa Code Ch. 562A.12 limits residential security deposits to two months rent and requires return within 30 days of…
Read full rule →Iowa City
Some RestrictionsIowa City security deposits follow the Iowa URLTA. Iowa Code 562A.12 caps the deposit at two months' rent, requires…
Read full rule →Tenant Anti-Harassment
Cities like LA prohibit specific landlord conduct (lockouts, utility shutoffs, threats), penalties, private right of action, and how to document violations.
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 state law.
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, or breaking the lease.
Iowa: statewide
StatewideHeavy RestrictionsIowa Code Sec. 562A.15 requires landlords to keep rental units fit and habitable, comply with codes affecting health…
Read full rule →Des Moines
Significant RestrictionsDes Moines requires a licensed, inspected rental unit to maintain at least 68°F indoors when it's below 60°F outside…
Read full rule →Dubuque
Significant RestrictionsDubuque adopts the 2021 International Property Maintenance Code as the Dubuque Property Maintenance Code to keep rental…
Read full rule →Linn County
Significant RestrictionsUnincorporated Linn County adopts the International Property Maintenance Code as its housing code, setting minimum…
Read full rule →West Des Moines
Significant RestrictionsIn the City of West Des Moines, the Building Official can order a landlord's rent abated, meaning the owner may not…
Read full rule →Ames
Some RestrictionsAmes Municipal Code Sec. 13.400 sets the City of Ames, Iowa's minimum habitability standard for every registered rental…
Read full rule →Ankeny
Some RestrictionsAnkeny's Property Maintenance and Housing Code sets rental-specific physical minimums on top of the 2024 International…
Read full rule →Cedar Rapids
Some RestrictionsCedar Rapids landlords must supply heat maintaining at least 68°F in every habitable room, bathroom, and toilet room of…
Read full rule →Council Bluffs
Some RestrictionsIn the City of Council Bluffs, landlords must supply heat to at least 68 degrees Fahrenheit in every habitable room…
Read full rule →Iowa City
Some RestrictionsIowa City's Housing Code sets numeric habitability minimums for every dwelling and rental unit: heat capable of…
Read full rule →Johnson County
Some RestrictionsEvery rental dwelling in unincorporated Johnson County must meet the minimum structure standards of UDO Section 8:7.8…
Read full rule →Sioux City
Some RestrictionsSioux City's Housing Maintenance Code sets minimum physical standards every rental unit in Woodbury County must meet…
Read full rule →Waterloo
Some RestrictionsWaterloo's rental housing code splits maintenance duty between landlord and tenant. City Code § 9-7-9 makes the…
Read full rule →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, domestic-violence survivors, and medical hardships.
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 the tenant's options to respond or cure.
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 state, and how an owner lawfully removes a squatter.