Rental Property Rules in Kentucky (2026)
17 rules on the books across Kentucky, 8 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.
Rental Registration
Requirements for landlords to register rental properties with the city, including inspection programs, fees, and occupancy standards.
Boone County
Significant RestrictionsNo one may advertise or rent a short-term rental in unincorporated Boone County without first registering and obtaining…
Read full rule →Franklin County
Significant RestrictionsEvery short-term rental host in unincorporated Franklin County, Kentucky must file an annual registration form with the…
Read full rule →Owensboro
Significant RestrictionsOwensboro requires rental property owners whose mailing address differs from the county PVA listing to register with…
Read full rule →Louisville
Some RestrictionsLouisville Metro requires owners of rental housing units to register each property with Codes and Regulations and pay a…
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.
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.
Kentucky: statewide
StatewideSome RestrictionsIn URLTA-adopting Kentucky jurisdictions, KRS 383.595 requires landlords to meet building and housing codes, keep…
Read full rule →Bowling Green
Some RestrictionsIn the City of Bowling Green, Kentucky, Sec. 27-3.02 of the Code of Ordinances adopts the International Property…
Read full rule →Campbell County
Some RestrictionsCampbell County requires every dwelling, including rental housing, to meet the International Property Maintenance Code…
Read full rule →Jessamine County
Some RestrictionsChapter 151 of the Jessamine County Code does not single out rental housing. In unincorporated Jessamine County…
Read full rule →Lexington
Some RestrictionsLexington-Fayette's Property Maintenance Code, the 2021 International Property Maintenance Code as locally amended…
Read full rule →Louisville
Some RestrictionsLouisville Metro's Property Maintenance Code sets minimum habitability standards for rental housing, including a…
Read full rule →Owensboro
Some RestrictionsOwensboro adopts the 2009 International Property Maintenance Code's habitability chapters, including required heat and…
Read full rule →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.