In every state, rent is considered late the day after it is due. However, state laws vary as to when late fees can be charged and eviction notices served.
When Can a Landlord Charge a Late Fee?
Landlords in most states may charge a late fee the day after rent is due. In about a third of U.S. states, landlords must give tenants a grace period before charging a late fee.
Texas requires a 2-day grace period. This means a late fee cannot be charged until rent is three days past due and not paid in full. If rent is due on the 1st of the month, tenants have until the end of the 3rd to pay before they can legally be charged a late fee.
| State | Required Grace Period for Late Fees |
|---|---|
| Arizona | 5 days (mobile homes) None (other housing types) |
| Colorado | 7 days |
| Connecticut | 4 days (week-to-week lease agreements) 9 days (all other lease agreements) |
| Delaware | 5 days (except the grace period is 8 days if rent can’t be paid in person within the same county as the residence) |
| Maine | 15 days |
| Massachusetts | 30 days |
| Nevada | None (week-to-week lease agreements) 3 days (all other lease agreements) |
| New Jersey | 5 business days (leases due and payable on the first of each month) None (other tenants) |
| New York | 5 days |
| North Carolina | 5 days for all tenancies with fixed periodic rent payments |
| Oregon | 4 days |
| Tennessee | 5 days (if 6th day is a Sunday or holiday, due date is the next business day) |
| Texas | 2 days |
| Virginia | None (with written lease agreement) 5 days (if there is no written lease agreement) |
| Washington | 5 days |
| Washington D.C. | 5 days |
Local laws may differ from the state requirement. For example, California does not require a grace period, but West Hollywood Municipal Code requires a 5-day grace period before landlords can charge a late fee.
When Can Landlords Report Late Rent to the Credit Bureaus?
By federal law, landlords are required to wait at least 30 days before reporting late rent to the credit bureaus.
When Can a Landlord Begin the Eviction Process?
In most states, landlords can begin the eviction process for non-payment the day after rent is due. However, in a few states, landlords must give a grace period before the eviction process can be started.
The eviction process generally takes 14 to 60 days, during which time tenants can pay the rent owed and forestall the eviction process.
| State | Grace Period Before Eviction Notice |
|---|---|
| Arkansas | 5 days |
| Connecticut | 4 days (week-to-week lease agreement) 9 days (all other lease agreements) |
| Maine | 7 days |
| New Jersey | 5 business days (certain senior tenants) None (other tenants) |
| New York | 5 days |
| Oregon | 4 days |
| Rhode Island | 15 days |
Sources
- 1 Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-1414(a)(4)
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A rental agreement [for a mobile home] shall not provide that the tenant agrees to:
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4. Permit the landlord to charge a penalty fee for late payment of rent unless a tenant is allowed a minimum of five days beyond the date the rent is due in which to remit payment.
Source Link - 2 Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-12-105(1)
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A landlord shall not take any of the following actions or direct any agent to take any of the following actions on the landlord’s behalf:
(a) Charge a tenant or home owner a late fee unless a rent payment is late by at least seven calendar days.
Source Link - 3 Conn. Gen. Stat. § 47a-15a
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(a) If rent is unpaid when due and the tenant fails to pay rent within nine days thereafter or, in the case of a one-week tenancy, within four days thereafter, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement in accordance with the provisions of sections 47a-23 to 47a-23b, inclusive. For purposes of this section, “grace period” means the nine-day or four-day time periods identified in this subsection, as applicable.
(b) If a rental agreement contains a valid written agreement to pay a late charge in accordance with subsection (a) of section 47a-4 a landlord may assess a tenant such a late charge on a rent payment made subsequent to the grace period in accordance with this section. Such late charge may not exceed the lesser of (1) five dollars per day, up to a maximum of fifty dollars, or (2) five per cent of the delinquent rent payment or, in the case of a rental agreement paid in whole or in part by a governmental or charitable entity, five per cent of the tenant’s share of the delinquent rent payment. The landlord may not assess more than one late charge upon a delinquent rent payment, regardless of how long the rent remains unpaid.
Source Link - 4 Del. Code tit. 25 § 5501(d)
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Where the rental agreement provides for a late charge payable to the landlord for rent not paid at the agreed time, such late charge shall not exceed 5 percent of the monthly rent. A late charge is considered as additional rent for the purposes of this Code. The late charge shall not be imposed within 5 days of the agreed time for payment of rent.
Source Link - 5 Me. Stat. tit. 14 § 6028(1)
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A payment of rent is late if it is not made within 15 days from the time the payment is due.
Source Link - 6 Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 186 § 15B(c)
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No lease or other rental agreement shall impose any interest or penalty for failure to pay rent until thirty days after such rent shall have been due.
Source Link - 7 Nev. Rev. Stat. § 118A.210(4)(a)
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In a tenancy that is longer than week to week, no late fee may be charged or imposed until at least 3 calendar days after the date that rent is due.
Source Link - 8 N.J. Stat. § 2A:42-6.1
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A person to whom rent is due and payable on the first of the month upon a lease or other agreement shall allow a period of five business days grace in which the rent due shall be paid. No delinquency or other late charge shall be made which includes the grace period of five business days.
As used in this section, “business day” means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday or State or federal holiday.
Source Link - 9 N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 235-E(d)
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If a lessor, or an agent of a lessor authorized to receive rent, fails to receive payment for rent within five days of the date specified in a lease agreement, such lessor or agent shall send the lessee, by certified mail, a written notice stating the failure to receive such rent payment. The failure of a lessor, or any agent of the lessor authorized to receive rent, to provide a lessee with a written notice of the non-payment of rent may be used as an affirmative defense by such lessee in an eviction proceeding based on the non-payment of rent. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subdivision, a lessor which is a cooperative housing corporation, other than a cooperative housing corporation subject to the provisions of article two, article four, article five or article eleven of the private housing finance law, may provide for a method of sending notice by mail other than by certified mail, as long as such method of sending notice is provided for in the proprietary lease or occupancy agreement, and the lessee is a dwelling unit owner or shareholder of such cooperative housing corporation.
Source Link - 10 N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-46
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In all residential rental agreements in which a definite time for the payment of the rent is fixed, the parties may agree to a late fee not inconsistent with the provisions of this subsection, to be chargeable only if any rental payment is five calendar days or more late, with the first day being the day after the rent was due. If the rent:
(1) Is due in monthly installments, a landlord may charge a late fee not to exceed fifteen dollars ($15.00) or five percent (5%) of the monthly rent, whichever is greater.
(2) Is due in weekly installments, a landlord may charge a late fee not to exceed four dollars ($4.00) or five percent (5%) of the weekly rent, whichever is greater.
(3) Repealed by Session Laws 2009-279, s. 4, effective October 1, 2009, and applicable to leases entered into on or after that date.
Source Link - 11 ORS § 90.260(1)
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A landlord may impose a late charge or fee, however designated, only if:
(a) The rent payment is not received by the fourth day of the weekly or monthly rental period for which rent is payable; and
(b) There exists a written rental agreement that specifies:
(A) The tenant’s obligation to pay a late charge on delinquent rent payments;
(B) The type and amount of the late charge, as described in subsection (2) of this section; and
(C) The date on which rent payments are due and the date or day on which late charges become due.
Source Link - 12 Tenn. Code § 66-28-201(d)
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There shall be a five-day grace period beginning the day the rent was due to the day a fee for the late payment of rent may be charged. The date the rent was due shall be included in the calculation of the five-day grace period. If the last day of the five-day grace period occurs on a Sunday or legal holiday, as defined in § 15-1-101, the landlord shall not impose any charge or fee for the late payment of rent; provided, that the rent is paid on the next business day. Any charge or fee, however described, which is charged by the landlord for the late payment of rent, shall not exceed ten percent (10%) of the amount of rent past due.
- 13 Tex. Prop. Code § 92.019(a)
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A landlord may not collect from a tenant a late fee for failing to pay any portion of the tenant’s rent unless:
(1) notice of the fee is included in a written lease;
(2) the fee is reasonable; and
(3) any portion of the tenant’s rent has remained unpaid two full days after the date the rent was originally due.
Source Link - 14 Va. Code § 55.1-1204(C)
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If a landlord does not offer a written rental agreement, the tenancy shall exist by operation of law, consisting of the following terms and conditions:
1. The provision of this chapter shall be applicable to the dwelling unit that is being rented;
2. The duration of the rental agreement shall be for 12 months and shall not be subject to automatic renewal, except in the event of a month-to-month lease as otherwise provided for under subsection D of § 55.1-1253;
3. Rent shall be paid in 12 equal periodic installments in an amount agreed upon by the landlord and the tenant and if no amount is agreed upon, the installments shall be at fair market rent;
4. Rent payments shall be due on the first day of each month during the tenancy and shall be considered late if not paid by the fifth of the month;
5. If the rent is paid by the tenant after the fifth day of any given month, the landlord shall be entitled to charge a late charge as provided in this chapter;
6. The landlord may collect a security deposit in an amount that does not exceed a total amount equal to two months of rent; and
7. The parties may enter into a written rental agreement at any time during the 12-month tenancy created by this subsection.
Source Link - 15 Wash. Rev. Code § 59.18.170(2)
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The landlord may not charge a late fee for rent that is paid within five days following its due date. If rent is more than five days past due, the landlord may charge late fees commencing from the first day after the due date until paid. Nothing in this subsection prohibits a landlord from serving a notice to pay or vacate at any time after the rent becomes due.
Source Link - 16 D.C. Code § 42-3505.31(b)
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A housing provider may only charge a late fee: (1) If the written lease agreement between the housing provider and the tenant informs the tenant of the maximum amount of the late fee that may be charged pursuant to this section; and (2) If the tenant has not paid the full amount of rent within 5 days, or any longer grace period that may be provided in the lease, after the day the rent payment is due.
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