An Idaho rental agreement is a legal contract between a landlord overseeing a rental property and a tenant who wishes to use it. Idaho landlord-tenant law governs these agreements; rental terms must be within the limits allowed by law.
Idaho Rental Agreement Types
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Idaho Required Residential Lease Disclosures
- Lead-Based Paint Disclosure (required for some leases) – For any property built before 1978, federal law requires that an Idaho residential lease must contain a lead-based paint disclosure with an EPA informational pamphlet, plus notice of any lead hazards on the property.
To learn more about required disclosures in Idaho, click here.
Idaho Landlord Tenant Laws
- Warranty of Habitability – Idaho landlords can only rent out habitable property, which means providing certain features essential to basic health and safety. This includes things like heat, plumbing, electricity, and sound structural elements. Landlords must repair any issues within three days after proper notice from the tenant. Failure to repair lets a tenant sue the landlord or, in severe cases, terminate the lease. Tenants in Idaho aren’t allowed to withhold rent, or repair and deduct (except to fix a smoke detector).
- Evictions – Idaho landlords may evict for rent default, lease violations, or illegal acts, among other things. Before filing eviction, landlords must serve tenants with prior notice to pay or quit, depending on the eviction type. Idaho has a fast eviction process, often under a week.
- Security Deposits – Idaho does not set a maximum cap on the amount of a security deposit. Upon lease termination, a landlord must return any unused portion of a security deposit to the tenant within 21 days.
- Lease Termination – Idaho lets tenants break a month-to-month lease with one month of advance notice. A fixed-term lease can’t be terminated early without active military duty, landlord harassment, uninhabitable property, or domestic abuse.
- Rent Increases and Fees – Idaho landlords can raise rent by any amount, whenever they want, with no particular requirements for justification, as long as they give at least 30 days of advance notice. There is no state cap on late fees. Returned check fees are limited to $20 or 12% of the returned payment.
- Landlord Entry – Idaho’s landlords may enter rental property for purposes reasonably related to the tenancy, such as maintenance and inspections. The state does not specify entry requirements, which means that a landlord can enter at reasonable times of day using reasonable advance notice (customarily at least 24 hours), unless the lease agrees otherwise. Entry requirements are temporarily suspended in emergency situations.
- Settling Legal Disputes – Idaho allows its small claims courts to hear landlord-tenant disputes, as long as the amount in controversy is under $5,000. The state does not allow evictions in small claims. The statute of limitations is five years for written contracts, four years for oral contracts.
To learn more about landlord tenant laws in Idaho, click here.
