Virginia Landlord-Tenant Law: The Complete 2026 Guide

The most expensive mistake a Virginia landlord can make in 2026 costs nothing to make and weeks to undo: serving the old 5-day pay-or-quit notice. As of July 1, 2026, HB 15 and SB 48 rewrote Va. Code § 55.1-1245(F), and tenants now get 14 days to pay after written notice before you can terminate for nonpayment. File on a stale 5-day form and the court tosses the case for defective notice. You start over, a month of rent further behind.

There is a second trap hiding in the same statute book: you cannot file or maintain an unlawful detainer at all until you have given the tenant the state's Statement of Tenant Rights and Responsibilities with the lease (Va. Code § 55.1-1204). Plenty of self-managing landlords learn that one standing in General District Court. The rest of the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act is manageable once you know where the tripwires sit, and the short version lives on our Virginia quick-reference page.

Deposits: two months, 45 days, and a paper trail that starts at move-in

Virginia caps security deposits at two months' periodic rent (Va. Code § 55.1-1226). On a $1,800 rental that means $3,600, full stop, and demanding more is a statutory violation, not a negotiating position. Neighboring Delaware caps deposits at a single month on year-long leases, so owners working both sides of the state line should not assume the rules travel.

The paper trail starts early. Within five days of occupancy you must prepare a written move-in report itemizing the unit's condition (Va. Code § 55.1-1214), and that report doubles as your mold disclosure (§ 55.1-1215). At the back end, the deposit plus an itemized statement is due within 45 days of the termination date or the date the tenant vacates, whichever comes later (§ 55.1-1226). Two wrinkles worth memorizing: deductions you decide on during the tenancy must be noticed in writing within 30 days of the determination, and if repairs exceed the deposit and need an outside contractor, notice within the 45 days buys you 15 more to finish the itemization.

Tenants who give notice can require a move-out inspection and attend it. Willfully blow the 45-day deadline and a court orders the deposit returned plus actual damages and attorney fees. Rentari tracks the 45-day disposition clock per tenancy so the statement goes out before the statute runs.

Notices and entry: 72 hours for maintenance, 30 days to part ways

Month-to-month tenancies end with written notice served at least 30 days before the next rent due date, from either side (Va. Code § 55.1-1253). Week-to-week arrangements need 7 days. Since July 1, 2025, landlords who own more than four rental units (or a 10 percent stake in more than four) owe tenants a 60-day written heads-up when they decide not to renew a fixed-term lease (HB 1867/SB 1043).

For entry, Virginia sets a specific number only where landlords used to be sloppiest: routine maintenance the tenant never asked for requires at least 72 hours' notice (§ 55.1-1229). Everything else runs on reasonable notice at reasonable times, and emergencies need none. Tenants cannot unreasonably refuse access, but the remedy for a stonewalling tenant is a court order, never a key in the lock unannounced.

The disclosure stack Virginia expects

Beyond the tenant-rights statement, Virginia requires written disclosure of visible mold in the move-in report (§ 55.1-1215), location within a military air installation accident or noise zone (§ 55.1-1217), known defective drywall (§ 55.1-1218), and prior methamphetamine manufacture that has not been professionally cleaned (§ 55.1-1219). Pre-1978 housing adds the federal lead-based paint disclosure and pamphlet. And for every lease signed, extended, or renewed since July 1, 2025, HB 2430 requires the deposit, rent, and one-time pre-move-in charges itemized on the first page of the lease. Current state-specific templates are in our forms library.

Rent, the built-in grace period, and the 10 percent late-fee ceiling

Virginia writes the grace period into the statute: rent is due on the first and is not considered late until after the fifth of the month (Va. Code § 55.1-1204). A late charge must appear in the written lease and cannot exceed the lesser of 10 percent of the periodic rent or 10 percent of the remaining balance owed. So a tenant who owes only a $200 balance on a $2,000 rent can be charged at most $20, not $200.

The 2026 session went after payment mechanics too. Since July 1, 2026, HB 1005 and SB 313 require landlords to accept rent and deposit payments by check and money order, provide written receipts, and keep any payment-processing fee at or below the actual third-party cost. The same package bars charging tenants for general maintenance or repairs unless the damage came from the tenant's own violation of the act.

Raising rent is refreshingly simple by comparison: Virginia has no rent control, statewide or local. Across the Potomac, Washington, D.C. runs rent stabilization on most older buildings, which makes the river a genuine regulatory border. On a month-to-month tenancy, a rent change takes effect at the next rent due date at least 30 days after written notice (§ 55.1-1253). Mark the calendar, though: from July 1, 2027, landlords with more than four units must give 90 days' notice of any renewal-term rent increase and leave the tenant at least 30 days to decide (HB 678).

Habitability money runs the other way

Virginia landlords must keep units fit and habitable, and tenants have two funded remedies when they do not. A tenant can pay rent into a court escrow through a tenant's assertion (§ 55.1-1244), or, after 14 days' written notice of a serious condition goes unaddressed, hire a licensed contractor and deduct the actual cost from rent, capped at the greater of one month's rent or $1,500 (§ 55.1-1244.1). A rodent infestation, no heat, or no hot water all qualify. The cheapest response is almost always fixing it inside the 14 days.

The eviction path after the 14-day notice

Nonpayment now runs on the 14-day notice described up top. Lease violations run on a different track: a material noncompliance gets a 30-day termination notice that gives the tenant 21 days to cure; a repeat of a previously cured violation gets a 30-day notice with no cure; and criminal or willful acts that threaten health or safety are non-remediable, meaning you can terminate without offering a fix (Va. Code § 55.1-1245). For contrast, Florida still runs 3-business-day nonpayment notices; Virginia has deliberately moved the other way.

If the notice expires, you file an unlawful detainer in General District Court. Expect the tenant's right of redemption: paying all rent, late charges, attorney fees, and court costs at or before the first return date ends the case, and a redemption tender buys a 10-day continuance to produce the money (§ 55.1-1250). You must give a written statement of the exact amount owed on request. Accepting rent "with reservation" lets you take money mid-case without waiving the eviction, as long as your notice said so.

Win, and you have 180 days to request the writ of eviction (Va. Code § 8.01-471). The sheriff serves at least 72 hours' notice of the eviction date and time before executing (§ 8.01-470). What is never on the menu is self-help: cutting an essential service or locking a tenant out without a court order violates § 55.1-1252, and § 55.1-1243.1 lets the tenant haul you into court on an expedited petition for exactly that.

What Richmond changed in 2025, 2026, and what lands in 2027

Virginia's last two sessions produced the biggest VRLTA overhaul in years. The 2025 batch (effective July 1, 2025): first-page fee itemization on new and renewed leases (HB 2430), processing fees only where a free payment option exists (HB 2218/SB 1356), the 60-day nonrenewal notice for landlords over four units (HB 1867/SB 1043), statewide eviction diversion in General District Courts, and crime-victim lease-termination rights extended to victims of stalking and trafficking.

The 2026 batch (effective July 1, 2026): the 5-to-14-day pay-or-quit extension (HB 15/SB 48) and the payment-methods package (HB 1005/SB 313) covered above. Already enacted for 2027: payment plans must be offered before terminating for one month or less of unpaid rent if you own more than four units (HB 95, January 1, 2027), the 90-day rent-increase notice (HB 678, July 1, 2027), and nonpayment notices that include a full 12-month accounting of charges and payments (HB 1361/SB 294, July 1, 2027). If your notice templates were printed before this year, they are already out of date.

Virginia landlord FAQ

Is the Virginia eviction notice 5 days or 14 days now?

Fourteen, for any nonpayment notice served on or after July 1, 2026 (Va. Code § 55.1-1245(F), amended by HB 15/SB 48). The 5-day figure you will still find on older forms and blog posts is dead. Update the template before you serve anyone.

Can I charge a $75 flat late fee?

Only when it clears both caps. The fee must be in the written lease and cannot exceed the lesser of 10 percent of the periodic rent or 10 percent of what the tenant actually still owes (§ 55.1-1204). On a $1,000 rent with a $500 balance due, the most you can charge is $50.

Does my tenant paying after I file stop the eviction?

Once per the redemption rules, yes. Payment of everything owed (rent, late charges, attorney fees, costs) at or before the first return date defeats the case (§ 55.1-1250). Take later payments with a written reservation of rights or you risk waiving the termination.

How much notice do I owe before raising rent?

On month-to-month, the new rent starts at the next rent due date at least 30 days after written notice (§ 55.1-1253). Mid-lease, none, because you cannot raise it until renewal. From July 1, 2027, owners of more than four units add the 90-day renewal-increase notice from HB 678.

Do these rules apply to my single rental house?

Mostly yes. The VRLTA covers nearly all residential rentals in Virginia, though a natural person who owns no more than two rental units can opt out of the act in the written lease, and several of the newest rules (60-day nonrenewal, 2027 payment plans, 90-day increase notice) bind only landlords with more than four units. When in doubt, follow the stricter reading.

This is general information for Virginia rental owners, not legal advice. The VRLTA has been amended every year lately and several provisions above carry 2027 effective dates, so confirm current text at the Code of Virginia, Title 55.1, Chapter 12 (the pay-or-quit change sits in § 55.1-1245) or talk to a Virginia landlord-tenant attorney before acting.