Tennessee Landlord-Tenant Act: Deposits, Repairs, and Evictions

The Tennessee Landlord and Tenant Act — formally the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, or URLTA — sets the rules that govern most residential rentals in the state, covering security deposits, rent and late fees, repairs, landlord entry, lease termination, and eviction. It applies in counties whose 2010 census population exceeded 75,000.¹ Renters in smaller counties fall under Tennessee’s general property statutes in Title 66, Chapter 7, which still block lockouts and utility shutoffs and require written notice before eviction but do not include URLTA’s detailed deposit, entry, and retaliation rules.

Which Counties URLTA Covers

URLTA applies in counties over 75,000 population by the 2010 federal census.¹ That takes in Davidson (Nashville), Shelby (Memphis), Knox (Knoxville), Hamilton (Chattanooga), Rutherford, Williamson, Sumner, Montgomery, Washington, and roughly a dozen others. If you rent in one of these counties, the full set of protections described below applies to your tenancy.

If your county is below the threshold, you still cannot be locked out or have utilities shut off to force you out, and your landlord must give written notice before eviction — 14 days for unpaid rent, 30 days for other lease violations, and as few as three days for dangerous or threatening behavior.² The deposit-handling, entry-notice, and anti-retaliation rules below, however, are URLTA-only.

Security Deposits

Tennessee sets no cap on the amount a landlord can charge as a security deposit. One to two months’ rent is common in practice, but the law does not limit the number. What the law regulates strictly is how that money is held and returned.

Every security deposit must go into a dedicated account at a bank or regulated financial institution, kept separate from the landlord’s personal or business funds.³ The account does not have to bear interest. Deductions are allowed only for unpaid rent, damages beyond normal wear and tear, or other lease violations, and any withholding requires an itemized list.

The line between wear and tear and damage is where most disputes start. Faded paint, minor floor scuffs, and small nail holes from picture hanging are ordinary aging. Punched walls, broken fixtures, stained or burned carpet, and pet damage are deductible. Photograph the unit at move-in and move-out; that record is often the difference in a dispute.

The 60-Day Return Trap

After you move out, the landlord must send notice of any refund due to your last known or reasonably determinable address. If you do not respond within 60 days of that notification, the landlord can legally keep the entire remaining deposit. The landlord also has 30 days after you vacate to discover and document any damage, or seven days after a new tenant moves in, whichever comes first.³ Give your landlord a forwarding address in writing when you leave. It is the single most important step for protecting your refund.

Rent, Grace Period, and Late Fees

Tennessee has no rent control. The landlord sets the rent amount and due date in the lease, and both parties are bound to those terms. But late fees are capped.

You get an automatic five-day grace period from the day rent is due. If the last day of that grace period falls on a Sunday or a legal holiday, the grace period extends through the next business day. After that, a landlord may charge a late fee only if the lease specifically authorizes one, and the fee cannot exceed 10% of the overdue rent.⁴ A late fee charged without a lease provision, or above 10%, violates state law.

If rent remains unpaid past the grace period, the landlord must give 14 days’ written notice before starting an eviction for nonpayment.² Pay in full within those 14 days and the landlord cannot proceed with eviction based on that late payment alone.

Repairs and Habitability

Landlords must keep rental properties in compliance with applicable housing, building, and health codes.⁵ That covers working plumbing, heating, and electrical systems along with structural soundness. Landlord and tenant can agree in writing to shift certain repair or maintenance tasks to the tenant, but only in good faith and not as a way around the landlord’s core habitability duty.

Tenants owe their own obligations: keeping the unit reasonably clean, disposing of garbage properly, and using fixtures and appliances without abuse. Damage caused by a tenant or their guests is the tenant’s responsibility, and a landlord can recover punitive damages for willful destruction.

When a landlord fails to maintain the property or otherwise breaks the lease, you can recover actual damages, seek a court order requiring the repair, and collect reasonable attorney’s fees.⁶ This tool works best with a paper trail: written notice of the problem, reasonable time for the landlord to fix it, and records of every communication.

Mold

Tennessee has no dedicated mold statute, and no federal agency sets enforceable indoor mold limits.⁷ That does not put landlords off the hook. Significant mold growth caused by a structural problem the landlord failed to fix — a leaking roof, a broken pipe, poor ventilation — can render a unit uninhabitable under the general maintenance duty. Report it in writing immediately and document it with photos.

Bed Bugs

Responsibility for bed bugs generally follows whoever caused the infestation, but in a multi-unit building that is usually impossible to prove. Because the landlord owes habitable housing and infestations typically make a unit uninhabitable, the landlord generally pays for professional extermination unless the tenant demonstrably introduced the bugs. Report a suspected infestation within 24 to 48 hours and cooperate with treatment. Delayed reporting can shift liability to you.

Landlord Entry and Notice

In a URLTA county, the landlord must give at least 24 hours’ notice before entering for non-emergency reasons such as repairs, inspections, or showings to prospective tenants or buyers. This right of access has to be spelled out in the lease for the notice framework to apply.⁸ Entry should occur at reasonable hours unless you agree to another time.

Emergencies are the exception. A landlord can enter without notice when there is a fire, flooding, a gas leak, or another situation threatening the property or someone’s safety. Repeated unauthorized entry for non-emergency reasons is a lease violation, and you can bring a legal complaint over it.

Landlord Disclosures

Before or at the start of the tenancy, the landlord must provide written disclosure of the name and address of the property manager and the property owner, or an authorized agent for accepting legal notices.⁹ That tells you who is legally responsible for the property and where to send formal notices or demands.

Ending the Lease

The method depends on the lease type. Either party can terminate a month-to-month tenancy by giving the other at least 30 days’ written notice before the next rent due date.¹⁰ A fixed-term lease runs to its expiration date. Leaving early creates liability for the remaining rent unless the lease has an early termination clause or the landlord agrees to release you.

Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Stalking

Victims of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking can terminate a lease early. Deliver written notice to the landlord stating you are a victim and requesting release, together with either a valid order of protection issued after a hearing or documentation of a related criminal charge. The release date is agreed by both parties but must fall within 30 days of the notice. If the underlying order of protection is later dismissed in a way that undermines the basis for termination, your early-release rights may be revoked.

Military Service Members

Federal law overrides Tennessee’s early termination rules for active-duty service members. Under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, a service member with orders for a permanent change of station or a deployment of 90 days or more can terminate a residential lease by delivering written notice and a copy of the orders to the landlord.¹¹ For a lease with monthly rent, termination takes effect 30 days after the next rent due date following delivery. The landlord cannot charge early termination fees, and any rent paid for the period after the effective termination date must be refunded within 30 days. Protections extend to a service member’s spouse or dependent if the service member dies during military service.

How Evictions Work

Tennessee prohibits self-help eviction. Changing the locks, cutting utilities, or removing a tenant’s belongings without a court order is illegal. Eviction runs through General Sessions Court.

Notice requirements depend on the reason:

If the tenant does not cure the violation or move out within the notice period, the landlord files an eviction action in General Sessions Court. Either side can appear without a lawyer. If the court rules for the landlord, the tenant has 10 days to appeal to Circuit Court.¹² Without an appeal, the landlord obtains a writ of possession and law enforcement carries out the physical removal.

Retaliation

A landlord cannot raise the rent, cut services, or threaten eviction because you complained about a security deposit violation or used any remedy available under URLTA.¹³ Courts look at timing and circumstances to decide whether a landlord’s stated reason is genuine or a pretext.

Retaliation is not a blanket shield. A tenant who has not paid rent or is violating the lease can still be evicted for those reasons regardless of any prior complaints. When a court finds retaliation, the tenant can recover damages including moving costs and attorney’s fees, and the court may allow the tenant to remain in the unit.

Fair Housing and Assistance Animals

Every rental in Tennessee, regardless of county size, is subject to the federal Fair Housing Act, which bars discrimination based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, and disability.¹⁴ Ads limiting rentals to “no kids,” a specific religion, or English speakers violate the law, and discriminatory ad targeting on digital platforms is treated the same way.

Disability protections split into two duties. A reasonable accommodation is a change to a rule or policy, such as waiving a no-pets rule for an assistance animal, and the landlord generally absorbs the cost unless it creates an undue burden. A reasonable modification is a physical change to the property, such as installing a grab bar, and the tenant typically pays; the landlord must allow it but can require restoration when the lease ends, where reasonable.¹⁵

Assistance animals — both trained service animals and emotional support animals — must be allowed even under a no-pets policy. A landlord may ask for documentation from a healthcare professional confirming the disability and the need for the animal but cannot require registration certificates or documentation bought from online registries.¹⁶ Pet deposits and pet rent cannot be charged for an assistance animal.

Lead-Based Paint Disclosure

For rental properties built before 1978, federal law requires the landlord to disclose any known information about lead-based paint or lead hazards before the tenant signs the lease. The landlord must also provide the EPA pamphlet “Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home” and include a lead warning statement in the lease.¹⁷ Any available records and reports on lead paint testing must be shared.

The rule does not require testing or removal, only disclosure of what the landlord knows. The penalty for failing to disclose is significant. Tenants who were not informed can sue for treble damages, and the EPA can bring civil penalty actions. Signed copies of all lead disclosures must be kept for at least three years after the lease begins.¹⁷

1
West’s Tennessee Code Annotated. Tennessee Code 66-28-102 – Application
2
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 66-7-109 – Notice of Termination by Landlord
3
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 66-28-301 – Security Deposits
4
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 66-28-201 – Terms and Conditions
5
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 66-28-304 – Maintenance by Landlord
6
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 66-28-501 – Noncompliance With Rental Agreement by Landlord
7
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture and Your Home
8
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 66-28-403 – Access
9
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 66-28-302 – Address of Landlord or Agent for Service of Process
10
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 66-28-512 – Termination of Periodic Tenancy
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3955 – Termination of Residential or Motor Vehicle Leases
12
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 27-5-108 – Appeal From General Sessions Court
13
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 66-28-514 – Retaliatory Conduct Prohibited
14
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Housing Discrimination Under the Fair Housing Act
15
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Joint Statement on Reasonable Modifications Under the Fair Housing Act
16
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Fact Sheet on HUD’s Assistance Animals Notice
17
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Rule Fact Sheet