Renter rights by state

Georgia renter rights: the basics for first-time renters

Last reviewed: October 2026 · First Apartment Kit

Georgia's landlord-tenant law is in Title 44, Chapter 7 of the Official Code of Georgia. The 2024 Safe at Home Act added a deposit cap, a habitability duty, and a right to pay before eviction. These are the basics for first-time renters, drawn from the state's Landlord-Tenant Handbook and the law itself.

Quick facts

Quick facts are simplified. Read the sections below for exceptions, and check your city or county too.

Security deposits

• Cap: for leases entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2024, a landlord can't demand more than two months' rent as a deposit.
• Escrow: many larger landlords and management companies must keep deposits in a separate escrow account and tell you where it is held.
• Return: within 30 days after the lease ends or you leave (whichever is later). If the landlord keeps money for damage, they must send a written list of the damage, the estimated cost, and any refund within those 30 days.
• Tip: give the landlord your forwarding address. A refund mailed to your old unit and returned can end up being kept.

Rent increases and late fees

Georgia has no statewide limit on how much rent can go up. On a tenancy at will (month-to-month), the landlord must give 60 days' notice to change the rent. State law sets no fixed late-fee cap, so read the late-fee clause before you sign.

Ending a month-to-month tenancy

When a lease ends and you keep renting without a new lease, it usually becomes a tenancy at will. To end it, you must give 30 days' notice and the landlord must give 60 days' notice. Put notices in writing and keep a copy.

When the landlord can come in

Georgia has no statute setting a notice period for landlord entry, so your lease controls. The state handbook says a landlord who enters at unreasonable times may be breaching the lease, and that if the lease doesn't give the landlord a right to enter, you can refuse except in an emergency. Agree on access rules in writing.

Repairs and living conditions

The landlord must keep the premises in repair, and under the Safe at Home Act, rentals must be fit for human habitation when the lease starts and for its whole term.

• Ask for repairs in writing and keep copies and photos.
• You can contact local code enforcement. It's illegal for a landlord to evict you or retaliate because you asked for a repair or called code enforcement.
• Don't stop paying rent on your own. Georgia has no general statute letting tenants withhold rent or repair and deduct. Talk to legal aid before taking that step.

Eviction basics

Landlords can't remove you or block your access without going through the magistrate court dispossessory process. Self-help evictions are illegal even if you broke the lease, and you can stay with utilities on until the court decides. For unpaid rent, late fees, utilities, or other charges, the landlord must first give a written notice allowing three business days to pay or leave. The notice is posted in a sealed envelope on your door and sent any other way your lease provides. If you get court papers, file an answer by the deadline on them.

Retaliation and discrimination

Retaliating against a tenant for requesting repairs or contacting code enforcement is illegal. Housing discrimination is illegal under the federal Fair Housing Act and the Georgia Fair Housing Act.

City and county rules

Cities and counties have their own housing codes and inspectors, so check with your local code enforcement office.

Move-in checklist for Georgia renters

• ☐ Get a written lease and read all of it before signing
• ☐ Get a receipt for the deposit and any move-in money
• ☐ Photograph every room, dated, before you unpack
• ☐ Fill out (or write your own) move-in condition list and keep a copy
• ☐ Note the rent due date, grace period, and late fee
• ☐ Write down how to request repairs, and do it in writing
• ☐ Save the landlord's legal name and address for notices
• ☐ Put your notice deadline for moving out in your calendar

Still apartment hunting? Our list of questions to ask a landlord before signing a lease covers deposits, fees, repairs, and move-out rules you will want answered in writing.

Where to get help in Georgia

• Georgia Department of Community Affairs — Georgia Landlord-Tenant Handbook — the state's plain-language renter handbook.
• Find free legal aid near you — the federal Legal Services Corporation's directory of local legal aid offices.
• File a housing discrimination complaint with HUD — the federal fair housing agency.

Official sources

These are the official state law and government pages we checked for every fact on this page. The law itself controls if anything here differs.

• Georgia Department of Community Affairs, Georgia Landlord-Tenant Handbook (PDF)
• Georgia General Assembly, HB 404 (2024) Safe at Home Act — O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-13, 44-7-30.1, 44-7-50 (status page)
• Office of the Governor, HB 404 signed text (PDF)

Not legal advice; laws change and cities may add rules. Check the official sources below or a local legal aid office. This page is a plain-language summary written by First Apartment Kit, not the law itself. Last reviewed: October 2026.

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