North Dakota renter rights: the basics for first-time renters

Last reviewed: October 2026 · First Apartment Kit

North Dakota's renter rules are in the Century Code, mainly Chapter 47-16 (leases, deposits, repairs, entry) and Chapter 47-32 (eviction). This guide summarizes those chapters as published by the North Dakota Legislative Branch, plus the Attorney General's Tenant Rights page and the North Dakota Courts' eviction guide for tenants.

Quick facts

Security deposit max	1 month's rent (2 months in two narrow cases); pet deposit up to $2,500 or 2 months' rent, whichever is greater
Deposit returned within	30 days after the lease ends and you move out, itemized
Interest on deposit	Yes, if you lived there at least 9 months
Late fee cap	No state cap — the lease must state any late fee
Rent increase notice (month-to-month)	30 days in writing before the end of the month
Month-to-month: notice to end	1 calendar month in writing (either side)
Landlord entry	Reasonable hours, with notice and a set time; emergencies anytime
Eviction notice	3 days' written notice, then a hearing 3 to 15 days after the summons

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

Security deposits

Cap: one month's rent. A landlord may take up to two months' rent from someone with a felony conviction (as an incentive to rent to them) or from someone with a past judgment for breaking a rental agreement.
Pets: a separate pet deposit can't exceed $2,500 or two months' rent, whichever is greater. No pet deposit may be charged for a service or companion animal needed as a disability accommodation.
Held at interest: the landlord must keep the deposit in a federally insured interest-bearing account for your benefit, and pay you the interest when the lease ends, unless you lived there less than 9 months.
Move-in condition statement: the landlord must give you a written statement of the unit's condition, signed by both of you. It's strong evidence of the condition at move-in, so note every existing problem on it.
Deductions: damage from your pet or negligence (yours or your guests'), unpaid rent, and cleaning or repairs needed to return the unit to its move-in condition, minus reasonable wear and tear.
Return: within 30 days after the lease ends and you give back possession, the landlord must deliver or mail an itemization and the amount due to the last address you provided.
Penalty: a landlord who withholds deposit money without reasonable justification is liable for treble (triple) damages.

Rent increases and late fees

North Dakota doesn't cap rent. In a month-to-month lease, the landlord can change the rent or other terms with written notice at least 30 days before the end of the month. If you don't want the new terms, you can end the lease at the end of the month with at least 25 days' notice. During a fixed-term lease, the Attorney General says rent generally can't go up until the lease ends.

There's no state cap on late fees. The AG says the lease must state whether there is a late fee, how much it is, and when it's charged. All tenants on a lease are each responsible for the full rent.

Ending a month-to-month tenancy

Unless you agreed in writing to something longer, either side can end a month-to-month tenancy with at least one calendar month's written notice, given at any time, with rent due through the end date. A lease that requires you to give more than a month's notice from the end of a month must say so and have a spot for you to initial it. Without your initials, one calendar month's notice ending on the last day of a month is enough. Victims of domestic violence can end a lease early with written notice under a specific procedure, owing the rest of that month plus one more month's rent.

When the landlord can come in

A landlord may enter anytime in an emergency, or if the landlord reasonably believes you've abandoned the unit or are substantially violating the lease. Otherwise, entry must be at reasonable hours and in a reasonable manner, for inspections, repairs, services, or showings. Unless it's impractical, the landlord must first notify you and get your consent for a specific time. You can't unreasonably refuse, and if you don't object after notice of a set time, you're presumed to agree. The landlord can't use entry to harass or intimidate you.

Repairs and living conditions

The landlord must follow building and housing codes affecting health and safety, keep the home fit and habitable and common areas clean and safe, maintain electrical, plumbing, heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and supplied appliances, provide trash receptacles and removal, and supply running water, reasonable hot water, and reasonable heat. The landlord gets a reasonable time to fix problems.

If the landlord neglects a needed repair within a reasonable time after your notice, state law lets you repair it and deduct the cost from rent, recover the cost another lawful way, or move out and be released from further rent. Be careful: the Courts' eviction guide warns there's no defense to an eviction for simply not paying rent because of repairs. If you repaired and deducted, you can challenge how much rent the landlord says you owe. Give notice in writing and keep receipts.

Write it all down from day one. The 12-page First Apartment Move-In Kit has a first-week timeline, lease and building facts, a utilities board, room-by-room unpacking, and a first-month money sheet — so your lease facts, notice dates, and move-in notes live in one place. $9.99 on Etsy. Undated.

Get the kit — $9.99 on Etsy

Eviction basics

The landlord must first serve a 3-day written notice of intention to evict for holding over, unpaid rent, or breaking a material lease term. If you don't move, the landlord files in district court, and the summons sets your hearing 3 to 15 days after it's issued. Go to the hearing. According to the Attorney General and the Courts' guide, if the judge rules for the landlord, you may have to leave the same day unless you show hardship, in which case the judge may give you up to five days.

The Attorney General's office says a landlord can't lock you out, cut off your utilities, or take your belongings. Evictions can happen in winter.

Retaliation and discrimination

North Dakota law (N.D.C.C. § 14-02.5-02) bans housing discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, disability, age, familial status, national origin, or status with respect to marriage or public assistance. The North Dakota Department of Labor and Human Rights takes complaints. State law also bars retaliating against a tenant for using the domestic-violence lease termination right. We didn't find a general anti-retaliation statute in Chapter 47-16.

City and county rules

The state rules apply statewide. Where your city has building and housing codes, the landlord's repair duty includes following them.

Move-in checklist for North Dakota 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 North Dakota

ND Attorney General — Tenant Rights — plain-language overview; the AG can't take landlord-tenant complaints.
ND Courts — Eviction informational guide for tenants (PDF) — step-by-step eviction guide and forms.
ND Department of Labor and Human Rights — housing discrimination complaints.
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.

More help

Nonprofit and legal aid resources (not government sources):

Legal Services of North Dakota — free legal help for eligible renters (nonprofit).

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.

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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