Renter rights by state

Vermont renter rights: the basics for first-time renters

Last reviewed: October 2026 · First Apartment Kit

Vermont's Residential Rental Agreements law is 9 V.S.A. Chapter 137, and eviction (“ejectment”) procedure is in 12 V.S.A. Chapter 169. This guide summarizes those chapters as published by the Vermont General Assembly, along with the Vermont Judiciary's eviction process page.

Quick facts

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

Security deposits

• Cap: state law doesn't set a maximum deposit.
• Deductions: unpaid rent; damage beyond normal wear and tear (or beyond events outside your control); unpaid utility or other charges you were supposed to pay; and the cost of removing things you left behind.
• Return: within 14 days after you move out, if you told the landlord your move-out date (or from when the landlord discovers you've left), the landlord must hand-deliver or mail the deposit and an itemized statement of deductions to your last known address. Seasonal rentals that aren't a primary residence get 60 days.
• Penalty: a landlord who misses the 14-day deadline loses the right to keep any of the deposit. If the failure is willful, the landlord owes double the amount wrongfully withheld, plus attorney's fees and costs. The Judiciary notes you can sue in small claims for up to $10,000.
• Towns can add their own deposit rules, including interest. The Judiciary names Brattleboro and Burlington as examples.

Rent increases and late fees

• Rent increases: take effect on the first day of a rental period at least 60 days after you get actual notice. State law doesn't cap the amount.
• Application fees: landlords can't charge a fee to apply for a residential rental. For background or credit checks, they must accept any unexpired government ID, an ITIN, or a Social Security number, and can't require a Social Security number.
• Late fees: we didn't find a cap in Chapter 137, so check your lease.

Ending a month-to-month tenancy

Tenants: unless your written lease says otherwise, you can end a tenancy with actual notice at least one rental period before the termination date.

Landlords must give written notice stating the reason and the termination date. Minimum notice periods:

• Nonpayment of rent: 14 days.
• Breach of a material lease term: 30 days. Criminal activity, illegal drug activity, or violence threatening other residents: 14 days.
• No cause, no written lease, monthly rent: 60 days if you've lived there two years or less, 90 days if longer. Weekly rent: 21 days.
• No cause, written lease: at least 30 days before the lease ends (60 days if you've been there more than two years). Week-to-week written leases: 7 days.
• Building sold, no written lease: 30 days.

The Judiciary notes that some cities and towns require more notice.

When the landlord can come in

The landlord may enter with your consent, which you can't unreasonably withhold. Without consent, the landlord may enter only between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. with at least 48 hours' notice, to inspect, make repairs or agreed improvements, provide agreed services, or show the unit. Entry without consent or notice is allowed only when the landlord reasonably believes there's imminent danger to someone or to the property.

Repairs and living conditions

Every Vermont lease includes a warranty of habitability, which you can't waive. The landlord must provide a home that is safe, clean, and fit to live in, meets building, housing, and health codes, has heating that can safely provide reasonable heat, and has adequate hot and cold water.

• Serious problems: if the landlord doesn't make repairs within a reasonable time after getting actual notice (from you, a government agency, or a qualified inspector), and the problem materially affects health and safety, you can withhold rent for the period of the problem, get a court order, recover damages and attorney's fees, or end the lease on reasonable notice.
• Minor defects: if the landlord doesn't fix a minor defect within 30 days of notice, you can fix it and deduct the reasonable cost from rent, up to half a month's rent, telling the landlord the cost when you deduct it.

These remedies don't apply if you or your guests caused the problem.

Eviction basics

After the notice's termination date passes, the landlord has 60 days to file in the Civil Division of Superior Court (per the Judiciary). For nonpayment, the tenancy doesn't end if you pay or tender the rent due through the end of the rental period in which you pay.

Court: a sheriff serves the papers. You generally have 21 days to file a written answer. The landlord can ask the court to order rent paid into court while the case is pending. If you attend that hearing before your answer is due, your answer is due 14 days after the hearing. If you lose, a writ of possession issues, and the sheriff can't put the landlord in possession until at least 14 days after serving it on you, or 7 days if the writ is for missing a court-ordered rent payment.

No self-help: a landlord can't shut off utilities (except temporarily for emergency repairs), lock you out, or keep your belongings without going through court.

Retaliation and discrimination

Retaliation: a landlord can't change lease terms or bring or threaten an eviction because you complained to a code agency about a health or safety violation, complained to the landlord about a violation of the law, or joined a tenants' union. If the landlord serves a termination notice (other than for nonpayment) within 90 days after a government agency notifies them of a health or safety violation, retaliation is presumed. You can recover damages and attorney's fees and use retaliation as a defense.

Discrimination: Vermont law (9 V.S.A. § 4503) bans housing discrimination based on race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, religious creed, color, national origin, citizenship, immigration status, disability, having minor children, receiving public assistance, or being a victim of abuse, sexual assault, or stalking. The Vermont Human Rights Commission takes complaints.

City and county rules

Vermont towns can adopt their own security deposit ordinances, and some require longer eviction notice periods. Check your town's ordinances, for example Burlington and Brattleboro, which the Judiciary names.

Move-in checklist for Vermont 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 Vermont

• Vermont Judiciary — Eviction Process — court steps, forms, and the Access and Resource Center (802-879-1185).
• Vermont Human Rights Commission — 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):

• VTLawHelp.org — free legal information and eviction answer forms (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.

• 9 V.S.A. Chapter 137, Residential Rental Agreements (4455 rent increases, 4456 tenant notice, 4456a application fees, 4457–4459 habitability and repairs, 4460 access, 4461 deposits, 4463 illegal evictions, 4465 retaliation, 4467 termination notices)
• 12 V.S.A. Chapter 169, Ejectment (4853a rent into court, 4854 writ of possession)
• 9 V.S.A. § 4503, Unfair housing practices
• Vermont Judiciary — Eviction Process

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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