Housing & Tenant · Landlord Entry
Landlord Entry Notice in West Virginia
How much warning a landlord must give before entering your home in West Virginia, the hours entry is allowed, and what to do if they walk in unannounced, cited to the statute.
The rules and your rights in West Virginia
The notice, the allowed hours, the reasons a landlord may enter, and what to do about an unlawful entry.
West Virginia has no statute that sets how much notice a landlord must give before entering. That means your lease controls, and a city or county ordinance may add its own rule. Read your lease first, then check for a local ordinance where you live.
| Advance notice | No notice period set by state statute |
| Allowed entry hours | Set by your lease. The statute fixes no hours. |
| Reasons a landlord may enter | West Virginia has no statutory list of entry reasons for an ordinary tenancy. The one entry provision, W. Va. Code 37-6-6, covers taking possession after abandonment where rent is in arrears, which is the landlord remedy rather than a rule about routine entry. |
| Emergency entry | Because there is no statutory notice requirement, there is no statutory emergency clause either. Your lease governs entry, and in a true emergency a landlord will act to protect the property. |
| Local ordinance | The statute sets no local rule, so the lease is the main source of any notice. A city ordinance could add one, so check your local code where you live. |
| Statute | No state entry statute |
If the landlord enters unlawfully
West Virginia provides no statutory entry remedy for a routine improper entry, so a renter route runs through the lease and the right to quiet enjoyment. Document improper entries and ask a local legal aid office which claim fits.
What you can do right now
Concrete, neutral steps if a landlord keeps entering your West Virginia home without proper notice. This is legal information, not legal advice.
- Read your lease access clause first
West Virginia sets no notice period, so the lease is where any rule lives. Find the entry clause and see whether it requires notice, sets hours, or lists reasons the landlord can enter.
- Negotiate a notice clause before you sign
Since no statute gives you a notice period, the time to get one is before signing. Ask for a written clause requiring, for example, 24 hours notice except in emergencies, because that clause is what you can enforce.
- Know the abandonment provision is not about routine entry
The one entry statute, W. Va. Code 37-6-6, is about a landlord taking possession after you abandon the unit with rent unpaid. It is a landlord remedy, not a warning rule, so it does not give you a notice right for ordinary visits.
- Get local help
A local West Virginia legal aid office can tell you whether an improper entry is a lease breach or a quiet enjoyment claim. Search for legal aid in your area.
This is general legal information, not legal advice. Read your own lease and check for a local ordinance, since either can change what applies to your home.
What West Virginia renters get wrong
West Virginia is consistent across the housing topics and the consistency is absence. It requires no notice before an eviction is filed, so the first document a renter sees can be a court date, and it requires no notice before a landlord walks in. The only entry provision in article 37-6 is W. Va. Code 37-6-6, which is about taking possession after a tenant abandons the property with rent in arrears. That is the landlord problem, not the renter protection, so it does nothing for someone facing unannounced visits. A West Virginia renter who wants a rule has to negotiate it into the lease, because the code will not supply one. That is the honest answer, and it is far more useful than the common shortcut of writing "West Virginia expects reasonable notice," which sounds like law and is not. Because a clean negative means reading articles 37-6 and 37-6A in full, this page is held as cited, but the takeaway does not change: the lease is the rule.
Common questions
Does West Virginia require notice before entry?
No. Article 37-6 of the West Virginia Code sets no entry-notice period. Any notice you are owed comes from your lease, so the access clause, not the state code, is where the rule lives.
What should I ask for in my lease in West Virginia?
Because the lease is the only rule, aim for a clause requiring advance notice, for example 24 hours, at reasonable hours, with the reasons a landlord may enter listed. The time to negotiate it is before you sign.
Can my landlord enter if I am behind on rent in West Virginia?
The one entry statute, W. Va. Code 37-6-6, lets a landlord take possession after you abandon the unit with rent in arrears and a posted notice goes unanswered. It is about abandonment, not a general right to enter an occupied home over unpaid rent.
What can I do about repeated entries in West Virginia?
With no entry statute, your route is the lease and your right to quiet enjoyment. Keep a dated log of the entries, object in writing, and ask a local legal aid office whether a pattern is a lease breach you can act on.
Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.