Housing & Tenant · Rent Increase Notice

Rent Increase Notice in Tennessee

How many days of advance notice a landlord must give before a rent increase takes effect in Tennessee, how a fixed-term lease is treated, and what to check, cited to the statute.

CitedStatute §66-28-512Source law.justia.com

Notice before a rent increase · Tennessee

30 days, borrowed, and only in the larger counties

Via termination notice

Tennessee has no rent-increase statute. Where the Act applies, the 30 days comes from T.C.A. 66-28-512, and the Act reaches only counties over 75,000 by the 2010 census.

Month-to-month notice30 days

Fixed-term leaseRent fixed until renewal

Rent-amount capNot covered here

Statute§66-28-512

The notice periods in Tennessee

How much warning is required before a higher rent can take effect, and how a fixed lease is treated.

No dedicated rent-increase statute here

Tennessee has no statute that specifically sets a rent-increase notice. On a month-to-month tenancy, a landlord can raise the rent only by giving the same notice used to end or change the tenancy, shown below. During a fixed-term lease the rent is locked.

When	Notice in Tennessee	What it means
Month-to-month tenancy (covered counties only)	30 days	A written notice at least 30 days out, borrowed from T.C.A. 66-28-512, in force only in counties over 75,000 by the 2010 census.
Fixed-term lease	None mid-term	During a fixed-term lease the rent is fixed until renewal. The 30-day figure exists only in covered counties.
Local ordinance	Varies	The county-coverage line governs the whole page: the Act reaches only counties over 75,000 by the 2010 census, and the year is frozen. Tennessee is also reported to bar cities and towns from enacting rent control, so no locality can cap the amount.
If notice is skipped	Not effective	Tennessee stacks three caveats on one number. There is no rent-increase statute, so the figure is borrowed. The statute it is borrowed from reaches only counties above a 2010 population line. And no Tennessee city may cap the amount. So the 30 days is the entire protection, and it does not apply everywhere.
Statute	Tenn. Code Ann. §66-28-512 (in force only in counties within scope of §66-28-102)	The controlling statute for this notice period. Read the full text through the source link below.

Next steps if your rent is going up

Concrete, neutral steps to check a rent increase in Tennessee. This is legal information, not legal advice.

First, check your county
Tennessee is a county question. The Act, including the 30-day figure, binds only in counties over 75,000 by the 2010 census. In a smaller county the lease is the only rule, so confirm where you live.
Do not expect a city cap
Tennessee is reported to bar cities and towns from enacting rent control. So no Nashville or Memphis ordinance can cap the amount, and the absence is statewide and deliberate.
Read your lease if the Act does not reach you
Outside a covered county, the lease sets any notice you are owed. Find the clause that governs changing the rent.
Get local help
A local Tennessee legal aid office can confirm whether your county is covered. 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 the notice that applies to your home.

What Tennessee renters get wrong

Tennessee stacks three caveats on one number. There is no rent-increase statute, so the figure is borrowed from T.C.A. 66-28-512. The statute it is borrowed from only reaches counties above a population line drawn against a census from 2010, so a renter in a county that grew past seventy-five thousand after 2010 is still outside it. And no Tennessee city may cap the amount, so the thirty days is the entire protection and it does not apply everywhere. Printing "Tennessee: 30 days" flat is wrong in at least two directions. Where the Act does reach a renter, the thirty days is the notice for ending or changing a month-to-month tenancy, which a rent increase borrows. Outside a covered county, the lease is the whole of it. Because the section was not read verbatim and coverage depends on where a renter lives, this page is held as cited and opens with the county question rather than a number. There is no cap on the amount anywhere, so the protection, where it exists, is the notice alone.

Common questions

Does the act cover my Tennessee county?

Only if your county had more than 75,000 people by the 2010 federal census under T.C.A. 66-28-102. The year is frozen at 2010, so a county that grew past 75,000 later is still outside the Act, and there the lease governs.

Can Nashville or Memphis cap rent in Tennessee?

No. Tennessee is reported to bar cities and towns from enacting rent control, so no local ordinance can cap the amount. The absence of a cap is statewide and deliberate, so confirm the preemption locally.

Where does the 30 days come from in Tennessee?

From T.C.A. 66-28-512, the periodic tenancy provision, and only in counties the Act covers. Tennessee has no dedicated rent-increase statute, so a rent increase borrows that notice where the Act applies.

What applies outside the covered counties in Tennessee?

The lease. Outside a county over 75,000 by the 2010 census, the Act does not reach you, so there is no statutory rent-increase notice and the lease sets any notice you are owed.

Primary source

→ Tenn. Code Ann. §66-28-512 (in force only in counties within scope of §66-28-102)

Tennessee Code (§ 66-28-512, via Justia mirror) · law.justia.com

Cholilurrohman
The 30-day figure is borrowed from T.C.A. 66-28-512, which only binds in counties over 75,000 by the 2010 census under T.C.A. 66-28-102. In smaller counties the Act does not apply. Tennessee is also reported to bar local rent control. The section was not read verbatim, so it is held as Cited. Editorial standards →

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.

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