Housing · Repair and Deduct

Repair and Deduct in Tennessee

How much of the rent a tenant can spend on a repair and subtract in Tennessee, how often, the notice required, and the alternative if the state has no statutory remedy. Cited to the statute.

Confirmedagainst Tenn. Code Ann. §66-28-502 · checked against a mirror of the official code (Cornell LII / Justia)Reviewed by Cholilurrohman · July 2026

Repair and deduct from rent? · Tennessee

Tennessee has no general repair-and-deduct right. Its landlord-tenant act allows an essential-services deduction with no cap, but only in counties over 75,000 people, so most of the state falls back on the lease and common law.

No repair-and-deduct

Cost capNo repair-and-deduct

Notice before suing14 days

StatuteTenn. Code Ann. §66-28-502

How repair and deduct works in Tennessee

The cost cap or the alternative remedy, the notice steps, and the limits that apply.

How it works	What it means
The Act applies only in larger counties	Under §66-28-102 the chapter applies only in counties of more than 75,000 people by the 2010 or a later federal census. A renter in a smaller county has none of these remedies and relies on the lease and common law.
No general repair-and-deduct, only essential services	There is no section that lets a tenant repair a defect and deduct the cost. For a failure of essential services the tenant may procure the service and deduct the actual and reasonable cost, with no dollar cap.
The general remedy runs on 14 days	For other breaches, §66-28-501 requires 14 days’ written notice and yields damages, injunctive relief, and reasonable attorney’s fees, but not a self-help deduction.
The tenant carries the burden	The rights do not arise until the tenant has given written notice and has shown the condition was not caused by the tenant, a family member, or a person on the premises with the tenant’s consent.

Limits and alternatives	What it means
Three essential-service choices, pick one	For an essential-service failure the tenant may deduct the cost of procuring it, recover damages for diminution in fair rental value while still occupying, or procure substitute housing and be excused from rent. Only one may be taken for a breach.
Attorney’s fees are available	Reasonable attorney’s fees are available under the essential-services subsection, and the substitute-housing option also allows recovery of the reasonable value of that housing.
Smaller counties are on their own	Where the Act does not apply, the county falls back on the common law and the lease, and no tenant can opt their county in because the trigger is population, not a local vote.

What you can do right now

Concrete, neutral steps if the landlord will not repair in Tennessee. This is legal information, not legal advice.

Check whether the Act covers your county
Confirm your county has more than 75,000 people. If not, the Act’s remedies do not apply and your rights come from your lease and the common law.
Give written notice and document blame
Send written notice specifying the breach, and keep records showing the condition was not caused by you or your guests, because the burden of that showing is on the tenant.
Use the essential-services route if it fits
For a utility or health-and-safety failure you may procure the service and deduct the cost, or seek damages, or move to substitute housing. Choose one path for the breach.
Talk to a Tennessee attorney or legal aid
A Tennessee legal-aid office or attorney can confirm coverage, value a claim, and advise on attorney’s fees. The resource below can point you to help.

Find help in Tennessee

Repair remedies have strict notice steps, and using the wrong one can put your tenancy at risk. This resource can connect you with a tenant hotline or a licensed attorney.

→ Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services

This is general legal information, not legal advice. Notice steps, caps, and local ordinances can change the answer, so confirm your situation with a tenant resource or a licensed attorney.

What Tennessee tenants get wrong about repair and deduct

Tennessee’s landlord-tenant act does not apply to most of Tennessee’s counties. It switches on at seventy-five thousand people, so the first thing a renter needs is not a number but a census figure, and no renter can opt their county in because the trigger is population rather than a local vote. Where the Act does apply there is still no general repair-and-deduct right. The deduction is confined to essential services, meaning utilities and anything else that materially affects the health and safety of the tenant, there is no ceiling on what may be spent, and the renter may instead move into substitute housing and be excused from rent for the period. Tennessee also flips the usual burden. The right does not arise until the renter has shown the damage was not their own doing, which is a precondition rather than a defense. For anything outside essential services the route is §66-28-501, fourteen days’ written notice and a court remedy with attorney’s fees, not a self-help deduction. This text was read on a 2021 mirror, so confirm the current figures before relying on them.

Common questions

Does the Act even apply in my county?

Only if your county has more than 75,000 people by the 2010 or a later federal census. Smaller counties fall back on the lease and common law, with none of the Act’s remedies.

Can I repair and deduct in Tennessee?

No general repair-and-deduct right exists. You can procure essential services and deduct their actual and reasonable cost with no cap, but ordinary repairs are not covered.

Can I move to a hotel and stop paying rent?

For an essential-service failure you may procure substitute housing and be excused from rent for the period, and recover its reasonable value. It is one of three choices, and you may take only one.

Who has to prove I did not cause the damage?

You do. In Tennessee the remedy does not arise until the tenant has shown the condition was not caused by the tenant or someone on the premises with the tenant’s consent.

Primary source

→ Tenn. Code Ann. §66-28-502

Tennessee Code Annotated §66-28-502 (via Justia mirror) · law.justia.com

Cholilurrohman
Every figure on this page is checked line-by-line against the current statute. 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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