Increase in Rent Notice

Rent Increase Form

Landlords never look forward to informing Tenants of rent increases, but to run a business efficiently, sometimes the Landlord raising rent is inevitable. Our Increase in Rent Notice makes the process as EZ as possible by providing a professional and thorough Notice of the upcoming rent increase.

The Notice provides

• A brief statement of why the Landlord is raising rent;
• How much the rent price increase will be; and
• When the rent increase will take place.

In addition, it gives the Tenant the option of accepting the new rent price or vacating the property at the end of the Lease term.

There are two checkboxes at the bottom of the rent increase form where the Tenant can either confirm the rent increase or deny it, meaning the Tenant is opting to move out at the end of the Lease term.

The Increase in Rent Notice also confirms that all other Lease terms will remain unchanged and briefly outlines the procedure for termination of the lease.

Finally, the landlord may edit the language in this Rent Increase Notice as needed.

Create Document

Rent Increase Laws

When increasing the rent, it’s vital for Landlords to ensure that they’re in compliance with all state and local Lease rent control laws, rent stabilization laws, and rent increase limits. Broadly speaking, there are two important things to keep in mind: notice requirements and the amount the rent can be increased.

• Most states have strict regulations about when to notify a Tenant of an upcoming rent increase. Notice periods can change according to how long the Lease is and generally depend on whether the Lease is verbal or written, fixed or periodic.
• Further, many cities, counties and states have regulations about how much rent can be increased each year and standard rent increase guidelines.

When raising rent, it’s vital that Landlords comply with all Notice requirements and all rent increase laws to avoid unlawful rent increases. To help with this, here’s a brief overview of rent control laws and rent increase laws by state.

The following states (33) have no statewide rent control laws AND have state laws banning rent control throughout the state:

The following states (11) have no statewide or local rent control laws, but also do not have state laws prohibiting rent control:

The following states (6 plus Washington, DC) have either statewide or local rent control laws:

California Rent Increase Laws/California State Rent Control

California Rent Control, which is controlled by California’s Tenant Protection Act - often referred to as AB 1482 rent control or CA Assembly Bill 1482 - provides that the maximum rent increase in California is either (1) 5% per year plus the percentage change in the cost of living based on the consumer price index OR (2)10% of the lowest rent increase at any time during the last 12 months, whichever is less. Landlords must comply with this requirement for a legal rent increase in California and to ensure they’re not exceeding the maximum rental increase.

In addition to this max rent increase CA or statewide California rent control law, a number of cities in California have additional rent control laws, including:

• Alameda: Current Alameda Rent Control Laws can be accessed here.
• Berkeley: Review Berkeley rent stabilization guidelines here.
• Beverly Hills: The City of Beverly Hills rent control laws are available here.
• East Palo Alto: East Palo Alto Rent Stabilization Program.
• Hayward: City of Hayward Residential Rent Stabilization Ordinance
• Los Angeles: LA Landlords should review the City of Los Angeles Rent Stabilization Ordinance as well as this overview of Los Angeles County Rent Control/LA County Rent Control: Rent Control Los Angeles. The City of Los Angeles rent control laws are particularly complex, so it’s vital to check local ordinances, and it’s always a good idea to consult a local attorney before a rent increase Los Angeles, especially if you own a rent controlled apartment Los Angeles.
• Los Gatos: A summary of the Los Gatos rent control laws can be accessed here.
• Mountain View: City of Mountain View Rent Stabilization Program.
• Oakland: Oakland Rent Increase 2022 laws can be found here.
• Palm Springs: Palm Springs Rent Control Ordinance.
• Richmond: Review an overview of the Richmond California Rent Program.
• San Francisco: Visit the San Francisco Rent Board for details about local rent control laws.
• San Jose: San Jose Rent Control Laws can be accessed here.
• Santa Monica: Santa Monica Rent Control Laws and Regulations.
• West Hollywood: The City of West Hollywood Rent Stabilization laws can be reviewed here.

Because there are so many regulations, it’s vital to check local and state ordinances before raising rent in California.

Maine Rent Control Laws

Maine does not have state-wide rent increase laws or rent increase caps, but the City of Portland has a Rent Control Ordinance that went into effect on January 1, 2021. The ordinance establishes a base rent for rental units and sets caps on the annual rent increase. This ordinance is applicable to both short-term and long-term rentals.

Maryland Rent Increase Laws

Maryland does not have state-wide rent increase laws, but there are local municipalities and counties with their own rent control laws.

• Takoma Park: only allows rent increases once a year, requires 60 days notification of rental increase, and limits the price increase based on yearly reports, which can be accessed on the Tacoma Rent Stabilization page.
• Montgomery County: limits rent increases to once per year and requires 90 days’ notice for a rent increase.
• Baltimore City: requires 60 days’ notice for rent increases.

New Jersey Rent Control Laws

New Jersey does not have statewide rent control, but there are a number of municipalities that have their own rent increase laws. Over 100 New Jersey cities have some amount of rent control, including Newark, Jersey City, Elizabeth, Lakewood, Clifton City, Trenton, Passaic, Union City, Bayonne, East Orange, New Brunswick and Camden.

With so many rent increase laws throughout the state, New Jersey Landlords should check local regulations before raising rent.

New York Rent Increase Laws/New York Rent Stabilization

New York does not have statewide rent control, but Landlords must provide Tenants with written notice before a New York rent increase of 5% or more. In addition, several municipalities have rent control laws including New York City, Nassau, and Westchester County. NYC rent stabilization laws and NYC rent guidelines are particularly complex.

NYC rent controlled rental units operate under the Maximum Base Rent (MBR) System provided by the New York City rent guidelines board. Landlords can determine whether their apartment falls in the category of New York rent stabilized apartments at the New York State Rent Regulated Building Search. The Housing and Community Renewal Board sets a max base rent every two years and a maximum rent that can be charged. Landlords should know these guidelines before calculating rent increases.

It’s a complex process, and Landlords are required to provide Tenants with a detailed NYC Rent Increase Notice any time there is a rent increase. There are a couple of important NYC rent increase forms that Landlords should use:

• New York City Rent Increase Notice(for Rent Controlled Units): Use this notice to ensure that you’re complying with all NYC rent increase laws, not exceeding the maximum rent increase NYC, and providing Tenants with adequate rent increase notice.
• NYC Rent-Stabilized Rider: Rent stabilization NYC laws require that an NYC Rent-Stabilized Rider must be included in all Lease Agreements and renewals for rent-controlled apartments.

Oregon Rent Control Laws

Oregon has statewide rent control that sets a rental increase cap and tightens rules for evictions. Across the state, Landlords cannot increase rent by more than 7% plus inflation annually.

Landlords can review complete Oregon rent increase laws here: FAQ on Oregon’s Rent Control Laws.

In addition to this statewide requirement, Portland Landlords are required to provide 90 days' written notice of a rent increase. Use this form to comply with that requirement: Portland 90-Day Notice of Rent Increase.

Washington, D.C. Rent Increase Laws

The District of Columbia has rent control laws that are controlled by the Rental Housing Act of 1985. This DC rent increase law allows for one rent increase every 12 months and sets an amount for an allowable rent increase.

DC Landlords can review the complete guidelines here: DC Rent Control Factsheet.

Note: It’s important to check local requirements and always a good idea to consult a local attorney about rent increase laws.

Other Popular Forms

• Free Rental Application: Before signing a Lease Agreement, Landlords should always screen Tenants. Use our Free Rental Application to start the screening process and get the authorizations you need to run all screening reports.
• Residential Lease Agreement: Customize a state-specific Lease Agreement entirely online in minutes. A thorough Lease provides clear guidelines for Lease renewal, rent increases, and Lease termination.
• Lease Renewal Agreement: Use this Renewal Notice to extend the term of your Lease Agreement and make small adjustments to the Lease form. Landlords can use this to do a lease renewal with rent increase.
• Non-Renewal Notice: Landlords can use this Notice to let Tenants know that their Lease Agreement isn’t being renewed at the end of the Lease term.

Need another form? We have over 400 more!

Search Our Library

We Make It EZ to Be a Great Landlord…

By having all the tools and resources Landlords need for the entire Landlord Lifecycle.

• Rental Application & Tenant Screening
• State-specific Lease Agreements
• Over 400 Property Management Forms

Create a Free Account to get access to all of our free forms and documents or Become a Pro Member to get access to our state-specific Lease Agreements, ezSign tool, ezCloudStorage and our complete library of over 400 property management forms.