Georgia Landlord-Tenant Laws: A 2026 Guide for Landlords and Tenants

Georgia's rental relationships are governed primarily by Title 44, Chapter 7 of the Official Code of Georgia (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-1 to -119), the state's general landlord-tenant statute. Effective July 1, 2024, the Safe at Home Act (H.B. 404) added several significant tenant protections — an express warranty of habitability, a security deposit cap, and a new pre-eviction notice-and-cure period — for residential leases entered into or renewed on or after that date. This guide summarizes the core rules on security deposits, rent, landlord and tenant duties, disclosures, retaliation, and eviction, with links to the underlying Code of Georgia sections for each point.

This guide is not comprehensive, is not legal advice, and does not warrant the accuracy of third-party information. Georgia statutes change, and county and city ordinances may impose additional requirements on rental housing. If you are dealing with a landlord-tenant dispute, consult a qualified Georgia attorney.

Where Georgia's Rules Come From

Georgia's core landlord-tenant statutes and official resources are:

• O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-1 to -119 — Title 44, Chapter 7 of the Official Code of Georgia, the state's general landlord and tenant law, covering leases, security deposits, and dispossessory (eviction) proceedings.

• H.B. 404, the Safe at Home Act — the Georgia General Assembly's official bill page for the 2024 law that added the habitability warranty, the security deposit cap, and the nonpayment notice-and-cure period, effective July 1, 2024.

• Georgia General Assembly – Code of Georgia (public access) — the official, current version of the Code of Georgia, made available to the public by the Georgia Code Revision Commission through LexisNexis.

Georgia Security Deposit Rules

Whenever a security deposit is held on behalf of a tenant, it must be placed in an escrow account established solely for that purpose, held in trust for the tenant, at a bank or lending institution regulated by Georgia or the federal government, and the tenant must be told in writing where that account is located (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-31). This escrow requirement, along with the itemized move-in and move-out damage list procedure described below, applies to landlords who own ten or more rental units — counting units owned by a spouse or children — or who use a property management agent (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-36).

Before accepting a security deposit, a landlord subject to the list requirement must give the tenant a comprehensive list of any existing damage to the unit, which the tenant has the right to inspect and either sign or specifically dispute in writing (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-33(a)). Within three business days after the lease ends and the tenant vacates (or within a reasonable time if the tenant leaves without notice), the landlord must inspect the unit again and compile a list of any damage forming the basis for a deduction, and the tenant has the right to inspect the unit and that list within five business days (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-33(b)).

The landlord must return the full security deposit within 30 days after regaining possession of the unit. No amount may be withheld for ordinary wear and tear. A landlord may withhold amounts for unpaid rent or late fees, abandonment of the premises, unpaid utility charges, contracted repair or cleaning costs, unpaid pet fees, or actual damages caused by the tenant's breach, but must attempt to mitigate those damages and must provide the tenant a written statement itemizing the reasons for any amount withheld (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-34(a)). The statement and any refund are properly delivered by first-class mail to the tenant's last known address; if returned undelivered and the landlord cannot locate the tenant after a reasonable effort, the funds become the landlord's property 90 days after mailing (§ 44-7-34(a)).

A landlord who fails to follow the escrow, list, or accounting requirements forfeits the right to withhold any part of the deposit or to sue the tenant for damage to the premises, and a landlord who fails to return a deposit that is owed is liable for three times the amount wrongfully withheld plus reasonable attorney's fees, unless the landlord shows the withholding was an unintentional, bona fide error despite reasonably designed procedures (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-35).

Effective July 1, 2024: A Security Deposit Cap

For residential leases entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2024, the Safe at Home Act added a hard cap: a landlord may not demand or receive a security deposit that exceeds the equivalent of two months' rent, regardless of what the payment is labeled, as long as it is refundable (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30.1).

Rent, Fees, and Rental Agreement Terms

Georgia has no rent control law and no statute setting when rent is due, so the due date, any grace period, and the accepted payment method are governed by the lease itself. There is likewise no Georgia statute limiting late fees or application fees, or requiring a grace period before a late fee applies.

If a tenant's check is dishonored for insufficient funds, the payee may, after sending a statutory 10-day written demand by certified mail or statutory overnight delivery, charge a service fee of $30 or 5 percent of the check amount, whichever is greater, plus any bank fees, in addition to pursuing double damages (capped at $500) under Georgia's general bad-check statute (O.C.G.A. § 13-6-15).

When Can a Landlord Enter the Rental Unit?

Georgia's landlord-tenant statute does not set a required notice period, or list specific circumstances, for a landlord to enter an occupied rental unit; entry rights are instead governed by whatever the lease provides. Because the statute is silent on this point, landlords and tenants should spell out specific entry and notice terms in the lease itself to avoid disputes.

Landlord and Tenant Duties Under Georgia Law

Under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-13(a), a landlord must keep the premises in repair and is liable for all substantial improvements placed on the premises with the landlord's consent. Effective July 1, 2024, the Safe at Home Act added subsection (b): every residential lease, rental agreement, or similar arrangement, whether written or oral, is now deemed to include an express warranty that the premises is fit for human habitation, a duty that neither landlord nor tenant may waive by agreement (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-13(b), 44-7-2(b)(1)).

Separately, a landlord may not knowingly and willfully suspend a tenant's utilities — defined, as of July 1, 2024, to include cooling in addition to heat, light, and water service — until after a dispossessory proceeding against that tenant is finally decided; violating this duty is punishable by a fine of up to $500 (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-14.1).

Required Landlord Disclosures in Georgia

At or before the start of a tenancy, whoever signs the lease on the landlord's behalf must disclose in writing the name and address of the owner of record (or a person authorized to act for the owner for service of process and receiving notices) and the name and address of the person authorized to manage the premises, and must update the tenant in writing, or by a posted notice, within 30 days of any change (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-3(a)). A person who signs a lease on the owner's behalf without making this disclosure becomes the owner's agent for service of process, notices, and performing the landlord's duties under the Act (§ 44-7-3(b)).

Federal law separately requires a landlord renting housing built before 1978 to disclose known lead-based paint hazards and provide tenants an EPA-approved information pamphlet before the lease is signed (42 U.S.C. § 4852d). If a child under six is found to have lead poisoning while living in a dwelling with lead hazards, the Georgia Division of Public Health may require the owner to reduce those hazards (O.C.G.A. § 31-41-14).

Renters' Rights and Protection From Retaliation

A residential tenant establishes a prima facie case of retaliation by showing that the tenant, in good faith, exercised a right or remedy granted by contract or law, gave the landlord a notice to repair, complained to a government agency or utility about a code violation, or organized or joined a tenant group addressing habitability concerns — and that the landlord, within three months afterward, filed a dispossessory action, cut off the tenant's use of the premises, reduced services, raised the rent, terminated the lease, or otherwise materially interfered with the tenant's rights (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-24(a)-(c)).

A landlord is not liable for retaliation for a rent increase or service reduction made under a lease escalation clause or a building-wide pattern, or for a dispossessory action based on the tenant's own rent delinquency, property damage, threats, lease violations, or holding over (§ 44-7-24(d)). If a court finds retaliation occurred, the dispossessory action is dismissed and the tenant may recover one month's rent plus $500 in civil penalties, court costs, attorney's fees for willful or malicious conduct, and declaratory relief (§ 44-7-24(e)).

Georgia Eviction Laws

A Georgia eviction is called a dispossessory proceeding. It applies whenever a tenant holds over past the end of a lease term, fails to pay rent when due, or is otherwise a tenant at will or at sufferance whose landlord wants possession back (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50(a)). For a holdover or other ground, the landlord (personally or through an agent or attorney) demands possession; if the tenant refuses or fails to deliver possession, the landlord may make a sworn affidavit before a judge, clerk, magistrate, or notary public to begin the case (§ 44-7-50(a)).

Outside the nonpayment context, a tenancy at will — created when a tenant occupies and pays rent without a current written lease — can only be terminated with 60 days' notice from the landlord or 30 days' notice from the tenant (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-7). If the tenant remains in possession after that notice period expires, the landlord may proceed with the demand-and-affidavit process described above without giving any additional notice.

For residential leases entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2024, a separate nonpayment track applies: if a tenant fails to pay rent, late fees, utilities, or other charges when due, the landlord must first give the tenant a written notice to vacate or pay everything owed within three business days; the notice must be posted in a sealed envelope conspicuously on the door and delivered by any additional method the lease specifies (such as email, certified mail, or text). Only if the tenant neither pays nor vacates within that three-business-day window may the landlord make the sworn affidavit (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50(c), (d)).

After the affidavit is filed, the court issues a summons that must be personally served on the tenant or, if personal service fails, delivered to another adult resident of the unit or posted on the door and mailed by first-class mail the same day (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-51(a)). The tenant then has seven days from service to answer, orally or in writing, with any legal or equitable defense or counterclaim; if the seventh day falls on a weekend or legal holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day (§ 44-7-51(b)).

In a nonpayment case, a tenant may avoid eviction entirely by tendering to the landlord all rent allegedly owed plus the cost of the dispossessory warrant within seven days of being served the summons; that tender is a complete defense, though a landlord need only accept it from a given tenant once in any 12-month period (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-52(a)).

If the tenant does not answer, the court issues a writ of possession without further hearing and enters a default judgment for rents due (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-53(a)). If the tenant answers, the case proceeds to trial, and the tenant may remain in possession pending the outcome only by paying rent into the court registry as it comes due (§ 44-7-53(b); O.C.G.A. § 44-7-54).

If the trial court rules against the tenant, judgment is entered for rent due, and the court issues a writ of possession effective seven days after judgment. That writ authorizes removal of the tenant and the tenant's belongings, which are then placed on the landlord's property (or other property approved by the officer executing the writ) and treated as abandoned once removed — the landlord owes no further duty to safeguard them (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-55(a), (c)). Either party may appeal within seven days of judgment; a tenant who appeals must pay into the court registry the rent already found due, plus future rent as it accrues, to remain in possession during the appeal (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-56).

Self-help eviction — changing locks, removing a tenant's belongings, or shutting off utilities without going through this court process — is illegal at every stage. A landlord who knowingly and willfully cuts off a tenant's utilities before a dispossessory case is finally decided faces a fine of up to $500 (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-14.1).

Squatters and Adverse Possession in Georgia

Georgia has no separate statutory procedure for removing squatters the way some other states have adopted; a person who is not and never was a tenant is ordinarily addressed through criminal trespass laws or a civil action, rather than the residential dispossessory statute described above.

Separately, Georgia's general law of prescription allows a person in long-term adverse possession of land to eventually acquire title. Possession that is hostile, actual, exclusive, open and notorious, and continuous for 20 years confers good title against everyone except the state and persons under a legal disability (O.C.G.A. § 44-5-163). Possession under written title (color of title) for seven years confers title on the same basis, unless the person knew the title was forged or fraudulent when the possession began (O.C.G.A. § 44-5-164). These are default, common-law-style timeframes; simply overstaying a lease or occupying a home without permission does not, by itself, create any right to remain.

Where to Get Help

• Georgia General Assembly – Code of Georgia (public access)

• Georgia General Assembly – H.B. 404, the Safe at Home Act

• Georgia Department of Community Affairs – Georgia Landlord-Tenant Handbook (PDF)

• Georgia Appleseed – Safe at Home Act Bench Card (PDF)

• Georgia Legal Aid

• State Bar of Georgia – Find a Lawyer

This article is provided by PayRent for general informational purposes and is not legal advice. Georgia laws change, and how they apply can depend on your specific circumstances — always confirm current requirements with the official Code of Georgia or a licensed attorney before acting. Learn more about how PayRent helps landlords track rent, security deposits, and lease compliance at payrent.com.