State Guide
Landlord–tenant law in Connecticut
The rules that come up in practice — returning a deposit, charging a late fee, raising the rent — each read against the Connecticut statute and quoted on its own page.
Security deposit return
Full rule →21 days
The 10th shortest of 49 states with a deadline.
Conn. Gen. Stat. 47a-21(d)(2)
Late fee limit
Full rule →Lesser of ($5/day capped at $50) or 5% of the delinquent payment
No fee until rent is 9 days late.
Conn. Gen. Stat. 47a-15a; 47a-4(a)
Rent increase notice
Full rule →45 days
A statute written specifically about rent increases. The 37th shortest of 49.
Conn. Gen. Stat. 47a-23 (as amended 2024)
What is distinctive about Connecticut
- Deposits: 21 days. Reduced from 30 days to 21 by P.A. 23-207. Whichever is later, so a late forwarding address extends it.
- Late fees: capped at lesser of ($5/day capped at $50) or 5% of the delinquent payment. A 9-day grace period is mandatory.
- Rent increases: 45 days under a statute written for the purpose.
The mistake that costs the most here
Charging a late fee above Connecticut’s cap. The clause is void rather than reduced, and the tenant’s signature does not save it — which tends to surface in an eviction hearing, exactly when the lease needs to hold up.
Where these figures come from
Each rule above was read against the section it cites and the statutory wording is quoted on the dedicated page, so you can check it rather than take our word for it. That matters more than it sounds on this subject: when we read all 51 jurisdictions we found several widely-published figures to be wrong, including a Kentucky deposit deadline that does not exist, a South Dakota one reported as 14 days when the statute says 21, and late-fee caps for nine states that actually come from their self-storage statutes.
Local ordinances can add requirements the state does not, and statutes move — Washington, Connecticut, Nevada, Rhode Island and Maryland have all changed in the last three years. Each figure carries the date we read it.
States with the same deposit deadline
Common questions about Connecticut
- How long does a Connecticut landlord have to return a security deposit?
- 21 days under Conn. Gen. Stat. 47a-21(d)(2).
- What is the maximum late fee in Connecticut?
- lesser of ($5/day capped at $50) or 5% of the delinquent payment, under Conn. Gen. Stat. 47a-15a; 47a-4(a). A fee above the cap is unenforceable even if the lease says otherwise.
- How much notice before a rent increase in Connecticut?
- 45 days under Conn. Gen. Stat. 47a-23 (as amended 2024).
- Does Connecticut have rent control?
- No statewide frequency limit is verified for Connecticut. Only California, Oregon and Washington cap the amount of an increase statewide; some cities do so locally.
Let the software know the Connecticut rules
Pacific Rentals Pro checks a lease’s late fee against the Connecticut cap, counts the deposit deadline from the move-out date, and works out the latest day to serve a rent increase. Same verified data as this page.
Start free →Connecticut rules last read against their cited sources on November 6, 2026. General information, not legal advice — verify the current text before relying on it, and check your city and county, which can impose more than the state does.