State Guide
Landlord–tenant law in Kentucky
The rules that come up in practice — returning a deposit, charging a late fee, raising the rent — each read against the Kentucky statute and quoted on its own page.
Security deposit return
Full rule →No statutory deadline
Kentucky is one of only two states that sets none.
KRS 383.580
Late fee limit
Full rule →No statutory cap
No mandatory grace period — a fee may be charged as soon as rent is late, if the lease provides for it.
KRS 383.565 (URLTA, local-option)
Rent increase notice
Full rule →30 days
From the month-to-month termination rule, not a rent-increase statute. The 4th shortest of 49.
KRS 383.695
What is distinctive about Kentucky
- Deposits: no deadline at all, which makes Kentucky unusual — the obligation is to account for the deposit, not to do it by a date.
- Late fees: uncapped by statute, so the limit is whatever a court would call reasonable. There is no mandatory grace period.
- Rent increases: 30 days, borrowed from the termination rule because Kentucky has no rent-increase statute.
The mistake that costs the most here
Because Kentucky sets no deposit deadline, landlords sometimes treat the deposit as settled indefinitely. The obligation to account for it does not expire with the clock, and a tenant who asks later is still entitled to an answer.
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 Kentucky
- How long does a Kentucky landlord have to return a security deposit?
- Kentucky sets no statutory deadline — KRS 383.580 imposes none.
- What is the maximum late fee in Kentucky?
- Kentucky sets no statutory cap. A reasonableness standard applies instead, so a fee has to bear some relation to what the late payment actually costs the landlord.
- How much notice before a rent increase in Kentucky?
- 30 days under KRS 383.695, which is the month-to-month termination rule — Kentucky has no statute specifically about rent increases.
- Does Kentucky have rent control?
- No statewide frequency limit is verified for Kentucky. Only California, Oregon and Washington cap the amount of an increase statewide; some cities do so locally.
Let the software know the Kentucky rules
Pacific Rentals Pro checks a lease’s late fee against the Kentucky 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 →Kentucky 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.