Free tool
Rent increase notice calculator
Work backwards from the date you want the new rent to start, which is how the question actually arises. You get the last day to serve notice, and whether your state limits how often rent may rise.
Pick a state and the date you want the new rent to begin.
What the notice has to say
Requirements vary, but a notice carrying all of this is hard to attack anywhere: the current rent and the new rent as figures, the date the new rent takes effect, the unit address and the tenant’s name, and the date the notice was given.
Keep proof of service. Where a rent increase is disputed, the argument is almost never about what the notice said — it is about whether the tenant got it, and when.
Notice is not a cap
A notice period controls when rent can rise, not how much. Only California, Oregon and Washington cap the amount statewide, plus cities with rent control. Everywhere else a landlord who gives proper notice may raise rent by any amount.
Common questions
- Should I count forwards or backwards?
- Backwards. The notice period runs before the increase takes effect, not before you send it — counting from the wrong end is the commonest way a valid increase becomes invalid. This tool counts back from the date you want the new rent to begin.
- Can the tenant keep paying the old rent during the notice period?
- Yes, and they are paying correctly. Rent stays at the old figure for the whole period. Treating the difference as arrears is a mistake that turns into a losing eviction case.
- Does every state have a rent increase law?
- No — only twenty do. In the other twenty-nine the period comes from the month-to-month termination rule, because changing the rent means ending the existing terms. The number is operative either way, and the tool says which kind it is.
- Does the notice period limit how much rent can go up?
- No. Notice controls when, not how much. Only California, Oregon and Washington cap the amount statewide, plus cities with rent control or stabilisation.
Have the software do this every time
Pacific Rentals Pro applies these rules to every lease and every move-out automatically, using the same verified state data as this page.
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