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Clause pillar · late-fee-caps

Late-fee schedule

How much your landlord can charge when rent is late, and what kind of grace period (if any) state law requires.

Why this clause matters

Many states require late fees to be a reasonable estimate of the landlord's actual damages. Excessive flat fees or daily-compounding fees can be unenforceable in court — even though they appear in millions of leases.

The dominant doctrine

Reasonable-relationship-to-actual-damages doctrine (e.g., Cal. Civ. Code §1671) plus state-specific caps and grace periods.

What the clause looks like in a lease

  • Late fee of $100 charged on the second of the month.
  • Late fee = 10% of monthly rent.
  • $25/day until rent is paid.

50-state enforceability

What each state says

Verified states light up on the map; states still pending verification stay grey — never guessed. The detail table below links each state to its full clause-by-clause view.

Alaska: Pending verificationAlabama: Pending verificationArkansas: Pending verificationArizona: Pending verificationCalifornia: State-restrictedColorado: Pending verificationConnecticut: Pending verificationDistrict of Columbia: Pending verificationDelaware: Pending verificationFlorida: Pending verificationGeorgia: Pending verificationHawaii: Pending verificationIowa: Pending verificationIdaho: Pending verificationIllinois: Pending verificationIndiana: Pending verificationKansas: Pending verificationKentucky: Pending verificationLouisiana: Pending verificationMassachusetts: State-restrictedMaryland: Pending verificationMaine: Pending verificationMichigan: Pending verificationMinnesota: Pending verificationMissouri: Pending verificationMississippi: Pending verificationMontana: Pending verificationNorth Carolina: Pending verificationNorth Dakota: Pending verificationNebraska: Pending verificationNew Hampshire: Pending verificationNew Jersey — coverage pendingNew Mexico: Pending verificationNevada: Pending verificationNew York: State-restrictedOhio: Pending verificationOklahoma: Pending verificationOregon: Pending verificationPennsylvania: Pending verificationRhode Island: Pending verificationSouth Carolina: Pending verificationSouth Dakota: Pending verificationTennessee: Pending verificationTexas: State-restrictedUtah: Pending verificationVirginia: Pending verificationVermont: Pending verificationWashington: Pending verificationWisconsin: Pending verificationWest Virginia: Pending verificationWyoming: Pending verificationAKALARAZCACOFLGAHIIAIDILINKSKYLAMEMIMNMOMSMTNCNDNENMNVNYOHOKORPASCSDTNTXUTVAWAWIWVWY
  • Restricted
  • Void
  • Conditional
  • Enforceable
  • Pending
  • CaliforniaState-restricted

    Cal. Civ. Code §1671 · source verified 2026-05-08

  • MassachusettsState-restricted

    Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 186, §15B(1)(c) · source verified 2026-05-08

  • New YorkState-restricted

    N.Y. Real Prop. Law §238-a(2) · source verified 2026-05-08

  • TexasState-restricted

    Tex. Prop. Code §92.019 · source verified 2026-05-08

  • AlabamaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • AlaskaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • ArizonaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • ArkansasPending verification

    Verification pending

  • ColoradoPending verification

    Verification pending

  • ConnecticutPending verification

    Verification pending

  • DelawarePending verification

    Verification pending

  • District of ColumbiaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • FloridaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • GeorgiaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • HawaiiPending verification

    Verification pending

  • IdahoPending verification

    Verification pending

  • IllinoisPending verification

    Verification pending

  • IndianaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • IowaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • KansasPending verification

    Verification pending

  • KentuckyPending verification

    Verification pending

  • LouisianaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • MainePending verification

    Verification pending

  • MarylandPending verification

    Verification pending

  • MichiganPending verification

    Verification pending

  • MinnesotaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • MississippiPending verification

    Verification pending

  • MissouriPending verification

    Verification pending

  • MontanaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • NebraskaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • NevadaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • New HampshirePending verification

    Verification pending

  • New MexicoPending verification

    Verification pending

  • North CarolinaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • North DakotaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • OhioPending verification

    Verification pending

  • OklahomaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • OregonPending verification

    Verification pending

  • PennsylvaniaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • Rhode IslandPending verification

    Verification pending

  • South CarolinaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • South DakotaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • TennesseePending verification

    Verification pending

  • UtahPending verification

    Verification pending

  • VermontPending verification

    Verification pending

  • VirginiaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • WashingtonPending verification

    Verification pending

  • West VirginiaPending verification

    Verification pending

  • WisconsinPending verification

    Verification pending

  • WyomingPending verification

    Verification pending

Not legal advice. This page summarizes the dominant doctrine and per-state rules in plain English. State landlord-tenant law changes annually; verify any rule with the linked primary state-legislature source before acting. For active disputes, consult a licensed real-property or tenant-rights attorney in your state. Read the full disclaimer.