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Arkansas landlord-tenant law.

Updated August 2026. No statewide rent control; state law bars local governments from enacting any ordinance that would control the rent charged on private residential or commercial property (Ark. Code Ann. § 14-16-601)

Deposit limit

2 months' rent max, however denominated (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-16-304)

Deposit return

Written itemized notice of deductions and any balance due within 60 days after termination of the tenancy; funds go to the landlord if unclaimed 180 days after a diligent mailing to the tenant's last known address (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-16-305)

Notice to pay

If rent is not paid within 5 days of the due date, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement under the Arkansas Residential Landlord-Tenant Act of 2007 (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-17-701(b)). Arkansas separately still has an on-the-books misdemeanor failure-to-vacate statute requiring 10 days' notice before criminal liability attaches to a tenant who willfully holds over after nonpayment (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-16-101); this criminal provision has faced constitutional challenges in recent years, so civil eviction under § 18-17-701 is the standard, reliable path and its exact current enforceability status is genuinely uncertain from statute text alone.

Landlord entry

No statutory advance notice period (hours or days) was found; the statute only provides that a tenant may not unreasonably withhold consent to entry for inspection, repairs, agreed services, or showings (Ark. Code Ann. §§ 18-17-601, 18-17-602), leaving the specific notice period to the lease and general reasonableness.

Security deposits

Deposit limit. 2 months' rent max, however denominated (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-16-304)

Getting it back. Written itemized notice of deductions and any balance due within 60 days after termination of the tenancy; funds go to the landlord if unclaimed 180 days after a diligent mailing to the tenant's last known address (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-16-305)

Late fees and rent

No statutory cap or mandated grace period; a reasonable late fee set forth in a written rental agreement is enforceable and is the standard referenced when a tenant cures a nonpayment notice (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-17-701(b))

Ending a tenancy

Nonpayment of rent. If rent is not paid within 5 days of the due date, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement under the Arkansas Residential Landlord-Tenant Act of 2007 (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-17-701(b)). Arkansas separately still has an on-the-books misdemeanor failure-to-vacate statute requiring 10 days' notice before criminal liability attaches to a tenant who willfully holds over after nonpayment (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-16-101); this criminal provision has faced constitutional challenges in recent years, so civil eviction under § 18-17-701 is the standard, reliable path and its exact current enforceability status is genuinely uncertain from statute text alone.

Month-to-month termination. Not clearly fixed by a specific statute distinct from the 14 day notice for other lease noncompliance (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-17-701(a)); no separately codified no-cause month-to-month termination notice period has been confirmed, so this should be set explicitly in the lease and confirmed with Arkansas counsel rather than assumed.

Landlord entry

No statutory advance notice period (hours or days) was found; the statute only provides that a tenant may not unreasonably withhold consent to entry for inspection, repairs, agreed services, or showings (Ark. Code Ann. §§ 18-17-601, 18-17-602), leaving the specific notice period to the lease and general reasonableness.

Required disclosures

  • Federal lead-based paint disclosure and EPA pamphlet for units built before 1978 (42 U.S.C. § 4852d)
  • No separate Arkansas statute requiring disclosure of the manager's or owner's identity, mold, bed bugs, or a move-in checklist has been confirmed; these remain best practice rather than a confirmed statutory requirement.

Lease clauses that do not hold up

  • Arkansas's landlord-tenant statutes do not contain the broad list of void lease clauses found in states like Alabama or Arizona; general contract law still voids clearly unconscionable terms and confession-of-judgment clauses as against public policy
  • A rental agreement cannot contract around the tenant protections created by the Arkansas Residential Landlord-Tenant Act of 2007, including the 5 day nonpayment cure right (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-17-701)

Notes for landlords

Arkansas was the last state to adopt an implied warranty of habitability, doing so only through the 2007 Act, and it is unusual in still carrying a technically active criminal misdemeanor penalty for a tenant who willfully refuses to vacate after a nonpayment notice, a provision that has faced constitutional challenges. Because several notice details, such as month-to-month termination length and entry notice hours, are not clearly codified, landlords should set them explicitly in the written lease rather than assume a default.

Sources

This guide is general legal information for landlords, not legal advice. Statutes change and local ordinances can add stricter rules on top of state law. Confirm any requirement with the current statute or a licensed attorney in your state before acting on it.

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