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Idaho landlord-tenant law.

Updated August 2026. Idaho Code Section 55-306, enacted in 2025, expressly bars any local government from enacting or enforcing an ordinance that regulates rent, fees, or deposits on private residential property.

Deposit limit

No statutory cap. The landlord and tenant set the deposit amount by agreement; Idaho law only bars deducting for normal wear and tear (Idaho Code Section 6-321(1)). The Idaho Attorney General's manual confirms Idaho does not restrict the amount of rent or deposits landlords can charge.

Deposit return

Within 21 days if the lease sets no other deadline, and in any case within 30 days after the tenant surrenders the premises. Any amount withheld must come with a signed statement itemizing the amounts retained, the reason, and the expenditures (Idaho Code Section 6-321(2)).

Notice to pay

3 days' written notice stating the amount of rent due; the tenant may cure by paying in full within those 3 days. The notice must also warn a residential tenant that if judgment is entered against them, they get 72 hours to remove belongings before the landlord may dispose of them (Idaho Code Section 6-303(2)).

Landlord entry

Idaho has no statute setting a specific notice period for routine landlord entry. Case law and Attorney General guidance require only that entry be for a stated reason, at a reasonable time, and reasonable in manner, except in an emergency; the parties' lease controls the specifics. Treat this as genuinely unregulated by statute, not a settled numeric standard.

Security deposits

Deposit limit. No statutory cap. The landlord and tenant set the deposit amount by agreement; Idaho law only bars deducting for normal wear and tear (Idaho Code Section 6-321(1)). The Idaho Attorney General's manual confirms Idaho does not restrict the amount of rent or deposits landlords can charge.

Getting it back. Within 21 days if the lease sets no other deadline, and in any case within 30 days after the tenant surrenders the premises. Any amount withheld must come with a signed statement itemizing the amounts retained, the reason, and the expenditures (Idaho Code Section 6-321(2)).

Late fees and rent

Must be reasonable, and a fee, fine, assessment, interest, or other cost cannot exceed the amount agreed upon in the rental agreement. If a written lease doesn't already include a given fee, the landlord must give 30 days' written notice before adding or changing it (oral leases are exempt from that notice step). No numeric cap or mandatory grace period exists. Applies to agreements entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2023 (Idaho Code Section 55-305, renumbered in 2025 from its original citation at Section 55-314).

Ending a tenancy

Nonpayment of rent. 3 days' written notice stating the amount of rent due; the tenant may cure by paying in full within those 3 days. The notice must also warn a residential tenant that if judgment is entered against them, they get 72 hours to remove belongings before the landlord may dispose of them (Idaho Code Section 6-303(2)).

Month-to-month termination. Either the landlord or the tenant may terminate a month-to-month (at-will) tenancy with at least one month's written notice; the termination date stated in the notice must be no less than one month out (Idaho Code Section 55-208).

Landlord entry

Idaho has no statute setting a specific notice period for routine landlord entry. Case law and Attorney General guidance require only that entry be for a stated reason, at a reasonable time, and reasonable in manner, except in an emergency; the parties' lease controls the specifics. Treat this as genuinely unregulated by statute, not a settled numeric standard.

Required disclosures

  • Federal lead-based paint disclosure for housing built before 1978 (42 U.S.C. Section 4852d)
  • No general Idaho statute requires additional written disclosures for an ordinary residential lease. Manufactured home park tenancies are the exception: Idaho Code Section 55-2007 requires written disclosure of park rules, the park owner's or agent's name and address, and the terms under which a deposit may be withheld

Lease clauses that do not hold up

  • Lease terms that misrepresent or conflict with a tenant's rights under Idaho landlord-tenant law, or with the tenant's right to appear and defend in court (Idaho Attorney General guidance; Idaho Consumer Protection Act, Idaho Code Section 48-603)
  • Clauses limiting the landlord's liability in a way that conflicts with duties Idaho law imposes on the landlord
  • Security deposit clauses letting the landlord retain funds for damage the tenant or the tenant's guests did not cause, or for ordinary wear and tear (Idaho Code Section 6-321(1))
  • Self-help clauses letting the landlord seize a tenant's property for nonpayment of rent instead of using the unlawful detainer process (Idaho Code Section 6-303, Section 6-310)

Notes for landlords

Idaho's landlord-tenant law is thin and landlord-friendly: most numeric protections (late fees, entry notice) exist only as a reasonableness backstop or are left to the lease entirely, and there is no security deposit cap. In 2025 the legislature recodified Title 55 Chapter 3 (the old Section 55-314 late-fee statute is now Section 55-305) and added the new statewide rent-control preemption at Section 55-306. Eviction moves quickly once the 3-day notice expires: the court must set trial within 12 days of the complaint, with only 5 days' notice to the tenant.

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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