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Mississippi landlord-tenant law.

Updated August 2026. No statewide rent control statute, and no Mississippi city or county currently has a rent control ordinance in effect.

Deposit limit

No statutory cap on the amount; the deposit is held for the tenant and has priority over any claim by the landlord's creditors (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-21).

Deposit return

Landlord must return the balance no later than 45 days after the tenancy ends, possession is delivered, and the tenant demands it, with any amount withheld itemized in a written notice (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-21). Bad faith withholding adds statutory damages up to $200 on top of actual damages.

Notice to pay

For nonpayment of rent, the landlord must give 3 days written notice to pay or vacate before the tenancy can terminate (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-13(5)); the actual eviction is filed as a dedicated residential proceeding in justice court under Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-31 through 89-8-43.

Landlord entry

Mississippi's Residential Landlord and Tenant Act sets no statutory notice period for landlord entry; entry rights and any notice requirement are governed by the lease itself, with a true emergency needing no notice. A 24 hour notice is a common practical norm but is not required by state statute.

Security deposits

Deposit limit. No statutory cap on the amount; the deposit is held for the tenant and has priority over any claim by the landlord's creditors (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-21).

Getting it back. Landlord must return the balance no later than 45 days after the tenancy ends, possession is delivered, and the tenant demands it, with any amount withheld itemized in a written notice (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-21). Bad faith withholding adds statutory damages up to $200 on top of actual damages.

Late fees and rent

No statutory cap on the amount and no mandatory grace period; late fees are enforceable only if the rental agreement provides for them, and state law simply defines rent to include any agreed late fees (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-7).

Ending a tenancy

Nonpayment of rent. For nonpayment of rent, the landlord must give 3 days written notice to pay or vacate before the tenancy can terminate (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-13(5)); the actual eviction is filed as a dedicated residential proceeding in justice court under Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-31 through 89-8-43.

Month-to-month termination. Either party may end a month-to-month tenancy with at least 30 days written notice before the termination date (a week-to-week tenancy needs only 7 days); no notice is required at all if the other party has committed a substantial violation affecting health or safety (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-19).

Landlord entry

Mississippi's Residential Landlord and Tenant Act sets no statutory notice period for landlord entry; entry rights and any notice requirement are governed by the lease itself, with a true emergency needing no notice. A 24 hour notice is a common practical norm but is not required by state statute.

Required disclosures

  • Federal lead based paint disclosure and EPA pamphlet for units built before 1978 (42 U.S.C. 4852d, 24 CFR Part 35)
  • Mississippi Chapter 89-8 sets no additional standalone written pre-lease disclosure duty beyond the federal lead paint rule; landlord and agent identity only comes up as a notice-service definition, not a required disclosure (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-7)

Lease clauses that do not hold up

  • A rental agreement cannot let either party confess judgment on a claim arising from the agreement (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-5)
  • A rental agreement cannot exculpate or limit the landlord's liability for the landlord's own willful misconduct (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-5)
  • Neither party may waive the rights, duties, or remedies the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act grants, except where the chapter itself allows it (Miss. Code Ann. 89-8-5)

Notes for landlords

Mississippi's landlord-tenant statute is comparatively thin: no statutory deposit cap, no statutory late fee cap, and no statutory entry notice period, so the lease itself has to carry most of these terms explicitly. A 2022 overhaul (SB 2461) moved residential evictions into a dedicated justice court procedure at 89-8-31 through 89-8-43, separate from the older Chapter 7 process that now applies only to nonresidential tenancies.

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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