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North Dakota landlord-tenant law.

Updated August 2026. State law is reported to bar cities and counties from adopting rent control or rent stabilization ordinances (NDCC 47-16-02.1 per secondary sources; not independently verified against the .gov code text).

Deposit limit

Generally capped at one month's rent; up to two months' rent may be charged if the tenant has a prior felony conviction or a judgment against them for violating an earlier rental agreement. A separate pet deposit is allowed up to the greater of $2,500 or two months' rent (NDCC 47-16-07.1).

Deposit return

Landlord must give an itemized accounting and any refund within 30 days of the lease ending. Deposits must sit in a federally insured interest-bearing account for the tenant's benefit, though interest is not owed if the tenancy ran less than 9 months. Wrongful withholding exposes the landlord to treble (triple) damages (NDCC 47-16-07.1).

Notice to pay

3-day written notice to pay rent or vacate before the landlord can pursue eviction (NDCC 47-32-01).

Landlord entry

Landlord must notify the tenant and get consent to a specific time for entry, which cannot be unreasonably withheld, except when notice is impractical; there is no fixed statutory number of hours or days. Consent is presumed if the tenant does not object once given notice of the intended time. Entry is limited to reasonable times for repairs, services, or showings, and no notice or consent is required in an emergency (NDCC 47-16-07.3).

Security deposits

Deposit limit. Generally capped at one month's rent; up to two months' rent may be charged if the tenant has a prior felony conviction or a judgment against them for violating an earlier rental agreement. A separate pet deposit is allowed up to the greater of $2,500 or two months' rent (NDCC 47-16-07.1).

Getting it back. Landlord must give an itemized accounting and any refund within 30 days of the lease ending. Deposits must sit in a federally insured interest-bearing account for the tenant's benefit, though interest is not owed if the tenancy ran less than 9 months. Wrongful withholding exposes the landlord to treble (triple) damages (NDCC 47-16-07.1).

Late fees and rent

No statutory cap: a 2025 bill (SB 2236) that would have capped late fees at 8 percent of rent and stopped fee compounding failed to pass, so North Dakota still has no codified limit. Fees must be stated in the written lease, and a court can strike a fee as unenforceable if it is grossly disproportionate to actual cost under general unconscionability doctrine.

Ending a tenancy

Nonpayment of rent. 3-day written notice to pay rent or vacate before the landlord can pursue eviction (NDCC 47-32-01).

Month-to-month termination. At least one full calendar month's written notice by either party, unless the lease sets a longer period; rent runs through the termination date. If the notice is a landlord-initiated rent increase or term change under NDCC 47-16-07, the tenant may instead terminate on 25 days' notice (NDCC 47-16-15, 47-16-07).

Landlord entry

Landlord must notify the tenant and get consent to a specific time for entry, which cannot be unreasonably withheld, except when notice is impractical; there is no fixed statutory number of hours or days. Consent is presumed if the tenant does not object once given notice of the intended time. Entry is limited to reasonable times for repairs, services, or showings, and no notice or consent is required in an emergency (NDCC 47-16-07.3).

Required disclosures

  • A written statement describing the condition of the unit at move-in, signed by both landlord and tenant
  • Federal lead-based paint disclosure and EPA pamphlet for housing built before 1978 (42 U.S.C. 4852d)

Lease clauses that do not hold up

  • Lease terms waiving the tenant's statutory security-deposit protections, such as the interest-bearing account and itemized-accounting requirements, are void (NDCC 47-16-07.1)
  • Self-help eviction (changing locks, cutting utilities, or removing a tenant's belongings to force a move-out) is not a lawful substitute for the judicial unlawful detainer process required to remove a tenant (NDCC 47-32)
  • Grossly one-sided or unconscionable lease terms, such as uncapped compounding late fees, can be struck down by a court as unenforceable

Notes for landlords

North Dakota has few state-mandated lease disclosures compared to most states, but its entry rule is stricter in practice than many states' flat 24-hour notice: the landlord needs the tenant's actual consent to a specific entry time, not just advance notice. With no late-fee cap in statute after SB 2236 died in 2025, lease language is what controls day to day, subject to a court's unconscionability review.

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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