Georgia (GA) law guide
Georgia landlord-tenant law is governed by **O.C.G.A. Title 44, Chapter 7**, a framework that has traditionally favored efficient dispute resolution for landlords while preserving basic tenant protections. The landmark **Safe at Home Act**, effective July 1, 2024, marked the state's most significant tenant-side reform in decades, adding an express warranty of habitability, capping security deposits, and requiring a written cure period before any nonpayment eviction. Georgia still prohibits all local rent regulation by statute, making it one of the more landlord-favorable states in the Southeast.
Security deposit limit
2 months' rent (leases signed or renewed on/after July 1, 2024)
Deposit return deadline
30 days after tenant vacates (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-34)
Statewide rent control
None, prohibited by O.C.G.A. § 44-7-19
Nonpayment eviction notice
3 business days pay-or-quit (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50)
Georgia rental market snapshot
Population
~11 million (2024 estimate)
Renter households
~37% of households rent
Median rent
~$1,850 (2BR)
Largest rental markets
Atlanta, Augusta, Savannah, Macon, Columbus
Atlanta's competitive rental market, where two-bedroom units regularly exceed $2,000 per month, makes Georgia's newly enacted two-month security deposit cap particularly meaningful for cost-burdened renters, since landlords had previously been free to demand much larger upfront sums.
Georgia set its first statutory security deposit cap through the Safe at Home Act (House Bill 404), effective July 1, 2024. For any residential lease entered into or renewed on or after that date, a landlord may not collect a total of refundable deposits exceeding the equivalent of two months' rent (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30.1). This cap covers all refundable amounts, including pet deposits, so landlords cannot separately charge a large pet deposit as a workaround. Leases predating July 1, 2024, are not retroactively capped, meaning older tenants may still be holding deposits taken under the prior uncapped rules.
Once the tenancy ends, landlords must return the remaining deposit along with an itemized written statement of any deductions within 30 days of the tenant vacating (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-34). Landlords who own more than 10 rental units, or who use a property manager, are additionally required to hold the deposit in a separate escrow account at a state or federally regulated financial institution, or secure it with a surety bond. If a landlord intentionally withholds a deposit in bad faith, the tenant may recover up to three times the wrongfully withheld amount plus reasonable attorney's fees, giving teeth to the return deadline.
Georgia is one of roughly two dozen states that explicitly preempt local rent regulation. O.C.G.A. § 44-7-19 prohibits any county or municipality from enacting, maintaining, or enforcing any ordinance or resolution that would regulate the amount of rent charged for private residential or commercial property. There is no statewide rent stabilization law either, so landlords may raise rents by any amount at any time, subject only to the timing rules tied to the lease type. Tenants considering a move to Georgia should factor in this absence of price constraints when budgeting for renewals.
On a month-to-month tenancy (called a tenancy-at-will in Georgia), any change to the rental agreement, including a rent increase, requires the landlord to give the tenant at least 60 days' written notice before the change takes effect. This rule is set out in O.C.G.A. § 44-7-7, which governs termination and modification of tenancies-at-will. During a fixed-term lease the rent cannot be raised mid-term unless the lease expressly allows for it. When the fixed-term expires and the parties move to a month-to-month arrangement, the 60-day notice rule applies to any proposed increase.
Georgia calls its eviction procedure a dispossessory action, governed by O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50 through § 44-7-59. Before July 1, 2024, there was no statutory cure period for nonpayment evictions. The Safe at Home Act changed this: for leases signed or renewed on or after that date, a landlord must first serve the tenant a written 3-business-day pay-or-quit notice, giving the tenant time to pay all outstanding rent, late fees, utility charges, and other contractual amounts in full. If the tenant pays in full within those three business days, the eviction may not proceed. Only after the notice period expires without full payment can the landlord file a dispossessory affidavit with the local magistrate court.
Once filed, the court issues a summons and the tenant has seven days from service to file a written answer or respond verbally. If the tenant contests the eviction, a hearing is scheduled; if no answer is filed, the landlord may receive a default judgment. After a judgment for the landlord, the court issues a Writ of Possession no sooner than seven days later, giving the tenant a final opportunity to vacate. Self-help eviction, which includes changing locks, removing doors or windows, shutting off utilities, or removing a tenant's belongings without a court order, is strictly prohibited under Georgia law and exposes landlords to civil liability.
The Safe at Home Act created Georgia's first express warranty of habitability, requiring landlords to maintain residential premises in a condition fit for human habitation for the duration of the tenancy. Prior to 2024, Georgia courts recognized only limited implied duties. The Act specifies that landlords must keep the property structurally sound, ensure functional plumbing, electrical, and heating systems, and, notably, provide adequate cooling, making Georgia one of the few states to enumerate air conditioning as a habitability requirement. Tenants may report habitability violations to local code enforcement without facing retaliatory eviction.
Georgia law protects tenants from landlord retaliation under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-24. If a landlord takes adverse action, such as filing for eviction, raising rent, or reducing services, within three months of a tenant's good-faith complaint about health or safety conditions, there is a rebuttable presumption of retaliation. Tenants also have the right to a written lease upon request, and landlords must disclose the name and address of the property owner or an authorized agent in writing before or at the time rent is first collected. Georgia law does not currently require landlords to pay interest on security deposits, and there is no statewide just-cause eviction requirement outside of certain federally subsidized housing.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Governing statute: Official Code of Georgia Annotated (O.C.G.A.) Title 44, Chapter 7. Laws change; confirm the current statute or consult an attorney before acting. Last reviewed 2026-06-04.
Georgia FAQ
For leases signed or renewed on or after July 1, 2024, the maximum is two months' rent, covering all refundable deposits combined. Leases predating that effective date were not retroactively capped.
Georgia landlords must return the deposit along with a written itemized list of any deductions within 30 days after the tenant vacates the property. Missing that deadline forfeits the right to make deductions.
No. Georgia state law (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-19) explicitly prohibits cities and counties from enacting any form of rent regulation, and there is no statewide rent stabilization law. Landlords may raise rent by any amount with proper notice.
On a month-to-month (tenancy-at-will) arrangement, a landlord must give at least 60 days' written notice before any rent increase or other change to the rental agreement takes effect under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-7. During a fixed-term lease, rent cannot be raised unless the lease specifically allows it.
For leases entered or renewed on or after July 1, 2024, the landlord must first serve a written notice giving the tenant 3 business days to pay all amounts owed or vacate before a dispossessory action can be filed (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50).
Under the Safe at Home Act (effective July 1, 2024), landlords must maintain the unit in a habitable condition including working plumbing, electricity, heating, and cooling. Tenants may report violations to local code enforcement, and landlords who retaliate against a tenant who makes a good-faith complaint within three months face a presumption of illegal retaliation under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-24.
Revun builds Georgia notice periods, deposit timelines, and compliant workflows into leasing, payments, and communications, so the rules above are handled inside the platform instead of tracked by hand.
Leasing, payments, maintenance, communications, and accounting, with compliance built in.
