𝗩𝗶𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗮'𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗱-𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗹𝗮𝘄 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝟭 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗕 𝟭𝟬𝟬𝟱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗕 𝟯𝟭𝟯
𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗩𝗶𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀:
• 𝗥𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: Landlords must accept rent by check or money order and cannot charge processing fees beyond actual third-party costs.
• 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗧𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: The notice period before a landlord can move to terminate a lease for unpaid rent has increased from 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴.
• 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝘀: Landlords can 𝙣𝙤 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙜𝙚 𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙤𝙧 𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙨𝙩𝙨 unless the tenant caused the damage through a lease violation.
The repair fee provision is the most consequential. For years, tenant-paid maintenance clauses — covering repair deductibles, small repairs, and general wear — have been standard in Northern Virginia leases. Those clauses no longer stand under the new law.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲: repricing at renewal, tighter lease language around what qualifies as tenant-caused damage, and a fresh look at the rent-vs-sell calculation for smaller landlords across Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William Counties.
𝗥𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆. 𝗕𝘂𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘄. 𝗜 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂.
Michele Hudnall
Real Estate of NVA | Equity-First Real Estate Strategist
RealEstateofNVA.com | 703.867.3436
