Utah Rent Increase Notice
Utah has no statute setting a separate notice period for a rent increase. On a month-to-month tenancy a landlord ends the current term on at least 15 days written notice before the end of the month or period and offers the new rent (Utah Code Section 78B-6-802). Utah has no statewide rent cap and local rent control is preempted (Section 57-20-1). Attorney review available.
Introduction
Utah is one of the states with no rent-increase statute at all: nothing in the Utah Code fixes a minimum notice a landlord must give purely to raise the rent. What controls instead is the mechanics of a periodic tenancy. On a month-to-month arrangement a landlord raises the rent by ending the current term and re-offering the unit at the new figure, and Utah Code Section 78B-6-802 lets a party change or end that tenancy on at least 15 calendar days written notice before the end of the month or period. Serve that notice, name the new rent, and the higher amount governs the tenancy that carries forward. A rent increase notice is simply the written document that does this: it identifies the unit, states the current and new monthly rent, and fixes the date the change takes hold. Because 15 days is only a floor, many Utah landlords extend 30 days as a courtesy. On the amount, Utah imposes no statewide cap, and it goes further by preempting local rent control: under Utah Code Section 57-20-1 no county, city, or town may adopt an ordinance or resolution controlling rents on private residential property without express approval of the Legislature. A fixed-term lease is different, since its rent is locked until the term runs out unless the lease itself permits a change. Service follows Utah Code Section 78B-6-805, which allows personal delivery, registered or certified mail or an equivalent, leaving a copy with a person of suitable age and discretion, or posting when no such person can be found. DocDraft assembles your Utah rent increase notice from your facts, with attorney review available before you serve it.
Key Things to Know
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A Utah rent increase notice is the written document a landlord uses to raise the rent on a residential tenancy, naming the current rent, the new monthly rent, and the date the new amount takes hold.
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Utah has no rent-increase-specific statute; a landlord raises the rent on a month-to-month tenancy by ending the current term and re-offering the unit at the new amount.
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A periodic tenancy is changed or ended on at least 15 calendar days written notice before the end of the month or period (Utah Code Section 78B-6-802), and that 15-day floor is the day-count a rent increase runs on.
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Because 15 days is only the statutory minimum, many Utah landlords give 30 days as a practical courtesy before the new rent begins.
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No statewide cap limits the new figure, and Utah also preempts local rent control, so no county, city, or town may control rents on private residential property without express approval of the Legislature (Utah Code Section 57-20-1).
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A fixed-term lease locks the rent until the term ends unless the lease itself allows a change; the 15-day framework reaches only a month-to-month tenant.
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Service is governed by Utah Code Section 78B-6-805: personal delivery, registered or certified mail or an equivalent, leaving a copy with a person of suitable age and discretion, or posting in a conspicuous place when no such person can be found.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Rent Increase Notice in Utah, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Rent Increase Notice guide walks through them.
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Utah Requirements for Rent Increase Notice
Utah has no statute that sets a separate advance-notice period just for a rent increase. A rent increase on a month-to-month tenancy operates through the rule for changing a periodic tenancy rather than a stand-alone rent-increase notice law.
A month-to-month tenancy in Utah is changed or ended on at least 15 calendar days written notice before the end of the month or period (Utah Code Section 78B-6-802). A landlord uses at least that notice to put a new rent in place for the next period; because 15 days is the statutory floor, many landlords give 30 days as a practical courtesy.
Utah has no statewide rent cap, so a Utah landlord may set the new amount, subject to the terms of the rental agreement. No Utah statute limits the amount or percentage of a residential rent increase.
A county, city, or town in Utah may not enact an ordinance or resolution controlling rents or fees on private residential property without express approval of the Legislature (Utah Code Section 57-20-1). No local rent cap applies in Utah unless the Legislature has expressly authorized it.
Rent on a fixed-term lease cannot be raised during the term unless the lease specifically allows it, because the rent is a fixed term of the contract. A rent increase reaches a Utah tenant on a month-to-month tenancy or takes effect when a fixed-term lease renews.
Under Utah Code Section 78B-6-805, a notice may be delivered to the tenant personally, sent by registered or certified mail or an equivalent means, left with a person of suitable age and discretion at the tenant's residence or place of business, or posted in a conspicuous place on the property when no such person can be found. Keeping proof of service helps if the increase is disputed.
The notice should identify the landlord and tenant, give the rental address, state the current monthly rent and the new monthly rent, and state the effective date, confirming it gives at least the 15 days before the end of the period that Utah Code Section 78B-6-802 uses to change a month-to-month tenancy. Because Utah has no statewide cap, the notice need not cite a cap.
A rent increase served with less than the 15 days before the end of the period that Utah Code Section 78B-6-802 requires does not change the rent for the next period. The new amount cannot take effect until a proper notice period runs, and a tenant may continue paying the prior rent until then or give notice and move before the change takes effect.
Frequently Asked Questions
In Utah it is the written document that raises the rent on a residential tenancy, setting out the current rent, the new monthly rent, and the date the new amount starts. Utah has no statute dedicated to rent increases, so on a month-to-month tenancy the landlord makes the change by ending the current term under Utah Code Section 78B-6-802 and re-offering the unit at the higher figure. If the tenant keeps paying, the tenancy simply continues at the new rent; the notice does not by itself end the tenancy. A fixed-term lease is a different matter, since its rent holds until the term expires unless the lease allows a change.
No Utah statute fixes a rent-increase notice period, so the governing day-count comes from the periodic-tenancy rule: at least 15 calendar days written notice before the end of the month or period changes or ends a month-to-month tenancy (Utah Code Section 78B-6-802). A landlord uses at least that much time to put a new rent in place for the following period. Since 15 days is only the floor, giving 30 days is a common courtesy in Utah. Rent set by a fixed-term lease cannot be raised until that term ends unless the lease permits it.
There is no ceiling. Utah sets no statewide rent cap, so the new amount is whatever the rental agreement supports. Utah also blocks local caps: under Utah Code Section 57-20-1 a county, city, or town may not pass an ordinance or resolution controlling rents or fees on private residential property unless the Legislature has expressly approved it. Absent that legislative approval, no municipality in Utah can impose its own rent-increase limit.
Usually not. The rent stated in a fixed-term lease is a contract term, so it holds until the term ends unless the lease specifically allows a mid-term change. An increase reaches a tenant either at renewal of a fixed term or, on a month-to-month tenancy, through the 15-day change framework of Utah Code Section 78B-6-802. A Utah landlord who wants to raise the rent mid-term must point to a lease clause that permits it.
Utah Code Section 78B-6-805 lists the methods: hand the notice to the tenant, send it by registered or certified mail or an equivalent means, leave a copy with a person of suitable age and discretion at the tenant's home or workplace, or post it in a conspicuous spot on the property if no such person can be found. Whichever route a Utah landlord uses, keeping a record of how and when the notice went out helps if the increase is later questioned.
The landlord serves written notice at least 15 calendar days before the end of the month or period, states the new rent, and the higher amount then applies to the period that follows (Utah Code Section 78B-6-802). A Utah tenant who stays and pays after that date has accepted the increase. A tenant who does not want the new rent can give notice and move out before it begins.
It should name the landlord and tenant, give the rental address, list the current monthly rent and the new monthly rent, and state the effective date, showing that it allows at least the 15 days before the end of the period that Utah Code Section 78B-6-802 uses to change a month-to-month tenancy. Utah has no statewide cap to cite, so the key for a Utah landlord is a clear effective date for when the new rent begins.
A rent increase served with less than the 15 days before the end of the period that Utah Code Section 78B-6-802 calls for does not move the rent for the next period. The new amount cannot start until a proper notice period has run, so a Utah tenant may keep paying the old rent until the landlord serves a notice that gives the required time. Clear dates on the notice avoid a fight over when the increase takes effect.