Georgia landlord-tenant laws: what property managers need to know

Georgia's landlord-tenant framework leans more on the lease itself than states with heavier statutory detail — many notice periods and procedures are whatever the lease specifies, which makes a well-written lease more load-bearing in Georgia than in a state that fills those gaps by default. The two areas where state law does set a hard number are the security deposit cap and the disclosure requirement that came with it.

Security deposits

As of a 2024 change, a Georgia security deposit cannot exceed two months' rent, and it must be returned within 30 days of the tenant vacating. Landlords with ten or more rental units carry an added obligation: providing the tenant a list of existing damage before collecting the deposit, so there is a documented baseline to compare against at move-out rather than a dispute over what condition the unit was already in.

Habitability and repairs

Georgia requires landlords to maintain the structural integrity of the unit, keep plumbing and hot water functional, ensure heating and electrical systems are safe, and comply with applicable building codes. There is no statutory timeline forcing a specific repair window, which puts more weight on documenting when a repair request was made and how long it took to fulfill it — that record is what a tenant's repair-and-deduct claim or habitability defense in an eviction case actually turns on.

Notice for entry and rent increases

Georgia has no statewide statute mandating a specific entry notice period; 24 hours at a reasonable time is the customary practice most leases and courts expect, even without it being codified. The same is true for rent increases — no statutory notice period is set at the state level, so whatever the lease specifies governs, and a lease silent on the question leaves both sides without a clear default. Spelling out both explicitly in the lease avoids relying on custom that a specific judge may or may not treat the same way.

Eviction grounds

Georgia allows eviction for nonpayment of rent, lease violations, the end of a lease term, or an unauthorized/expired month-to-month tenancy. Foreclosure adds a separate wrinkle: a tenant can generally remain through the existing lease term unless the new owner intends to occupy the unit as their primary residence, in which case month-to-month tenants are owed 90 days' notice.

Because so much of Georgia's framework depends on what the lease itself says rather than a statutory default, the lease document is doing more work here than it would in a more heavily regulated state — worth having current legal review on the template rather than reusing one written for a different state. Lease and document tracking keeps the signed lease, any damage disclosure given at move-in, and renewal dates attached to each tenant record, so the documentation a Georgia dispute actually depends on is already organized before you need it.