Rent Increases in Pennsylvania: What Are My Rights?

How much notice you get

1. 1

   A rent increase normally starts when the lease renews. First read your lease. Find the renewal date. Check whether the lease renews by itself unless someone gives notice. Respond with any issues before the renewal date, preferably before accepting any conditions. Your options are to accept the new rent, try for a lower number, or give notice that you are moving out.

   Source:

   1. p. 7, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. A government guide.
2. 2

   While a fixed lease runs, the rent stays what the lease says. The landlord can raise it early only if the lease allows it or you agree to the change in writing.

   Source:

   1. p. 7, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. A government guide.
3. 3

   If you rent month to month, each month is a new term. The landlord can offer a new rent for the next month, and you can say no. Either side can end the rental with a written notice given at least 15 days before the term ends.

   Sources:

   1. 68 P.S. § 250.501(b), Pennsylvania General Assembly. Law.
   2. p. 1, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. A government guide.

Check the new rent

4. 4

   Pennsylvania has no rent control at the state level. No state law limits how much a landlord can raise the rent, and no state law sets a minimum warning time for an increase. The lease you signed and your city's own rules are the protections to check.

   Source:

   1. p. 7, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. A government guide.
5. 5

   Cities can add stronger rules than the state. One example is Philadelphia. There, a landlord needs a good cause to end or not renew a lease of under 1 year. Good cause means a real reason from a set list. Rules differ city by city, so check your city's guide.

   Source:

   1. Phila. Code § 9-804, City of Philadelphia — Fair Housing Commission. A government guide.

If the increase is not allowed

6. 6

   Pennsylvania has no general state law against landlord retaliation (punishment for using your legal rights). One example of retaliation is a sudden rent increase right after a repair complaint or code violation. Specific laws still protect you, and some cities ban retaliation fully. Save the increase notice and the dates of your complaints, and you can file a complaint with the city or county's Fair Housing Commission.

   Source:

   1. p. 10, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. A government guide.
7. 7

   One statewide rule protects organizing. A tenants' organization is a group of renters who act together. Your landlord cannot end your lease or refuse to renew it because you, or someone in your family, joined one.

   A second rule protects you from unfair rent. Your landlord cannot set your rent, or raise it, based on who you are. This covers race, color, religion, ancestry, age 40 and older, sex, pregnancy, where you are from, family status, and disability. Filing a discrimination complaint is also protected: your landlord cannot punish you for it.

   Source:

   1. 68 P.S. § 250.205, Pennsylvania General Assembly. Law.
8. 8

   Another statewide protection covers utilities (water, electric, gas). Sometimes a landlord does not pay the utility bill. You can then pay the utility company yourself to keep service on. You can subtract that payment from your rent. The landlord cannot punish you for doing this. And finally, after you have lived in the home for 5 years or more, your landlord cannot make the security deposit bigger. This applies even when the rent goes up.

   Source:

   1. p. 10, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. A government guide.