Virginia · Repairs and Unsafe Conditions

Landlord Won't Make Repairs in Virginia: What Can I Do?

This is not legal advice. We explain what the law says. We cannot tell you what to do in your situation. For that, talk to a lawyer. Find free legal and rent help in Virginia.

Think before you call an inspector.

You or a neighbor can ask the city to send a code inspector. Be careful: if the home is in very bad shape, the inspector can condemn it (say no one may live there). Then everyone must move out, you too, sometimes on short notice. Think about where you would go before you call.

Virginia law requires your landlord to keep your home fit to live in and in working order. This page explains how to ask for repairs in writing and what you can do if your landlord does not fix the problem. It also covers when you can go to court and a special rule for serious problems that exist when you move in.

What your landlord has to fix

  1. Virginia law requires your landlord to follow local building and housing codes that protect your health and safety. Your landlord must also make all repairs needed to keep your home fit to live in.

    Source:
    1. § 55.1-1220(A), Code of Virginia. Law.
    Tip.

    Take photos of each problem, with the date. Take more if it gets worse.

  2. Your landlord must keep your home's electrical, plumbing, heating, cooling, and other systems in good, safe working order. This includes elevators in apartment buildings that have them.

    Source:
    1. § 55.1-1220(A)(4), Code of Virginia. Law.

Ask in writing

  1. Tell your landlord in writing if something is broken that affects your health or safety. This can include no heat, no hot or cold water, no electricity, no working sewage system, or rodents. Your landlord then has 14 days from your written notice to take reasonable steps to fix it.

    Source:
    1. § 55.1-1244.1(B), Code of Virginia. Law.
    Tip.

    Keep a copy of every letter you give your landlord, and keep your mail receipt. Save the texts and emails you send your landlord, and any replies.

  2. Keep a copy of every message you send your landlord about repairs, and write down the date you sent each one. This can help prove your case later if you go to court.

    Source:
    1. Our editorial rules.

If it is still not fixed

  1. If your landlord does not take reasonable steps to fix it within 14 days of your written notice, you may hire a licensed contractor. For rats or mice, you may instead hire a licensed pest control business. You can get back what you paid, up to $1,500 or one month's rent, whichever is more. For example, with $1,200 rent, the cap is $1,500. Give your landlord a bill and receipts for each cost before taking it off your rent.

    Sources:
    1. Our editorial rules.
    2. § 55.1-1244.1(C), Code of Virginia. Law.
    Your landlord can take you to court.

    If you hold back rent, pay less, or take repair costs out of your rent, your landlord can file an eviction case for unpaid rent. If the judge rules for your landlord, you can owe the rent and court costs and have to move out. Your proof matters. Even a case you win can show up when you apply for a new place. Get legal help first.

    From Legal Aid Justice Center.

  2. Before you ask a court to hold your rent, you must have told your landlord about the problem in writing. A state or local inspector's notice about the problem also counts. Virginia courts usually treat more than 30 days from when your landlord got your notice as too long to wait for a fix.

    Source:
    1. § 55.1-1244(B)(1), Code of Virginia. Law.
    Tip.

    If you can pay for it, a private home inspector can check the problems. Their written report and photos help show the conditions.

  3. If your landlord still does not fix a serious problem, you can file a tenant's assertion (a filing asking for help fixing the problem). You file it in the general district court, Virginia's lower civil court. Covered problems include no light, no electricity, no working sewage system, and rodents. No heat, or no hot or cold water, counts too, unless that bill is yours to pay and you did not pay it.

    Source:
    1. § 55.1-1244(A), Code of Virginia. Law.

  4. If you file a tenant's assertion asking a court to hold your rent, you must keep paying rent. You pay it into the court instead of your landlord. You must pay within 5 days of the date rent is normally due under your lease. If you stop paying rent instead of paying the court, your landlord can take you to court for unpaid rent.

    Sources:
    1. Our editorial rules.
    2. § 55.1-1244(B)(2), Code of Virginia. Law.

  5. If a court agrees your landlord did not fix a real problem, it can use rent paid into the court for repairs. The court can also lower your rent for the time the problem lasted. If your landlord still does not make repairs within a reasonable time, the court can order that rent be paid back to you.

    Source:
    1. § 55.1-1244(D), Code of Virginia. Law.

  6. Your landlord cannot raise your rent, cut services, or try to evict you to punish you. This rule applies if you report a housing code problem that seriously affects health or safety to a government agency. It also applies if you complain to your landlord or sue your landlord for breaking this law. Joining a tenants' group or testifying in court against your landlord counts too. Your landlord can still raise rent to what similar rentals charge. Your landlord can also cut a service if the cut applies equally to all tenants.

    Sources:
    1. Our editorial rules.
    2. § 55.1-1258(A), Code of Virginia. Law.

Moving out

  1. If your home has a serious safety problem when you move in, you can cancel your lease. This includes no heat, no hot or cold water, no electricity, no working sewage system, or mice or rats. You must tell your landlord in writing within 7 days of the date you were supposed to move in.

    Sources:
    1. Our editorial rules.
    2. § 55.1-1234.1(A), Code of Virginia. Law.
    You can still owe rent.

    Even with a good reason to leave, your landlord can sue you for rent. If a court disagrees with you, you can still owe rent after you move out, up to the end of your lease.

    From Virginia Law Help (Virginia Poverty Law Center).

  2. If your home was unsafe when you moved in and you canceled in writing within 7 days, your landlord owes you money back. Unless your landlord disputes that the problem was serious enough, your landlord must repay your deposit and rent within 15 business days. This 15-day clock starts on the day you give notice or move out, whichever is later. If your landlord disputes your cancellation, you can ask a court to decide and return your money. If the court sides with your landlord, you can still owe the rent.

    Sources:
    1. Our editorial rules.
    2. § 55.1-1234.1(A), Code of Virginia. Law.
    Money is not automatic.

    Where this page says a court can award you money, you get it only if you win your case and your landlord pays.

    From Virginia General District Court Manual (Supreme Court of Virginia).

Published by Nazanin, November 11, 2026. Is something on this page wrong or out of date? Tell us.