Virginia tenant screening laws set specific rules for application fees, adverse action notices, and how landlords use consumer reports. Here is what the FCRA and Virginia Code require before you approve or deny an applicant.
Virginia's Fair Housing Law protects more groups than federal law does — including source of funds, sexual orientation, gender identity, and military status. Here is how Virginia's rules differ, who enforces them, and the mistakes that trip up otherwise well-meaning owners.
Virginia law requires specific written disclosures before and during a tenancy, from mold and drywall to military noise zones, but not everything landlords assume is required actually is. Here is what the Code of Virginia and federal law actually mandate, disclosure by disclosure.
Virginia's 2026 General Assembly rewrote big pieces of the landlord-tenant act: the eviction notice tripled to 14 days, tenants can't be forced into a single payment portal, payment fees are capped at actual cost, and general maintenance fees are banned — with more changes arriving July 2027. Here's every change, who it applies to, and what to do about each.
Starting July 1, 2026, Virginia landlords — regardless of portfolio size — must accept rent and security deposit payments by check and money order, not just through an online portal, and must keep at least one fee-free payment option. Here's what HB 1005 and SB 313 require and how to check your rent-collection workflow for gaps.
Starting July 1, 2026, Virginia landlords can no longer charge tenants a payment fee that exceeds the landlord's actual out-of-pocket cost. Marked-up "convenience fees" are now illegal, and at least one fee-free payment option is still required.
Starting July 1, 2026, Virginia landlords can no longer bill tenants a general maintenance or repair fee unless the repair was caused by the tenant's own violation of the VRLTA. Here's what the new Virginia maintenance fee law means for your lease, your invoices, and your security-deposit deductions.
Virginia's pay-or-quit notice period grew from 5 to 14 days on July 1, 2026, and a companion law (SB 294) will require nonpayment notices to itemize every dollar owed and paid — not just a lump sum — starting July 1, 2027. Landlords who can't document the balance risk a dismissed unlawful detainer case.
As of July 1, 2026, Virginia's pay-or-quit notice for unpaid rent jumped from 5 days to 14 days under Va. Code § 55.1-1245(F) — and an old 5-day form can now get a case thrown out. Here's the full, current Virginia eviction timeline for landlords, from notice to writ of eviction.
A rental application fee is a nonrefundable, per-applicant charge that covers tenant screening — typically $25 to $75 nationwide. Virginia law caps it at $50 per applicant, exclusive of documented third-party screening costs, and treats it very differently from a refundable application deposit.
