Rent increases in Arkansas
Source: Ark. Code § 18-17-704 (periodic tenancy); § 14-54-1409 · Checked against the statute
- Notice
- 7–30 days
- Statewide cap
- No statewide cap
- During a lease
- No state statute
- Local rent control
- Banned by state law
When can a rent increase start in Arkansas?
Choose the state and the date the notice is given.
How much notice is required
No Arkansas statute specifically sets rent-increase notice. A periodic tenancy can be ended with 30 days' written notice (month-to-month) or 7 days (week-to-week). The Attorney General says landlords must give at least one rental period's notice before raising rent, for oral and written leases. (Ark. Code § 18-17-704(a)-(b); Arkansas AG, Landlord and Tenant Rights)
No separate rent-increase rule: the periods below are the notice to end a periodic tenancy.
| Applies to | When | Notice |
|---|---|---|
| Month-to-month | — | 30 days |
| Week-to-week | — | 7 days |
- The notice must be in writing.
Example: a notice handed over on November 2, 2026 in Arkansas
Earliest date the new rent can start, with rent due on the 1st, worked out from the Arkansas rule above:
- For a month-to-month tenant of 1 year raising rent 5% or a month-to-month tenant of 3 years raising rent 12%: Wednesday, December 2, 2026
- For a week-to-week tenant raising rent 5%: Monday, November 9, 2026
Raising rent during a lease
No Arkansas statute addresses raising rent during a fixed-term lease.
City and county rent control
Local governments may not enact, maintain or enforce rules controlling the amount charged for rent, rental application fees or rental deposits on private residential or commercial property (expanded by Act 459 of 2025). (Ark. Code § 14-54-1409)
Also good to know
- The Arkansas Residential Landlord-Tenant Act (Ark. Code ch. 18-17) contains no anti-retaliation section, so no statute bars retaliatory rent increases.
- Official Arkansas Code is on a terms-gated vendor site; section text was read from the Justia reprint (2025 Code) and the 2007 enacting bill HB 2540 on arkleg.state.ar.us.
Other Arkansas renting rules in numbers
- Security deposit
- A deposit may not exceed two months' rent. The deposit law applies only to landlords who rent six or more dwellings (small landlords are covered if a paid third party manages the units). Return deadline: 60 days after the tenancy terminates.
- Tenant's notice to move out
- 30 days
- Notice for unpaid rent
- 3 days (notice to vacate, no right to pay)
- How a written notice is delivered (eviction-notice rules)
- The notice must be written (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-60-304). A delivery method for the pre-filing notice was not found in the official sources reviewed.
- Notice for other lease violations
- 14 days (fix it or move out)
- Small claims court limit
- $5,000 — where most deposit and rent disputes are filed.
- Repairs
- Time to repair: 30 days. Repair and deduct: not allowed; withholding rent: not allowed.
- Deposit kept wrongly
- If the landlord fails to comply with the deposit law, the tenant may recover the property and money due, damages equal to two times the amount wrongfully withheld, costs, and reasonable attorney's fees. The landlord owes only costs and the sum erroneously withheld if it shows by a preponderance of the evidence that the noncompliance resulted from an error despite procedures reasonably designed to avoid such errors, or was based on a good faith dispute as to the amount due (§ 18-16-306).
- Lawful reasons to end a lease early
- Unit unlivable or landlord fails to repair
Sources
- Ark. Code § 18-17-704 (Justia reprint, 2025) Retrieved October 15, 2026.
- Ark. Code § 14-54-1409 (Justia reprint, 2025) Retrieved October 15, 2026.
- 2007 HB 2540 (Residential Landlord-Tenant Act of 2007) Retrieved October 15, 2026.
- Arkansas Attorney General, Landlord and Tenant Rights Retrieved October 15, 2026.
Laws change. This page was checked against the sources above on October 15, 2026. It is legal information, not legal advice; for a dispute, contact your state's legal aid. See our methodology.