Kansas Residential Lease Agreement
A Kansas lease agreement is a legal contract allowing tenants to rent property. For this article, we’ll explore residential leases. These agreements establish the road rules for landlords and tenants, ensuring everyone understands what they’re responsible for and what could happen when either party fails to uphold their obligations.
A lease agreement can also empower landlords to include things that aren’t specified in state law but may want to be included in the lease. Examples include:
- Establishing a grace period for late rent payments
- Specifying late fees for late rent payments
- Whether the lease converts to a month-to-month at the end of the term or expires
However, leases don’t supersede the law, and the terms must adhere to Kansas statutes. Keep reading to learn more about what you can and cannot enter into your lease agreements.
Kansas Lease Agreement
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Kansas Landlord-Tenant Law
Landlord-tenant laws are not static across the U.S. For instance, some states have strict rent control laws that limit yearly rent increases. Kansas is not one of those states. Additionally, some places require landlords to store security deposits in interest-bearing accounts, but you won’t need to worry about that as a Kansas landlord.
Required Landlord Disclosures (3)
When a tenant rents a new unit, landlords must inform tenants about the rental property. Federal and state laws require these disclosures.
Disclosures are either included in the lease agreement itself or provided separately at the time of lease signing.
- Lead-Based Paint: Federal law requires landlords to disclose the knowledge of any lead-based paint or lead-based paint hazards in units built prior to 1978.
- Landlord Identification: The property owner must disclose the name and contact information of the landlord or person responsible for managing the property in writing (KS § 58-2551).
- Move-In Checklist: Within 5 days of the start of the tenancy, landlords and tenants must jointly inventory the premises that detail the property’s condition, including appliances (KS § 58-2548).
Security Deposit Regulations
Maximum Security Deposit Amount: Kansas caps security deposits at 1 month’s rent for unfurnished units and 1.5 months for furnished units (KS § 58-2550(a)).
Receipt of Deposit: Kansas landlords are not required to provide a receipt for security deposits or keep them in a separate or interest-bearing account.
Deduction Tracking: Landlords can withhold funds from the security deposit for unpaid rent or to cover the repair of damages caused by the tenant. If the landlord withholds funds, they must provide an itemized receipt of the deductions and provide it to the tenant when they return the remainder of the deposit funds (KS § 58-2550(b)).
Returning a Tenant’s Security Deposit: Landlords must return the security deposit within 30 days of lease termination when not making any repair deductions. They must return it within 14 days after making repair deductions (KS § 58-2550(b)).
Landlord’s Access to Property
Advance Notice: Kansas landlords may enter a tenant’s unit after providing “reasonable notice” and only at “reasonable times” (KS § 58-2557(a)).
Immediate Access: Landlords in Kansas can only enter without tenant permission in cases of extreme hazard involving potential loss of life or severe property damage (KS § 58-2557(b)).
Landlord Harassment: If a landlord harasses the tenant by repeatedly entering the unit without proper notice or permission, the tenant may seek injunctive relief against the landlord and potentially terminate the rental agreement (KS § 58-2571(b)).
Rent Payment Laws
Grace Period: Kansas law does not prescribe a mandatory grace period for late rent payments.
Late Rent Fees: Landlords can charge $20 or 20% of the late rent, whichever is greater (KS §58-816a).
Tenant’s Right to Withhold Rent: If a serious issue affects health and safety, tenants must deliver written notice to the landlord specifying the issue and stating that the lease will terminate in 30 days. If the landlord doesn’t make a good faith effort to cure the violation within 14 days, the tenant may terminate the rental agreement and seek further damages from the landlord (KS § 58-2559).
Breach of Rental Agreement
Missed Rent Payment: Landlords in Kansas may issue a 3-day notice to pay or quit once a tenant misses a rent payment.
Lease Violation: If a tenant violates the lease agreement, the landlord may send a 30-day quit notice. The tenant then has 14 days to cure the violation; if they do not, they must move out by the 30th day after delivery of the notice. For repeated violations (twice or more within the same lease term), landlords are not required to allow the tenant to cure the issue and can issue a 30-day quit notice (KS § 58-2564(a)).
Self-Help Evictions: Kansas landlords seeking to evict a tenant should follow the legal eviction process as defined by law since self-help evictions are illegal and could open the landlord up to civil or legal penalties.
Lease Abandonment: Tenants who break their lease early and without legal cause could be responsible for the remaining rent on the lease term. Landlords must mitigate damages and attempt to re-rent the unit in a reasonable timeframe (KS § 58-2565).
Ending a Lease
Month-to-Month: Tenants and landlords can terminate a month-to-month lease by providing 30 days’ notice (KS § 58-2570(b)).
Fixed-Term: Kansas tenants must meet legally required conditions to break a lease early and without penalty. These include entering active military duty, suffering domestic violence, uninhabitable living conditions, or landlord harassment.
Property Abandonment: Landlords must give tenants at least 30 days to recover property that’s been left behind. Landlords can also publish a public notice of 15 days of their intent to sell the tenant’s property but must return it to the tenant prior to the expiration of the 30-day window. The tenant is responsible for any fees incurred in storing the property (KS § 58-2565(d)).
Renewing a Lease
Required Renewals: Kansas landlords are not required to renew a lease once the term ends.
Required Notice: Kansas law does not require a landlord to notify a tenant early when it decides not to renew a fixed-term lease. However, for month-to-month leases, 30 days’ notice is required (KS § 58-2570(b)).
Rent Control & Stabilization
There are no statewide rent control or rent stabilization laws in Kansas, meaning landlords can raise the rent to whatever they believe to be fair market value.
Kansas Lease Agreement FAQs
Does a landlord have to provide a copy of the lease in Kansas?
Kansas landlords are not required to provide a copy of the lease, though it is considered good practice to do so.
What is the grace period for rent in Kansas?
There is no mandatory grace period for rent in Kansas.
Can a landlord refuse to renew a lease in Kansas?
Kansas landlords can refuse to renew a lease when the term expires or with 30 days’ notice for month-to-month leases.
Does a Kansas lease need to be notarized?
No, Kansas leases are valid when both parties sign them and do not need to be notarized.
Can you withhold rent for repairs in Kansas?
Tenants may withhold rent after providing 30 days’ lease termination notice when the landlord must address a serious health or safety issue. If the landlord does not remedy the situation within 14 days, the tenant may withhold rent or potentially cancel the lease agreement (KS § 58-2559).