What a Landlord Cannot Do in Alabama
The main limits Alabama law puts on landlords — lockouts and utility shutoffs, entering without notice, retaliation, deposits, fees and discrimination — each with the statute or official source.
In short: a Alabama landlord cannot evict without a court order, cannot punish a tenant for asserting legal rights where state law protects them, and must follow the state's rules on entry, deposits and fees shown below.
| Lockouts & utility shutoffs | Self-help eviction is prohibited. A landlord may not take possession, including by interrupting heat, water, hot water, electricity, gas, or other essential service, except after abandonment or surrender or as the Act permits. A tenant who is unlawfully removed, excluded, or has services cut off may recover possession or terminate the lease. In either case the tenant recovers the greater of up to 3 months' periodic rent or actual damages, plus reasonable attorney's fees. |
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| Landlord entry notice | The landlord must give at least two days' notice and may enter only at reasonable times. Posting a note on the tenant's primary entry door that states the time and purpose counts as notice. Entry without consent is allowed in an emergency, under a court order, or when the landlord reasonably believes the tenant has abandoned the unit. A tenant who requests repairs is deemed to consent to entry to make them. Additional day's notice is not needed when the landlord gave a general notice or advance schedule of more than two days for repairs, maintenance, pest control, or health and safety service. Source: Ala. Code § 35-9A-303 |
| Landlord retaliation | A landlord may not retaliate by raising rent, decreasing services, or bringing or threatening an action for possession because the tenant (1) complained to a government code-enforcement agency about a health or safety violation, (2) complained to the landlord about a § 35-9A-204 maintenance violation, or (3) organized or joined a tenants' union. Remedies are those in § 35-9A-407 plus a defense to eviction. The statute sets no presumption period. The landlord may still evict for unpaid rent, for code violations the tenant caused, or for other material lease violations. Source: Ala. Code § 35-9A-501 |
| Security deposit limit | One month's periodic rent. Additional deposits are allowed only for pets, changes to the premises, or increased liability risks to the landlord or premises. Last amended by Act 2014-279. Source: Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(a) |
| Penalty for withholding | If the landlord does not mail a timely refund or accounting within 60 days, the landlord must pay the tenant double the amount of the tenant's original deposit. The penalty is triggered by missing the deadline. No showing of bad faith is required. Source: Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(f) |
| Late fees | No statutory cap. The statute mentions late fees only as an item that can be listed in a nonpayment notice. A search of the official Code of Alabama turned up no late-fee cap or grace-period statute for residential leases. Source: Ala. Code § 35-9A-421(b) |
| Rent control / increase limits | Local rent control is preempted statewide. No county, city, or other local government may enact, maintain, or enforce a measure controlling the rent charged for leasing private property. There is no statewide rent cap. Enacted by Acts 1993, No. 93-421. Source: Ala. Code § 11-80-8.1 |
| Statewide ban on refusing Section 8 / source of income | No. Alabama's Fair Housing Law covers race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin and handicap only; it does not protect source of income or housing-voucher holders. Text read 2026-10-22 from the official ALISON Code of Alabama database (the same data that renders on this page). Source: Ala. Code § 24-8-4 |
| Cameras & privacy | No landlord-specific statute. General criminal laws apply: using a device to overhear or record private communications without the consent of at least one party is criminal eavesdropping (Class A misdemeanor); installing an eavesdropping device in a private place without permission of the owner and any tenant is a Class C felony; secret surveillance while trespassing in a private place is a crime; and photographing or filming a person's intimate areas without consent where they expect privacy is voyeurism. A landlord may enter only as allowed by § 35-9A-303 (generally 2 days' notice, or emergency) and may not use the right of access to harass the tenant. Video of common areas open to the public is not covered by the 'private place' definition. |
| Other rental fees | No general rental junk-fee statute. A lease may not require the tenant to pay the landlord's attorney fees or costs of collection, confess judgment, or waive deposit rules; a landlord who knowingly tries to enforce such a clause owes actual damages plus up to one month's rent and attorney fees. Security beyond one month's rent is allowed only for pets, changes to the premises, or increased liability risk. No statute found on convenience/online-payment fees or total-cost advertising. Text read 2026-10-22 from the official ALISON Code of Alabama database (the same data that renders on this page). |
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General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.