What a Landlord Cannot Do in Idaho
The main limits Idaho 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 Idaho 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 unlawful: a landlord may not shut off utilities, change locks, confiscate the tenant's property, or do anything other than file a lawful eviction. A party who recovers damages for forcible or unlawful entry or detainer may be awarded up to three times actual damages. Treble damages: https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title6/T6CH3/SECT6-317/. A landlord may shut off a utility for a reasonable time for repairs (AG manual). |
|---|---|
| Landlord entry notice | No statute. Entry rights are governed by the lease; the AG advises that absent a lease clause the landlord should explain why entry is needed and agree with the tenant on a reasonable time and manner. Manufactured home park lots have separate entry rules in the Manufactured Home Residency Act (Title 55, Ch. 20). |
| Landlord retaliation | No statute — Idaho has no general anti-retaliation statute for residential tenants. The Idaho Attorney General's Landlord and Tenant Manual says a landlord may not evict a tenant for asking for repairs or joining a tenants' association, but it cites no statute and sets no presumption period. Tenants in manufactured home communities are protected by statute: the landlord may not end or refuse to renew the tenancy, raise rent, cut services, or threaten eviction because the resident complained in good faith to a code agency or to the landlord, joined or led a resident association, or hired a lawyer or agent. The AG manual's statement is guidance, not a statute: https://www.ag.idaho.gov/content/uploads/2026/07/LandlordTenant.pdf. Tenants who believe an eviction is retaliatory should get legal advice; whether a court will recognize a retaliation defense outside manufactured home communities is uncertain. |
| Security deposit limit | No statutory cap on the amount of a security deposit. § 6-321 regulates refund of deposits but sets no maximum. § 55-306 (added 2025) also bars local governments from regulating the deposits owners may charge. Source: Idaho Code § 6-321 |
| Penalty for withholding | Tenant may sue for failure to return a deposit as required by law (after a 3-day written notice to the landlord); the court may enter judgment for up to three times actual damages, plus costs and attorney fees. § 6-320(a) lists failure to return a deposit as an actionable landlord breach and requires 3 days' written notice before suing (https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title6/T6CH3/SECT6-320/); § 6-317 allows treble damages in actions under § 6-320 ('may', discretionary). AG manual describes the same remedy. |
| Late fees | No numeric cap or grace period. All fees, including late fees, must be reasonable and may not exceed the amount stated in the rental agreement; a fee not in a written agreement can be added only with 30 days' written notice. Added 2023 (ch. 67, as § 55-314), applies to agreements entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2023; redesignated § 55-305 in 2025 (ch. 65). Source: Idaho Code § 55-305 |
| Rent control / increase limits | Local rent control is preempted. Cities, counties and other local governments may not adopt or enforce laws that set the rent, fees or deposits owners may charge on private residential property, or compel owners to participate in optional federal housing assistance programs. No statewide cap. Section added 2025, ch. 65. Does not restrict local governments' management of property they own. Source: Idaho Code § 55-306 |
| Statewide ban on refusing Section 8 / source of income | No. The Idaho Human Rights Act's housing protections cover race, color, religion, sex, national origin (and disability/familial status provisions), not source of income. Since 2025, local governments may not require owners to participate in optional federal housing assistance programs (e.g., Housing Choice Vouchers). Source: Idaho Code §§ 67-5909, 55-306 |
| Cameras & privacy | No landlord-specific statute. Installing or using (or permitting) an imaging device where a person has a reasonable expectation of privacy, without the person's knowledge or consent, for sexual gratification or to degrade or abuse, is felony video voyeurism; 'reasonable expectation of privacy' includes places where a person might reasonably expect to be safe from casual or hostile surveillance. Intercepting oral communications is a felony unless one party consents. Idaho has no statutory notice period for landlord entry; the AG advises that the lease set entry terms or that the landlord notify the tenant and agree on a reasonable time. Video voyeurism was renumbered from § 18-6609 to § 18-6605 in 2022 and amended again in 2026 (ch. 121). Interception statute: https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title18/T18CH67/SECT18-6702/ |
| Other rental fees | Any fee charged to a residential tenant, including late fees, must be reasonable. The owner may not charge any fee, fine, assessment, interest or other cost above the amount in the rental agreement, or one not in the agreement, unless the agreement is oral or the owner gives 30 days' written notice of the change. Applies to rental agreements entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2023; does not limit rent. Local governments may not regulate rent, fees or deposits. § 55-306 at https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title55/T55CH3/SECT55-306/. No total-cost-of-rent or online-payment-fee rule found. Source: Idaho Code §§ 55-305, 55-306 |
Can I sue my landlord in Idaho? · All Idaho tenant rights
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.