What a Landlord Cannot Do in Vermont
The main limits Vermont 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 Vermont 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 | Landlord may not willfully interrupt or terminate a tenant's utility service (except for temporary emergency repairs), or deny access to the premises or the tenant's property, except by proper judicial process. Tenant may sue for injunctive relief, damages, costs and reasonable attorney's fees. Remedies section: https://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/section/09/137/04464. No statutory fixed damages amount. Source: 9 V.S.A. 4463; 4464 |
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| Landlord entry notice | With tenant consent (not to be unreasonably withheld), or between 9:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. on at least 48 hours' notice for inspections, repairs, services, or showings. No notice needed if the landlord reasonably believes there is imminent danger to a person or property. Source: 9 V.S.A. 4460 |
| Landlord retaliation | Landlord may not retaliate (by setting or changing lease terms, or by bringing or threatening an action) because a tenant complained to a government agency about a health/safety violation, complained to the landlord about a chapter 137 violation, or organized/joined a tenants' union. A termination notice (other than for nonpayment) served within 90 days after a state or municipal finding of a health or safety noncompliance is presumed retaliatory (rebuttable). Remedy: damages and reasonable attorney's fees; retaliation is a defense to possession. Source: 9 V.S.A. 4465 |
| Security deposit limit | No statutory cap. Section 4461 regulates return of deposits but sets no maximum amount. Source: 9 V.S.A. 4461 |
| Penalty for withholding | A landlord who fails to return the deposit and statement within 14 days forfeits the right to withhold any portion; if the failure is willful, the landlord is liable for double the amount wrongfully withheld plus reasonable attorney's fees and costs. Source: 9 V.S.A. 4461(e) |
| Late fees | No statutory cap or grace period. No late-fee provision appears anywhere in 9 V.S.A. ch. 137, including 9 V.S.A. 4455 (rent payment). Late fees, if any, are set by the rental agreement, and general contract law may limit a fee that works as a penalty. Source: 9 V.S.A. ch. 137 |
| Rent control / increase limits | No statewide rent control or rent-increase cap. Landlord must give at least 60 days' actual notice of a rent increase, effective the first day of the next rental period. Local rent control: no state statute expressly preempts or authorizes it, and the city charters of Burlington, Montpelier and Winooski do not authorize rent control. Burlington's charter lets the City Council, by ordinance, require at least 90 days' written notice of a rent increase, and (where there is no written lease) at least 90 days' notice of a no-cause termination for tenancies under two years and 120 days for longer ones, but it does not allow limits on the amount of rent. Burlington charter: https://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/fullchapter/24APPENDIX/003. The Montpelier (24 App. V.S.A. ch. 5) and Winooski (ch. 19) charters contain no rent or landlord-tenant provisions: https://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/fullchapter/24APPENDIX/005 ; https://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/fullchapter/24APPENDIX/019. A 2026 proposal (H.772, House-passed version) to limit rent increases to once a year died in the Senate on May 27, 2026. |
| Statewide ban on refusing Section 8 / source of income | Yes. It is unlawful to refuse to rent, set discriminatory terms, harass, or advertise a preference because a person receives public assistance, defined to include any federal, state, or local government assistance, including housing assistance. Definition: https://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/section/09/139/04501. The statute does not name Section 8 vouchers specifically; voucher-program requirements were not analyzed. Victims of abuse, sexual assault, or stalking are also a protected class. Source: 9 V.S.A. § 4503(a); § 4501(6) |
| Cameras & privacy | No landlord camera statute, but Vermont's voyeurism law expressly prohibits intentionally conducting surveillance of, or photographing, filming or recording, a person without the person's knowledge and consent while the person is in a place where the person would have a reasonable expectation of privacy within a home or residence. It also bars viewing or recording a person's intimate areas or sexual conduct without consent where privacy is expected. Landlord entry requires consent or at least 48 hours' notice, between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m., for listed purposes, except in an emergency. Audio-recording (eavesdropping) rules were not covered here. |
Can I sue my landlord in Vermont? · All Vermont 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.