Landlord Entry Notice Requirements in North Dakota

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Advance notice required

North Dakota does not put a number of hours in its statute. For a routine entry, "unless it is impractical to do so the landlord shall first notify and receive the consent of the tenant which shall not be unreasonably withheld, which consent shall identify a time certain" (§ 47-16-07.3(2)). The catch is how consent is obtained: "consent shall be presumed from failure to object to access after notice of intent to enter at a time certain has been given." In plain terms, the landlord tells you they will enter at a specific time, and if you do not object, you are treated as having agreed. So the practical protection is your chance to object — not a fixed 24- or 48-hour clock.

Reasons a landlord may enter

Two tracks. For ordinary access (subsection 2), the landlord may enter only during reasonable hours and in a reasonable manner to inspect, make necessary or agreed repairs, decorations, alterations, or improvements, supply agreed services, or show the unit to purchasers, insurers, mortgagees, real estate agents, tenants, workmen, or contractors. Under subsection 1, the landlord may enter "at any time" in an emergency, or on a reasonable belief that you have abandoned the unit or are "in substantial violation of the provisions of the lease."

When no notice is needed

North Dakota's no-notice grounds are unusually broad. Beyond a genuine emergency, the landlord may enter "at any time" on a "reasonabl[e] belie[f]" that the tenant has abandoned the premises or "is in substantial violation of the provisions of the lease or rental agreement" (§ 47-16-07.3(1)). The routine notice-and-consent step is also skipped where it is "impractical to do so" (§ 47-16-07.3(2)).

Form and delivery of the notice

Notice is flexible: it "may be given by personal service, by posting the notice in a conspicuous place in or about the dwelling unit for a reasonable period of time, or by any other method which results in actual notice to the tenant" (§ 47-16-07.3). Whatever the method, it must state a "time certain," because your silence after that notice is what the statute treats as consent.

Tenant's remedies for unlawful entry

The statute's guardrail is that "a landlord shall not abuse the right of access or use it to harass or intimidate the tenant" (§ 47-16-07.3(2)). Section 47-16-07.3 sets no dollar penalty, so a tenant facing unlawful or harassing entry relies on general and common-law remedies — an injunction to stop repeated intrusions, actual damages, and a claim for breach of the covenant of quiet enjoyment or trespass.

What trips people up

Silence counts as consent. Because "consent shall be presumed from failure to object to access after notice of intent to enter at a time certain" (§ 47-16-07.3), ignoring a proper notice does not block the entry — if you object, do it clearly and in time.

A landlord can enter on a belief you broke the lease. North Dakota is one of the few states that lets a landlord enter "at any time" on a reasonable belief of a "substantial violation of the provisions of the lease" (§ 47-16-07.3(1)). This is broader than the usual emergency-only rule.

"Reasonable hours" is the only clock. North Dakota does not fix an 8-to-8 or business- hours window by statute; routine entry must simply be "during reasonable hours, and in a reasonable manner" (§ 47-16-07.3(2)).

Common questions

How much notice does my North Dakota landlord need to enter? No set number of hours. The landlord must give notice of a specific time and get your consent, which is presumed if you do not object (§ 47-16-07.3). Routine entry must be during reasonable hours.

Can my landlord enter if they think I broke the lease? Yes — this is unusual. The statute allows entry "at any time" on a reasonable belief that you are "in substantial violation of the provisions of the lease or rental agreement" (§ 47-16-07.3(1)).

Is a note taped to my door enough notice? It can be. Notice may be given "by posting the notice in a conspicuous place in or about the dwelling unit for a reasonable period of time," among other methods (§ 47-16-07.3).

What can I do if my landlord abuses this access? The landlord "shall not abuse the right of access or use it to harass or intimidate the tenant" (§ 47-16-07.3(2)). You can seek an injunction and damages for repeated or harassing entries.

Statutes and sources

• N.D.C.C. § 47-16-07.3 — the entry section: the any-time grounds of emergency, believed abandonment, and believed substantial lease violation (1); the reasonable-hours routine-entry purposes, the notify-and-obtain-consent step, the no-harassment rule, presumed consent from failure to object, and the permitted notice methods (2). https://ndlegis.gov/cencode/t47c16.pdf (accessed 2026-07-11)