Late Rent Fee Limits in Kansas
At a glance
| Governing law | K.S.A. 58-2543(j)-(k), 58-2545, and 58-2559(b) — residential rent/agreement definitions, permissible terms, and tenant enforcement; no residential late-fee-specific cap section |
|---|---|
| Maximum late fee | No dollar, percentage, or statutory reasonableness cap stated for an ordinary residential late charge |
| Grace period | None stated for a late fee; K.S.A. 58-2564(b)'s 3-day nonpayment notice is a termination clock, not a fee grace period |
| Lease or notice requirement | No separate writing or late-fee notice precondition stated; rental agreements may be written or oral (§ 58-2543(k)), and lawful rent terms may be included (§ 58-2545(a)) |
| One-time or recurring | Not addressed — no statutory daily, once-per-period, or anti-compounding rule for a dwelling late charge |
| Calculated on | Not addressed — no percentage base, unpaid-balance rule, or dollar formula stated |
| Related fees & carve-outs | Rent means all agreement-required payments to the landlord other than the security deposit (§ 58-2543(j)). Section 58-816a's $20-or-20% formula applies only to self-service storage |
| If the fee is unlawful | No late-fee-specific refund, multiplier, or attorney-fee remedy; § 58-2559(b) permits damages and injunctive relief for landlord noncompliance with the rental agreement, while § 58-2547 makes listed prohibited lease terms unenforceable and allows actual damages for deliberate use |
Kansas has no residential late-fee formula
The Kansas Residential Landlord and Tenant Act does not give a residential late fee a dollar ceiling, percentage cap, or reasonableness formula. K.S.A. 58-2545(a) instead allows the landlord and tenant to include lawful terms in the rental agreement, including rent and other provisions governing their rights and obligations.
Kansas defines rent broadly. Under § 58-2543(j), it means "all payments to be made to the landlord under the rental agreement" other than the security deposit. A late charge required by the agreement therefore falls within that definition; the Act does not create a separate category of "additional rent" outside statutory rent.
No fee grace, accrual, or calculation rule
The residential Act states no number of fee-free days after rent is due. The three-day notice in § 58-2564(b) gives a tenant time to pay before the landlord may terminate for nonpayment; it does not say a landlord must wait three days to assess a late fee.
The Act also does not authorize daily accrual, require a fee to be imposed only once, prohibit compounding, or identify a percentage base. Those points depend on the rental agreement and other applicable law, not a residential late-fee formula in the Act.
What trips people up
The $20-or-20% statute is for storage units. K.S.A. 58-816a allows a self- service-storage operator to charge up to $20 per month or 20% of monthly rent, whichever is greater, with a reasonableness route for a higher fee. Subsection (d) expressly says the section supplements the self-service storage act. It is not a dwelling late-fee cap.
A rental agreement may be oral. Section 58-2543(k) defines rental agreements to include written or oral agreements. The residential Act imposes no separate signed-writing or late-fee-notice condition.
Late fees are not outside rent. Some lease forms treat them that way, but current § 58-2543(j) does the opposite: all agreement-required payments to the landlord, other than the security deposit, are rent. A form that adds accrual, notice, or payment-order rules does not make them requirements of the Act.
Common questions
Does Kansas cap a residential late fee at $20 or 20%? No. That formula is in the self-service storage act. The residential Act states no numeric cap.
Must a landlord wait three days? Not under a late-fee provision. The three- day period in § 58-2564(b) concerns termination for unpaid rent, not the timing of a fee.
Can the charge accrue every day? The residential Act does not address daily or recurring accrual. It neither authorizes a daily fee nor states a once-per- period limit.
What if the landlord charges a fee the agreement does not allow? Section 58-2559(b) permits damages and injunctive relief for landlord noncompliance with the rental agreement. Kansas states no late-fee-specific multiplier or attorney- fee award.
Statutes and sources
- K.S.A. 58-2543(j)-(k) — definitions of rent and rental agreement.
"Rent" means all payments to be made to the landlord under the rental agreement, other than the security deposit. "Rental agreement" means all agreements, written or oral ... embodying the terms and conditions concerning the use and occupancy of a dwelling unit and premise.
Official source: https://ksrevisor.gov/statutes/chapters/ch58/058_025_0043.html (accessed 2026-07-20) - K.S.A. 58-2545(a), (c) — lawful agreement terms and payment of rent at the agreed time and place.
The landlord and tenant may include in a rental agreement, terms and conditions not prohibited by this act or other rule of law, including rent ... Rent shall be payable without demand or notice at the time and place agreed upon by the parties.
Official source: https://ksrevisor.gov/statutes/chapters/ch58/058_025_0045.html (accessed 2026-07-20) - K.S.A. 58-2547(a)-(b); 58-2559(b) — prohibited agreement terms and the tenant's general damages/injunction remedy for landlord noncompliance.
A provision prohibited by subsection (a) included in a rental agreement is unenforceable. ... the tenant may recover damages and obtain injunctive relief for any noncompliance by the landlord with the rental agreement.
Official sources: https://ksrevisor.gov/statutes/chapters/ch58/058_025_0047.html and https://ksrevisor.gov/statutes/chapters/ch58/058_025_0059.html (accessed 2026-07-20) - K.S.A. 58-816a — a separate self-service-storage late-fee rule.
An operator may impose a reasonable late fee ... in an amount not to exceed $20 per month or 20% of the monthly rental amount, whichever is greater. ... This section shall be part of and supplemental to the self-service storage act.
Official source: https://ksrevisor.gov/statutes/chapters/ch58/058_008_0016a.html (accessed 2026-07-20)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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