Oregon: Late Rent Fee Limits
The short answer
Oregon permits a late fee only under a written rental agreement and only when rent has not been received by the fourth day of the weekly or monthly rental period. The agreement must choose among three statutory structures: a reasonable flat fee once per period, a daily fee beginning on day five capped at 6% of that flat fee per day, or 5% of periodic rent for each succeeding five-day period or portion. An unpaid late fee alone cannot support a nonpayment-of-rent termination.
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This is the general rule in Oregon. Ezel applies current Oregon law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law | ORS 90.260 — written-agreement requirement, day-5 trigger, and three permitted fee structures |
|---|---|
| Maximum late fee | Choose one: reasonable customary flat fee once per period; daily fee capped at 6% of that flat fee per day; or 5% of periodic rent per succeeding 5-day period or portion (§ 90.260(2)) |
| Grace period | Rent must remain unpaid through day 4; a late charge begins on day 5 (§ 90.260(1)-(2)) |
| Lease or notice requirement | Written rental agreement must state the obligation, fee type and amount, rent due date, and late-fee due date (§ 90.260(1)(b)) |
| One-time or recurring | Flat fee once per period; daily fee from day 5 through that period; or 5% for each succeeding 5-day period or portion, through that period (§ 90.260(2)) |
| Calculated on | Flat fee uses the customary local-market amount; daily fee is at most 6% of that flat amount; 5-day fee is 5% of periodic rent (§ 90.260(2)) |
| Related fees & carve-outs | Prior late fee cannot be deducted from current rent to create a new delinquency; simple interest may accrue at the § 82.010(2) judgment rate (§ 90.260(4)-(5)) |
| If the fee is unlawful | No special damages stated; late-fee nonpayment alone cannot support a § 90.394 nonpayment termination, though it may support a for-cause termination (§ 90.260(6)) |
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Requirements one by one
When the fee may begin
Section 90.260 requires both timing and written terms. Rent must remain unpaid
through the fourth day of the weekly or monthly rental period, and the written
rental agreement must state the obligation, the type and amount of fee, the
rent due date, and the date the late charge becomes due:
A landlord may impose a late charge or fee, however designated, only if: (a)
The rent payment is not received by the fourth day of the weekly or monthly
rental period for which rent is payable; and (b) There exists a written
rental agreement that specifies ... [t]he type and amount of the late charge
... and ... the date or day on which late charges become due.
The three permitted fee structures
The agreement may use one of three methods. It may set a reasonable flat fee
once per rental period, with reasonableness measured by the customary amount in
that rental market. It may instead use a daily fee beginning on day five, but
each day's fee may not exceed 6% of the reasonable flat amount. The third
method charges 5% of periodic rent for each succeeding five-day period or part
of one, beginning on day five.
For example, if periodic rent is $1,500 and the agreement uses the third
method, each five-day increment is $75. That example does not cap a lawful flat
fee at 5%; the flat-fee method uses the separate customary-market standard.
Changing a fee in a periodic tenancy
A landlord may change the fee type or amount in a periodic tenancy, but §
90.260(3) requires 30 days' written notice. The new method still must be one of
the three structures and fit the written-agreement requirements.
What trips people up
An old fee cannot be used to manufacture a new late payment. The landlord
may not subtract a previously imposed late charge from a current or later rent
payment and then treat that rent payment as delinquent for another fee or a
nonpayment termination.
Interest may run before judgment. Section 90.260(5) permits simple interest
on an unpaid late charge at the judgment rate in § 82.010(2), accruing from the
date the late charge is imposed.
A late fee is not rent for the nonpayment-termination route. Nonpayment of
the fee alone cannot support termination for nonpayment of rent under § 90.394.
The statute does allow a for-cause termination under §§ 90.392 or 90.630(1),
and a nonpayment notice may mention the fee only if it makes clear that paying
the delinquent rent alone cures that notice.
Common questions
Does a partial rent payment stop a daily or five-day fee from accruing? Not
under the wording of § 90.260(2). Those methods continue until the rent itself,
excluding late charges, is paid in full, and only through that rental period.
Can a landlord call the charge an on-time discount instead of a late fee?
Section 90.260(7) includes an increase or decrease in regularly charged rent
that depends on payment by a certain date within the definition of a late
charge.
Statutes and sources
- Or. Rev. Stat. § 90.260 — trigger, written-agreement terms, three fee
structures, notice to change the fee, payment handling, interest, and
termination limits.
The amount of any late charge may not exceed: (a) A reasonable flat amount,
charged once per rental period. "Reasonable amount" means the customary
amount charged by landlords for that rental market; (b) A reasonable
amount, charged on a per-day basis, beginning on the fifth day ... [t]he
per-day charge may not exceed six percent of the amount described in
paragraph (a) ...; or (c) Five percent of the periodic rent payment amount,
charged once for each succeeding five-day period, or portion thereof.
Official source: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors090.html (accessed 2026-07-20)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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