Utah: Rent Increase Notice Requirements

Utah's ordinary state-law framework

Utah does not prescribe a general notice period, amount cap, frequency limit,
or mandatory form for an ordinary residential rent increase. Utah Code §
57-22-2(2) defines a rental agreement as the written or oral agreement that
establishes or modifies the terms, conditions, rules, and other provisions
regarding use and occupancy. The current chapter supplies no general unilateral
rent-increase procedure.

Local rent control is restricted separately. Under Utah Code § 57-20-1(1),
a county, city, or town may not control rents or fees on private residential
property without the Legislature's express approval. Subsection (2) preserves
state and local zoning, building, and planning authority.

What trips people up

Utah Code § 78B-6-802(1)(b)(i) does use a 15-day period, but it is an
unlawful-detainer provision. It applies when an owner serves an indefinite
monthly or other periodic tenant with notice requiring the tenant to quit at
the end of the month or period. It does not say that the notice changes the rent
while the tenancy continues. Subsection (1)(b)(ii)'s five-day tenancy-at-will
period is likewise a termination rule.

For a fixed term, read the rent and any adjustment language in the existing
rental agreement. Section 57-22-2(2) confirms that the agreement establishes
or modifies occupancy terms, but it does not itself create a statutory right to
raise rent before that term ends. A renewal offer at a new price is different
from a mid-term change.

The Legislature considered a different rule in 2026. HB 478 would have
required 60 days' notice for certain increases, but the official bill record
shows that the House struck its enacting clause and filed it among bills not
passed. It did not change the current code.

Common questions

Does Utah require 15 days' notice of a rent increase?

No general state statute says so. The 15-day period in §
78B-6-802(1)(b)(i) concerns a notice requiring a periodic tenant to quit at
the end of the rental period.

Is there a statewide limit on the percentage increase?

No general statewide percentage or formula applies to the ordinary private
tenancy covered here. Section 57-20-1(1) also bars local residential rent
control unless the Legislature expressly approves it.

Is there a special tenant remedy for a defective increase notice?

The current general provisions cited here state no rent-increase-specific
penalty because they impose no general increase-notice rule. Lease terms and
any separate fact-specific statutory claim must be evaluated independently.

Statutes and sources

• Utah Code § 57-20-1. Local residential rent-control prohibition and
  preserved zoning, building, and planning authority.
  Official statute
  (accessed July 12, 2026).
• Utah Code § 57-22-2(2). Definition of the agreement establishing or
  modifying residential occupancy terms.
  Official statute
  (accessed July 12, 2026).
• Utah Code § 78B-6-802(1)(b). Notices to quit for indefinite periodic
  tenancies and tenancies at will.
  Official statute
  (accessed July 12, 2026).