West Virginia: Rent Increase Notice Requirements
The short answer
West Virginia has no general statewide rent-increase notice period, amount cap, or frequency limit for an ordinary residential tenancy. W. Va. Code § 37-6-5 sets notice to terminate a periodic tenancy, not notice to continue it at a higher rent. The rental agreement controls the rent and any fixed term; current Article 6 supplies no general unilateral mid-term increase procedure.
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This is the general rule in West Virginia. Ezel applies current West Virginia law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law | No general rent-increase section in W. Va. Code ch. 37, art. 6; § 37-6-5 governs termination notice and § 37-6-9 addresses recovery of agreed rent |
|---|---|
| Advance notice required | No statewide rent-increase notice period; do not substitute § 37-6-5's termination periods |
| Statewide limit on the increase | No statewide percentage or formula cap |
| Homes and landlords exempt from the cap | N/A No statewide cap to exempt a home or landlord from |
| How often rent may increase | No separate statewide frequency limit |
| Notice form, content, and service | No rent-increase-specific state form, required fields, or service method; § 37-6-5's written-notice rule is for termination |
| Increase during a fixed lease | The rental agreement controls; current Article 6 supplies no general unilateral mid-term increase procedure |
| Tenant's remedies | No rent-increase-specific statutory remedy; ordinary agreement-based claims remain, and § 37-6-9 treats an agreement reserving rent as evidence of the amount owed |
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West Virginia's current state-law rule
West Virginia's landlord-and-tenant article states no general advance-notice
period, percentage cap, frequency limit, or mandatory form for an ordinary
residential rent increase. Section 37-6-9(a) instead treats an oral letting
or agreement that reserves a certain rent as evidence of the amount owed in an
action for rent.
Current Article 6 also supplies no general procedure for a landlord to change
the agreed rent before a fixed term ends. The agreement therefore controls the
rent and term; a later renewal offer is different from changing the price
during the current term.
What trips people up
Section 37-6-5 is titled “Notice to terminate tenancy.” It requires at
least three months' written notice to terminate a year-to-year tenancy and one
full period to terminate a shorter periodic tenancy, subject to the section's
agreement exceptions. Those periods end the tenancy. The section does not say
they continue the same tenancy at a higher rent.
The Legislature considered, but did not enact, a different rule. House Bill
4660 in 2024 would have added 60 days' notice for a month-to-month increase and
a 10% cap subject to a repair-and-improvement condition. It stopped in House
Judiciary. Those proposed numbers are not current West Virginia law.
Common questions
Does a month-to-month landlord have to give one full rental period before raising rent?
Not under a general statewide rent-change statute. Section 37-6-5 uses one full
period to terminate a periodic tenancy; it does not prescribe an increase that
keeps the tenancy going.
Can rent rise during a fixed lease?
Current Article 6 supplies no general unilateral mid-term increase procedure.
Read the agreement's rent, term, and amendment provisions.
Is there a statewide percentage cap?
No. The 10% language proposed in 2024 HB 4660 did not pass.
Statutes and sources
- W. Va. Code § 37-6-5. Written notice to terminate periodic tenancies and
the fixed-term exception — official current text reproduced in 2026 HB 4570
(accessed July 13, 2026; the proposed amendment did not become law). - W. Va. Code § 37-6-9(a). Recovery of rent and the evidentiary effect of
an agreement reserving rent — official current text reproduced in 2025 SB 168
(accessed July 13, 2026; the proposed amendment did not become law). - 2024 HB 4660. Failed proposal for a 60-day notice and 10% cap —
official introduced text
and official history
(accessed July 13, 2026).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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