What Missouri landlord-tenant law covers
Missouri’s landlord-tenant rules are spread across three chapters of the Revised Statutes: Chapter 441 on tenancies and notices, Chapter 534 on unlawful detainer and Chapter 535 on rent and possession cases and security deposits. The Missouri Attorney General’s guide to the law, revised in September 2025, points to the same three chapters.
The statutes are short and leave several everyday topics, such as late fees and routine entry, without a set rule. Where the statutes are silent, the written lease does most of the work, so a clear, complete lease matters more in Missouri than in states with long landlord-tenant codes. If you are selling, a buyer’s attorney will read your lease form closely for the same reason.
Missouri landlord-tenant rules at a glance
The table covers the rules apartment owners ask about most, as of October 2026. Where Missouri statutes set no rule, the table says what the Attorney General’s guide says.
| Rule | Missouri requirement | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Month-to-month termination | Written notice ending on a rent-paying date at least one month after it is received; oral notice is not valid | RSMo 441.060; AG guide |
| Nonpayment of rent | No written notice required before filing; rent must have been demanded and not paid | RSMo 535.020 |
| Security deposit cap | Two months’ rent | RSMo 535.300 |
| Deposit return | Within 30 days after the tenancy ends, with an itemized list of damages | RSMo 535.300 |
| Wrongful withholding | Tenant recovers twice the amount wrongfully withheld | RSMo 535.300 |
| Late fees | The AG guide states no statutory rule; set them in the lease | AG guide |
| Entry notice | The AG guide gives no general entry rule; reasonable written notice is required for the move-out inspection | AG guide; RSMo 535.300 |
| Rent control | Cities and counties may not regulate the amount of rent | RSMo 441.043 |
How much notice does a landlord have to give in Missouri?
A Missouri landlord must give one month’s written notice to end a month-to-month tenancy. Under Section 441.060, the notice has to say the tenancy will end on a periodic rent-paying date that is at least one month after the tenant receives it. If rent is due on the first, a notice received on March 10 can end the tenancy no earlier than May 1.
The same one-month rule covers tenancies for less than a year and unwritten leases of buildings in a city, town or village, which the statute treats as month-to-month. The Attorney General’s guide adds that an oral notice from either side is not valid, and that a landlord can raise rent on an oral month-to-month tenancy with one month’s notice.
A fixed-term lease runs to its end date under its own terms, so read the renewal and holdover clauses before you plan a notice. Mobile home lots are the one exception in Section 441.060: when a tenant owns the home and rents the lot for less than a year, the landlord’s notice can take effect no sooner than 60 days from the next rent due date.
Rent and possession: the nonpayment case
For unpaid rent, Missouri landlords use a rent and possession case under Chapter 535, and no written notice is required before filing. Section 535.020 says only that rent must be due and payable and that payment has been demanded and not made. It states that the one-month notice in Section 441.060 is not required before filing.
The landlord files a statement, verified by affidavit, with an associate circuit judge in the county where the property is located. It lists the rental terms, the rent owed, that rent was demanded, and a description of the premises. The clerk then issues a summons to the tenant and all occupants.
Other grounds, such as a lease violation or a holdover after a valid notice, go through an unlawful detainer case under Chapter 534 instead.
The eviction process and timeline in Missouri
A rent and possession case is fast by national standards. Under Section 535.030, the court date can be no more than 21 business days after the summons is issued, unless the landlord agrees in writing to a later date. The summons must be served at least four days before court, or at least ten days before if the landlord asks for service by posting and mailing.
After judgment, the tenant has ten days to move to set aside the judgment or apply for a trial de novo. If neither is filed, the possession judgment becomes final and the landlord can go forward with removal. Under Section 535.160, a tenant who pays the back rent and costs on the date a money judgment is entered stops the case.
The Attorney General’s guide is clear on one point: a landlord may not evict a tenant without a court order. The tenant gets notice that a case has been filed and a chance to be heard before any removal, so plan on the court process even when the facts look simple.
| Step | Timing under Chapter 535 |
|---|---|
| Demand for rent | No written notice period required |
| File statement and affidavit; summons issued | Day 0 |
| Service on tenant | At least 4 days before court, or 10 days if posted and mailed |
| Court date | No more than 21 business days after the summons issues |
| Motion to set aside or trial de novo | Within 10 days of judgment |
| Judgment final for possession | After the 10 days pass with no filing |
Security deposit rules in Missouri
Missouri caps security deposits at two months’ rent under Section 535.300. The deposit must be held in an account at a federally insured bank, credit union or depository institution, and any interest earned belongs to the landlord.
Within 30 days after the tenancy ends, the landlord must return the full deposit or send an itemized list of damages with any balance, mailed to the tenant’s last known address. The tenant has the right to be present at the move-out inspection, and the landlord must give reasonable written notice of its date and time. Deductions are limited to unpaid rent, damage beyond normal wear and tear, and rent lost because the tenant did not give proper notice.
The penalty for getting this wrong is steep: a tenant who proves the deposit was wrongfully withheld recovers twice the amount withheld. The Attorney General’s guide also notes that tenants may not use the deposit as their last month’s rent.
Late fees and landlord entry
Missouri statutes do not set a late fee formula or a general entry notice period for residential landlords, and the Attorney General’s guide states no rule on either. That puts the lease in charge. State the late fee, the grace period if any and the entry procedure in writing, and apply them the same way to every tenant.
The one entry-related rule in the deposit statute is for the move-out inspection: the landlord must give reasonable written notice of the date and time so the tenant can attend.
Rent control in Missouri
Missouri bans local rent control. Section 441.043 says no county or city, including charter governments, may enact, maintain or enforce an ordinance or resolution that regulates the amount of rent charged for privately owned residential or commercial rental property.
Cities can still regulate rents on property they own, make voluntary agreements with owners of subsidized properties and restrict rents on properties assisted with community development block grant funds. Rent increases on private apartments are a matter for the lease and the notice rules.
Missouri landlord-tenant law changes in 2025 and 2026
The main recent change came from House Bills 595 and 343 (2025), which amended Section 441.043 effective August 28, 2025. The rent control ban stays, and the law now also bars cities and counties from these local rules:
- Requiring landlords to accept tenants whose rent is paid in part with federal or other housing assistance.
- Restricting a landlord’s use of income qualifications, credit reports, eviction or property damage history, or criminal history in screening.
- Limiting the security deposit a landlord may require.
- Requiring that tenants automatically get a right of first refusal.
- One carve-out remains: cities and counties may still bar discrimination against tenants who receive veterans’ benefits.
What happens to leases and deposits when you sell
In Missouri, existing leases survive a sale, and the buyer takes the building subject to every tenancy in place. A sale is not a reason to end a lease early, and month-to-month tenants still need one month’s written notice from whoever owns the building.
The Attorney General’s guide tells landlords to give tenants written notice when ownership transfers to a new landlord. Section 535.300 does not spell out how deposits move on a sale, so the purchase contract should list every deposit, credit the buyer at closing and assign the obligation to return them. Hand over the deposit ledger, the current rent roll and copies of every lease.
Selling a Missouri apartment building with tenants in place
Skyline buys apartment buildings with five or more units in Missouri, occupied and as they stand. We buy directly, close on your timeline, and can work inside 1031 deadlines. You do not need to empty units or renew leases before a sale; we take over the leases and deposits at closing.
For the tax side of a sale, see Missouri capital gains tax on real estate and property tax rate in Missouri.
