Vermont landlord-tenant laws are located in 9 V.S.A. § 4451 through 4475. It is known as Residential Rental Agreements. These state laws exist to protect both renters and landlords. Property owners and property managers involved with residential lease agreements need to be familiar with Vermont laws and how they impact written leases.
A landlord may keep some or all of the security deposit for nonpayment of rent, damage to the rental property that isn’t a part of normal wear and tear or beyond the control of the renter, nonpayment of the utilities or other expenses the tenant was required to pay to the landlord or to a utility company, or expenses required to remove personal property abandoned by the renter that remained in the rental property. The landlord is required to return the security deposit and an itemized statement with deductions to the tenant within 14 days of the tenant’s move out or abandonment of the rental unit. If the rental property is a seasonal unit, the security deposit and the itemized statement can be returned within 60 days under 9 V.S.A. § 4461.
Under 9 V.S.A. § 4467, a written notice for lease termination must be provided by either party. The length of time to terminate this short-term lease depends on how long the month-to-month agreement has been in place. If the tenant has lived in the rental property for more than two years, the written notice must provide at least 90 days for the tenant to move out. If it is for less than two years, the written notice can give 60 days notice. The notice period is the same if the tenant is one providing the written notice to the landlord.