Georgia Residential Lease Agreement

Georgia leaves the security-deposit amount and the late-fee terms almost entirely to the parties, but the rules around HOW you handle a deposit are unforgiving — landlords with ten or more units (or who use a management agent) must escrow the deposit and conduct a pre-occupancy inspection. The state also imposes an asymmetric month-to-month notice (60 days from the landlord, 30 from the tenant) and a written flood-history disclosure if the property has flooded three or more times in the last five years. BuildMyLease's Georgia lease bakes in every one of these so you don't miss any of them.

$29.00 per generated document.

What a Georgia lease must include

Standard lease elements

Parties and the Georgia county + street address of the rental.
Lease term — fixed end date or a month-to-month tenancy.
Monthly rent amount, due date, and accepted payment methods.
Security deposit amount plus the trust-account bank info when the 10-unit/agent regime applies.
Utilities — which the landlord covers and which the tenant pays.
Occupancy rules, pets, smoking, and entry procedures.
Default, dispossessory, and termination language permitted under state law.
Signatures of all parties.

Georgia-required disclosures

Flood-history disclosure — written notice of whether the premises has been damaged by flooding three or more times in the preceding five years. (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-20)
Trust-account / escrow disclosure — name and address of the financial institution holding the security deposit, when the 10-unit-or-management-agent regime applies. (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-31)
Move-in inspection list — comprehensive condition list delivered before the tenant takes occupancy, when the 10-unit-or-management-agent regime applies. (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-33)
Smoke-alarm requirement — landlord installs at the start of the tenancy; tenant maintains batteries. (O.C.G.A. § 25-2-40)
Federal lead-paint disclosure and EPA pamphlet for any unit built before 1978. (42 U.S.C. § 4852d; 24 C.F.R. Part 35)

Georgia-specific workflow

No statutory cap on the security deposit — landlord and tenant negotiate the amount. O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30 et seq.
Landlords with 10+ residential units (or who use a management agent) must hold the deposit in an escrow account at a regulated financial institution OR post a surety bond. § 44-7-31.
The same 10+/agent threshold triggers the move-in condition-list requirement. § 44-7-33.
Within 3 business days after surrender, landlord must prepare a list of damages and costs. § 44-7-34.
Deposit (less lawful deductions) returned within 30 days after surrender + tenant's written demand for return. § 44-7-34.
Wrongful retention exposes the landlord to treble (3×) damages plus attorneys' fees. § 44-7-35.
Late fees: no statewide statutory cap or grace period — lease-governed, subject to the common-law reasonable-relationship test.
Month-to-month termination: 60 days from landlord, 30 days from tenant. § 44-7-7.
Local rent control is preempted statewide. § 44-7-19.
Retaliatory action by the landlord is prohibited (2022). § 44-7-24.
Eviction proceeds via the dispossessory track in §§ 44-7-50 et seq.; tenants have 7 days to answer.

Justia — Georgia Code Title 44, Chapter 7 (Landlord and Tenant)

How a Georgia lease is structured

The document opens with parties, the Georgia county, and the rental-property address.
The term section identifies the arrangement as fixed-term with an end date or as month-to-month.
The rent section sets the monthly amount, due date, accepted payment methods, and NSF/stop-payment handling.
The security-deposit section records the amount, asks whether the 10-unit-or-management-agent regime applies, and (when it does) collects the escrow bank name and address.
The 3-business-day itemization deadline, 30-day return window, and treble-damages warning each appear as a distinct paragraph in the deposit clause.
The flood-history disclosure attaches as a distinct clause (yes / no), with optional details when the answer is "yes".
Smoke alarms, habitability duty, retaliatory-action protection, rent-control preemption, and the dispossessory procedure each appear as distinct clauses.
Termination language recites the asymmetric 60-day landlord / 30-day tenant rule (or a longer single elected period when chosen).
The document closes with the standard tail (severability, governing law) and signature blocks.

BuildMyLease assembles all of this for you in a guided interview.

Free Georgia lease template vs BuildMyLease

Free Georgia lease templates are common, but most omit the 10-unit escrow regime, the 3-business-day itemization deadline, or the asymmetric MTM notice. Here is the honest side-by-side.

	Free template	BuildMyLease
10-unit escrow + move-in inspection regime	Almost never differentiated; most templates assume a single uniform deposit-handling pattern.	The wizard asks the unit count and management-agent question; the escrow + inspection clauses render automatically when the threshold is hit.
3-business-day itemization + 30-day return	Frequently uses a generic "reasonable time" phrasing that does not match § 44-7-34.	Both deadlines are baked into the deposit clause with statutory citations.
Asymmetric MTM notice (60 / 30)	Typically uses a uniform 30-day notice for both parties — out of compliance with § 44-7-7 from the landlord side.	Recites both floors; the wizard's "longer notice" path enforces the 60-day landlord ceiling.
Flood-history disclosure	Often missing; § 44-7-20 makes it a substantive lease requirement.	Always included with a yes/no answer and an optional detail block.
Cost	$0.	$29 per document.

Who this is for

This is for

Georgia landlords managing 1–10 private-market units (single-family, condo, duplex, small multifamily).
Owners who want the 10-unit escrow + inspection clauses, the 3-business-day itemization, and the asymmetric MTM notice baked in.
Landlords issuing a new fixed-term lease OR a month-to-month with proper landlord-side 60-day termination language.

This isn't for

Commercial, mobile-home-park, or transient (hotel/motel) leases.
Tenancies subject to the Georgia Manufactured Home Park Act.
Section 8 / voucher-subsidized tenancies with HUD-specific lease addenda.
Active dispossessory proceedings — those need the magistrate-court forms, not a lease.

Frequently asked questions

Is a written lease required in Georgia?

Not for tenancies of one year or less, but strongly recommended. Tenancies longer than one year must be in writing to be enforceable under the Statute of Frauds (O.C.G.A. § 13-5-30).

How much can a Georgia landlord charge as a security deposit?

Georgia does not cap the deposit amount. Market practice is typically one to two months' rent. Amounts beyond that reduce lease marketability without legal advantage.

Where must the security deposit be held?

For landlords with 10 or more residential units (or any landlord who uses a management agent), in an escrow account at a state- or federally-regulated financial institution OR secured by a surety bond. The institution's name and address must be disclosed in writing to the tenant. O.C.G.A. § 44-7-31. Smaller, self-managed landlords are exempt from the escrow-and-inspection regime.

When must a Georgia landlord return the security deposit?

Within 30 days after the tenant surrenders the premises and provides a written demand for return. The landlord must also prepare a list of damages and costs within 3 business days after surrender. O.C.G.A. § 44-7-34.

What happens if a Georgia landlord wrongfully withholds the deposit?

Treble (3×) the amount wrongfully withheld plus reasonable attorneys' fees. Failure to follow the statutory procedure forfeits the landlord's right to retain. O.C.G.A. § 44-7-35.

What's the cap on late fees in Georgia?

No statutory cap. The lease controls. Georgia courts apply a reasonable-relationship test — the fee should approximate the administrative cost of a late payment, not be a punitive windfall.

How much notice is required to end a month-to-month tenancy?

At least 60 days from the landlord; at least 30 days from the tenant. O.C.G.A. § 44-7-7. This asymmetry is unique to Georgia.

Do I have to disclose flood history?

Yes — Georgia requires a written disclosure when the premises has been damaged by flooding three or more times in the preceding five years. O.C.G.A. § 44-7-20. The lease includes a yes/no question and a free-text details block when the answer is "yes".

Can a Georgia city impose rent control on my property?

No. O.C.G.A. § 44-7-19 preempts any city or county from regulating the amount of rent charged on private residential property.

Do I need a lawyer to create a Georgia lease?

Not for a standard private-market rental covered by this tool. For manufactured-home-park tenancies, federally-subsidized tenancies, or active dispossessory proceedings, consult a Georgia-licensed attorney.