How to become a landlord in New Hampshire

State law requires these written notices: the deposit receipt and five-day condition notice, the application fee disclosure, the nonpayment notice's statement of the right to pay and stay, and the notice of a deposit transfer when you sell. Federal law adds the lead-based paint disclosure for older housing, which was not read for this page (RSA 540-A:6, I; RSA 540-A:3, VIII; RSA 540:3, IV; RSA 540-A:6, III(b)).

• If state testing finds lead in the unit's drinking water above the federal action level after a child tests high, notify the tenant or prospective tenant and install a certified lead filter on the kitchen faucet (RSA 540-A:3-a).
• After July 1, 2024, a unit converted to rental housing in a building erected before 1978 needs lead-safe certification before it is rented (RSA 130-A:5-d).
• You may not evict because a child living in the unit tested positive for lead; an eviction within six months of notice of a child's elevated blood lead level is presumed to be for that reason (RSA 130-A:6-a, II).

The owner of restricted property must file with the town or city clerk, within 30 days of becoming the owner, the name, address and phone number of a person in New Hampshire authorized to accept legal papers about the property. An owner living in the state may name itself (RSA 540:1-b, I; RSA 540:1-b, II).

• A town may fine an owner up to $100 for not filing the statement (RSA 540:1-c).
• If an out-of-state owner neither files nor appears in a case, service under RSA 510:4 is presumed lawful and adequate (RSA 540:1-b, III).
• When a deposit moves to a new owner, notify the tenant by registered or certified mail of the new holder's name and address (RSA 540-A:6, III(b)).See Deposit account and interest on the New Hampshire page

New Hampshire's landlord and tenant chapters have no flood disclosure rule. Other New Hampshire law was not checked for one (RSA ch. 540; RSA ch. 540-A).

Every rental unit must have automatic fire warning devices under the national life safety and fire alarm codes, and carbon monoxide detectors under the national carbon monoxide code. A carbon monoxide detector is not required where the unit has no attached garage and no fuel-burning appliance, until one is added. The owner must keep both in suitable condition (RSA 153:10-a, I; RSA 153:10-a, II-a).

• The state fire marshal or an appointed local authority enforces the rule and may issue a written notice of violation with a deadline to fix it. Stricter local rules stay in force (RSA 153:10-a, VI; RSA 153:10-a, VII).

A tenant with a protective order that grants possession to the exclusion of another tenant or household member may ask you to replace or rekey a lock at the tenant's expense. With a copy of the order, you must do it and not give new keys to the restrained person. The landlord and tenant chapters contain no general rekeying rule between tenants (RSA 540:2, VII(b)).

• You are not liable for damages that result directly from that lock change (RSA 540:2, VII(c)).

A security deposit may not be more than one month's rent or $100, whichever is greater. Any money the tenant pays you beyond the monthly rent counts as a security deposit, whatever it is called and whatever it is for (RSA 540-A:6, I(a); RSA 540-A:5, II).

• If the lease calls for rent to be paid quarterly or less often, the deposit taken on top of the first rent payment still may not exceed one month's rent (RSA 540-A:6, I(a)).
• The deposit rules do not apply to a person who rents out a single-family home and owns no other rental property, or who rents units in an owner-occupied building of five units or fewer. The exception does not reach a unit in that building occupied by someone 60 or older (RSA 540-A:5, I).
• The deposit rules also do not cover vacation or recreational rentals (RSA 540-A:5, I; RSA 540-A:5, III).
• A landlord may not raise a customary security deposit for a tenant with a disability (RSA 354-A:11, III(a)).
• A landlord who takes a deposit above the limit is treated as violating the state Consumer Protection Act (RSA 540-A:8, I(a)).

The deposit stays the tenant's money. Hold it in trust and do not mix it with your own funds. You may keep all your tenants' deposits together in one trust account at a bank, savings and loan association or credit union organized under New Hampshire law, or instead post a bond with the town or city clerk. If you hold a deposit for a year or longer, you owe the tenant interest on it (RSA 540-A:6, II; RSA 540-A:6, IV).

• Interest runs at the rate the New Hampshire institution holding the deposit pays on regular savings accounts, from the day you receive the deposit. If deposits are pooled in one account, pay each tenant a proportional share of the interest actually earned (RSA 540-A:6, IV(a)).
• On request, tell the tenant the institution, account number, amount on deposit and interest rate, and let the tenant examine the deposit records (RSA 540-A:6, IV(b)).
• A tenant may ask for the interest accrued every three years, by asking 30 days before that year's tenancy expires; pay it within 15 days after that year's tenancy expires (RSA 540-A:6, IV(c)).
• The bond must be written by a company located in New Hampshire, cover the total deposits you hold on property in that city or town, and be posted with its clerk (RSA 540-A:6, II(c)).
• If you sell the property or assign the lease, turn the deposit over to the new owner or assignee at delivery of the deed or assignment or within five days after, and notify the tenant by registered or certified mail of the name and address of the new holder. Doing so, with interest due, ends your liability for it (RSA 540-A:6, III).

When you receive a deposit, tell the tenant in writing that any conditions in the unit needing repair or correction should be noted on the receipt or given to you in writing within five days of moving in (RSA 540-A:6, I(b); RSA 540-A:6, I(c)).

• Give the tenant a signed receipt at once stating the amount and where the deposit, or the bond for it, is held. No receipt is needed when the deposit is paid by personal check, bank check, or a government or nonprofit agency check, but the five-day conditions notice is still required (RSA 540-A:6, I(b); RSA 540-A:6, I(c)).
• The deposit rules, including this notice, do not apply to the small landlords the definition leaves out (RSA 540-A:5, I).See Security deposit limit on the New Hampshire page

Before collecting any application or renewal fee, tell the applicant in writing the amount of the fee and whether a satisfactory criminal background and credit check is required. If you collect the fee and do not rent to that applicant, return within 30 days of receiving the fee anything beyond the documented cost of the checks and reasonable administrative costs (RSA 540-A:3, VIII).

• The law does not require you to run a criminal or credit check, and does not stop you renting to an applicant who fails one (RSA 540-A:3, VIII).
• A landlord who breaks this rule must return all money the applicant paid with the application, plus court costs (RSA 540-A:4, IX(f)).
• If you commission an investigative consumer report based on personal interviews about character, reputation, personal characteristics or way of life, state law requires a clear written disclosure no later than three days after first requesting it. Include the right to request the investigation's nature and scope. Confirm the report type with the provider before ordering (RSA 359-B:3, IV-V; 359-B:6, I).
• When the consumer makes a written scope request within a reasonable time after that disclosure, give a complete, accurate written description of the investigation's nature and scope within five days after the later of receiving the request or first requesting the report. Keep the dated request, disclosure and response together, and review independent federal duties (RSA 359-B:6, II).