Georgia tenant screening & landlord laws

Georgia does not statutorily cap application or screening fees, based on a review of O.C.G.A. Title 44, Chapter 7. Landlords should still be able to point to the fee reflecting the reasonable cost of screening.

Georgia's Fair Housing Act (O.C.G.A. § 8-3-202) prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, and national origin — criminal history is not listed as a protected category, and Georgia has no state lookback limit on criminal records in tenant screening. At the federal level, the underlying Fair Housing Act statute and case law such as Texas Dept. of Housing & Community Affairs v. Inclusive Communities Project (2015) remain in place regardless.

Source of income, including Section 8 or other housing vouchers, is not a protected class under Georgia's statewide Fair Housing Act (O.C.G.A. § 8-3-201, § 8-3-202). This is a thinner protection than some other states offer. Atlanta or other major Georgia cities may have local source-of-income ordinances; verify current municipal code before finalizing a screening policy (see "Rules that vary by city" below).

Federal FCRA §615 sets the baseline: if you deny, downgrade, or condition an applicant based on a consumer report, you generally must send an adverse action notice with the reporting agency's information and the applicant's dispute and free-report rights. No Georgia statute adds to this federal baseline.

Georgia caps security deposits at the equivalent of two months' rent (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30.1), effective for residential leases entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2024, under the "Safe at Home Act" (HB 404, 2024). Landlords generally must hold deposits in escrow or a trust account, or post a surety bond (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-31, 44-7-32), and must give the tenant a move-in itemized list of existing defects (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-33). There's a landlord-size exception: a natural-person landlord (with spouse and minor children) who owns 10 or fewer rental units, and who doesn't use paid third-party property management, is exempt from the escrow/bonding and itemization requirements (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-36) — but that exemption does not extend to the two-month cap itself or to the return deadline. Georgia generally requires the deposit to be returned within 30 days after the landlord regains possession of the unit (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-34), with a written itemized statement if any portion is withheld; no Georgia statute requires interest on held deposits.

Georgia has no rent control, and state law affirmatively blocks local governments from creating it: O.C.G.A. § 44-7-19 prohibits any county or municipal corporation from regulating the rent charged on privately owned single-family or multi-unit residential rental property (this doesn't restrict a local government from setting rent terms on property it owns itself). For eviction (called a "dispossessory proceeding" in Georgia), a landlord must generally make a demand for possession, and for nonpayment specifically, must give the tenant a notice to vacate or pay past-due rent, late fees, and other charges within three business days before filing an affidavit in court (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50(c), also added by the 2024 Safe at Home Act). Notice generally must be posted in a sealed envelope on the door plus delivered by any additional method the lease specifies.

Effective January 1, 2027, O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50 will add a new subsection allowing a court, on motion, to make dispossessory case records unavailable to the public where the tenant prevailed, the tenant paid the judgment in full, or seven years have passed since a dismissal or judgment that was paid in full (Ga. L. 2026, p. 988 / SB 406). This provision is not yet in effect. There is no separate, currently-effective Georgia consumer-reporting statute that restricts how a screening report can describe a dismissed or settled eviction case independent of this upcoming sealing mechanism.

Confirm any local source-of-income or fair-chance housing ordinances in Atlanta, Savannah, or Augusta against current municipal code before finalizing a jurisdiction-specific policy. On the county/township question: Georgia, like most Southeastern states, organizes non-city land into unincorporated county areas rather than townships, so a property outside any city limits would generally fall under county government rather than a township — though note that Georgia's statewide rent-control preemption (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-19) applies to both counties and municipalities equally, so this distinction doesn't affect the rent-control question either way.

Does Georgia cap security deposits?

Yes. Georgia caps security deposits at the equivalent of two months' rent under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30.1, effective for leases entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2024.

Is source of income a protected class in Georgia?

Not under Georgia's statewide Fair Housing Act. Atlanta or other Georgia cities may have added local source-of-income protections; check current municipal code.

How much notice does a Georgia landlord have to give before eviction?

For nonpayment of rent, Georgia generally requires a notice to vacate or pay within three business days before the landlord can file a dispossessory affidavit in court, under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50.

Will Georgia eviction records be sealed automatically?

Not automatically, and not yet. Starting January 1, 2027, a Georgia court will be able to seal dispossessory case records on motion in certain circumstances (tenant prevailed, judgment paid in full, or seven years have passed), but this isn't in effect as of today and generally requires the tenant or landlord to request it.

Checkr helps landlords and property managers run consistent, FCRA-compliant tenant screening across Georgia properties, including criminal background, eviction, and credit checks built around adverse-action workflows. Get started with Checkr to set up a screening process for your Georgia rentals.

The resources and information provided here are for educational and informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Always consult your own counsel for up-to-date legal advice and guidance related to your practices, needs, and compliance with applicable laws.