Wisconsin rent increase law

Chapter 704 and the rental practices code set no notice period for a rent increase. To end a month-to-month tenancy, either side must give at least 28 days' written notice ending at the end of a rental period.

Wis. Stat. § 704.19(3)

• No city, village, town or county may regulate the amount of rent or fees for a residential rental unit. Wis. Stat. § 66.1015(1) See Rent control and local rules on the Wisconsin page
• A rent increase that would not happen but for retaliation against a tenant's protected complaint or legal right is prohibited. Wis. Stat. § 704.45(1) See Retaliation on the Wisconsin page
• A rental agreement that lets a landlord raise rent because a tenant contacted police, health or safety services is void. Wis. Stat. § 704.44(1m)
• Keep routine rent-change messages separate from Chapter 704 termination notices. For termination, section 704.19(7) counts registered or certified mail on the second day after mailing within Wisconsin and the fifth day elsewhere; paired leaving or posting and mailing counts from the later act. Section 704.21(5) can recognize actual receipt outside the listed methods, but the sender must prove it by clear and convincing evidence. An agreed software channel alone does not establish that proof or convert termination rules into a rent-increase notice period. Wis. Stat. 704.19(7) Wis. Stat. 704.21(5)

Wisconsin bars cities, villages, towns and counties from regulating the amount of rent or fees for residential rental units.

Wis. Stat. § 66.1015(1)

• State law also bars local ordinances that limit tenant screening, add security deposit or inspection requirements beyond the state rules, limit a tenant's responsibility for damage, or require landlords to give tenants information that state or federal law does not require. Wis. Stat. § 66.0104(2)
• Local rental inspection and registration programs are allowed only within the limits and fee caps the state sets. Wis. Stat. § 66.0104(2)(e)
• Local ordinances that do not directly conflict with the rental practices code still apply, and following one does not excuse compliance with the code. Wis. Admin. Code § ATCP 134.10
• The restriction on local rent control preserves certain agreements. A city, village, town, county, housing authority or the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority may agree on rent or fees for a unit it owns or operates, or enter an agreement with a private person who regulates rent or fees. Check whether such an agreement governs the property before treating the general restriction as the only applicable rule. Wis. Stat. 66.1015(2)

A landlord may not raise rent, cut services, sue for possession, refuse to renew, or threaten any of these when the evidence shows the action would not happen but for retaliation against a tenant for a good faith complaint about a defect to an elected official or housing code agency, a complaint to the landlord about repairs or code violations, or exercising a legal right as a tenant.

Wis. Stat. § 704.45(1)

• You may still sue for possession when the tenant has not paid rent, other than a prohibited rent increase. Wis. Stat. § 704.45(2)
• The protection does not cover complaints about defects the tenant caused by negligence or misuse. Wis. Stat. § 704.45(3)
• The rental practices code also bars ending a tenancy, blocking an automatic renewal, or forcing a tenant out, including by cutting heat, water or electricity, in retaliation for reporting violations, joining or organizing a tenants' union, or asserting a legal right. Wis. Admin. Code § ATCP 134.09(5)
• A rental agreement that allows retaliation for contacting police, health or safety services is void. Wis. Stat. § 704.44(1m) Wis. Admin. Code § ATCP 134.08(1)