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New Hampshire room rental agreement
Written for New Hampshire law, checked September 24, 2026 General information, not legal advice
Rentari offers a general room-rental agreement form, but it is not tailored to New Hampshire or every local rule. Review the room, shared spaces, occupancy requirements, and applicable New Hampshire and city rules before using a form. The state table below covers selected deposit and entry rules, not every room-rental requirement.
New Hampshire rules that apply
- Landlord entry
- Tenant's consent
- no set notice period; consent needed except emergency repairs
- RSA 540-A:3, IV
Security deposit limit
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
More detail (5)
- 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 New Hampshire lease states the deposit amount and the one month or $100 limit, and names the landlords the deposit rules do not cover.
Landlord entry
You may not enter the tenant's unit without the tenant's prior consent, except to make emergency repairs. Without consent you may enter only for emergency repairs or with a court order.
RSA 540-A:3, IV RSA 540-A:3, V-d
More detail (5)
- Emergency repairs include entering, within 72 hours after you first learn of an infestation of insects or rodents, including bed bugs, to evaluate it, plan remediation or remediate it. RSA 540-A:3, IV-a
- From October 8, 2026, the tenant may not willfully prevent necessary repairs from being completed or refuse access for other reasonable and lawful functions of ownership, at a reasonable time after notice adequate under the circumstances. This does not replace the consent requirement for nonemergency entry. RSA 540-A:3, V
- To check for bed bugs after learning they are in an adjoining unit or the unit above or below, give the tenant 48 hours' written notice. RSA 540-A:3, V-b
- If a tenant refuses access to inspect for lead hazards after at least 48 hours' written notice, for an inspection at a reasonable time, the refusal is good cause for eviction. RSA 130-A:6-a, IV
- Either side may ask the district court to decide whether a request for entry is reasonable and lawful; a good-faith petition of that kind does not carry the statute's civil penalties. RSA 540-A:4, II RSA 540-A:4, IX(c)
The lease says the landlord will not enter without the tenant's prior consent except for emergency repairs, and, as a lease term, that the landlord will ask for access at least 24 hours ahead unless the lease sets another lead time.