Renting & housing · Your right
Late rent fees in New York: the $50 or 5% cap and the five-day grace period
Updated By The editorial teamNot reviewed by an attorney — based on the official sources below
In short
Under Real Property Law § 238-a(2), your landlord can charge a late fee only if the rent hasn't been paid within five days of its due date, and the fee can't be more than $50 or 5% of your monthly rent, whichever is less. A lease clause that allows more is void. Late fees also can't be sought in an eviction case, which is limited to rent (Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law § 702). If your landlord hasn't received rent within five days, they must send you a notice by certified mail; skipping it can be a defense in a nonpayment case.
Read on for the details, the exceptions and the sources.
In plain words
- Late fee
- An extra charge for paying rent after the due date.
- Grace period
- The days after the due date when you can still pay without a late fee. In New York, it's five days.
- Void
- Of no legal effect: a lease clause that breaks this law simply doesn't count.
- Summary proceeding
- The fast court case a landlord brings to evict, for example for unpaid rent.
What is it?
Real Property Law § 238-a(2), added by the 2019 Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act, limits what a landlord can charge for late rent on any residential unit: no fee unless the rent hasn't been paid within five days of the due date, and never more than $50 or 5% of the monthly rent, whichever is less. Any lease provision that waives or limits this rule is void (§ 238-a(3)).
Who qualifies?
Every tenant of a residential apartment or house in New York State, rent-regulated or not, and whether the landlord is an owner, a sublandlord or a property manager (§ 238-a applies to any 'landlord, lessor, sub-lessor or grantor').
Exceptions
- Co-op shareholders: a cooperative can charge its shareholder-tenants up to 8% of the monthly maintenance as a late fee if the proprietary lease provides for it. Certain government-supervised co-ops are excluded from that exception (§ 238-a(2)).
- Bounced checks are a separate charge with their own rule: allowed only if your lease provides for it, and limited to the landlord's actual costs or the amount set in General Obligations Law § 5-328, whichever is greater (§ 238-a(2-a)).
- Rent-stabilized tenants: a renewal lease must keep the terms of the expiring lease, so a late-fee clause that wasn't in your original lease can't be added at renewal, according to DHCR Fact Sheet #4.
How much?
The lesser of $50 or 5% of your monthly rent. Because 5% of $1,000 is exactly $50, the cap is 5% of the rent if you pay less than $1,000 a month, and $50 if you pay $1,000 or more.
How is it calculated?
Check the date
If rent is due on the 1st, no late fee may be charged for a payment made within the five days after that date.
Work out 5% of your monthly rent
Multiply the rent by 0.05. On $800, that's $40; on $1,000, $50; on $2,500, $125.
Take the lower number
Compare the result with $50 and use the smaller one. On $800 rent the cap is $40; on $2,500 rent it is $50.
Compare with what you were charged
The cap applies to the charge for a late payment, so a fee that grows each day may not push the total above it.
What documents do you need?
- Your lease, especially the rent due date and any late-fee clause
- Proof of when you paid each month (bank records, receipts, app confirmations)
- The landlord's ledger or bills showing the fee
- Any certified-mail late notice you received
How do you get it?
The protection applies automatically. If you've been charged too much, write to the landlord, cite Real Property Law § 238-a(2), show the correct maximum, and ask them to remove or refund the excess. Pay your rent itself on time, and keep proof of every payment.
What if they refuse?
- A late fee can't be the basis of an eviction case: no fees, charges or penalties other than rent may be sought in a summary proceeding (RPAPL § 702).
- If the landlord didn't send the certified-mail notice of nonpayment after five days, you can raise that as a defense in a nonpayment case (Real Property Law § 235-e(d)).
- To recover fees you already overpaid, you can file in small claims court.
- Rent-stabilized tenants can contact DHCR; others can contact the Attorney General's office.
Deadlines
- Five days after the due date: before then, no late fee is allowed (§ 238-a(2)).
- Five days after the due date: if rent hasn't arrived, the landlord must send you a written notice by certified mail (§ 235-e(d)).
- Time limits apply to small claims and other suits for a refund, so don't wait long.
Calculator
How we calculated
| Monthly rent | $2,500.00 |
|---|---|
| 5% of the rent | $125.00 |
| Fixed cap | $50.00 |
| The lower of the two | $50.00 |
| Days late | 7 — more than 5 days, a fee may be charged |
- The rule applies to residential apartments in New York State.
- Some co-ops may charge shareholders up to 8% of the monthly maintenance fee if the proprietary lease allows it.
- A landlord can't add a fee for a bounced rent check except as § 238-a(2-a) allows.
Figures that change
- Maximum late fee: $50 or 5% of monthly rent, whichever is less (as of 2026-10-30; N.Y. Real Property Law)
- Grace period before a late fee: 5 days after the due date (as of 2026-10-30; N.Y. Real Property Law)
Frequently asked questions
My lease says the late fee is $100. Do I have to pay it?
Not more than the legal cap. Any lease provision that waives or limits § 238-a is void (§ 238-a(3)), so the most the landlord can collect is $50 or 5% of your rent, whichever is less.
Can my landlord evict me for unpaid late fees?
Not through an eviction case for those fees. Under RPAPL § 702, only rent can be sought in a summary proceeding; fees, charges and penalties can't.
Does the five-day grace period include weekends?
Section 238-a(2) speaks of five days from the due date without excluding weekends. If the last day is close, pay early and keep proof.
Can the landlord charge a fee every month I'm late?
Yes, for each payment that is more than five days late, but each fee is subject to the same cap.
Want your own situation checked?
This page is general. Describe what happened, attach the letter or document you received, and get a free first answer — then, if you want, a full check against New York and federal law and a letter ready to send.
Check my situation — freeOfficial sources
This page was written from the sources below. “Checked” is the date the source was last opened and read.
- N.Y. Real Property Law (opens in a new tab)New York State Senate — Open Legislation (official text of the Consolidated Laws) · § 238-a(2), (2-a), (3); § 235-e(d) · Checked: October 30, 2026Late-fee cap and five-day rule, bounced-check fees, waivers void; certified-mail late notice
- N.Y. Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law (opens in a new tab)New York State Senate — Open Legislation (official text of the Consolidated Laws) · § 702 · Checked: October 30, 2026Only rent, not fees or penalties, can be sought in an eviction case
- Fact Sheet #4: Lease Renewal in Rent Stabilized Apartments (opens in a new tab)New York State Homes and Community Renewal (Division of Housing and Community Renewal) · Checked: October 30, 2026Rent-stabilized renewal leases keep the original terms; a new late-fee clause can't be added
- Small Claims — New York State Unified Court System (opens in a new tab)New York State Unified Court System — CourtHelp · Checked: October 30, 2026Recovering overpaid fees in small claims court
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- I pay by money order. Do I need to ask for a receipt? · Rent receipts in New York: when your landlord must give you one
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This page is general information based on the official sources listed, current as of the update date. It is not legal advice and does not replace a review of your own situation; if a case is already in court, a deadline is close, the amount is large, or there are criminal, immigration or family-law consequences, talk to a lawyer or legal aid.