Ohio Landlord Compliance Kit: Deposit, Notice and Eviction Checklists with an Excel Tracker

Who it is for

Landlords and property managers with rentals in Ohio, and tenants who want the same record, from move-in through move-out or a court case.

Not the right fit if

Your rental is outside Ohio: get that state's kit. Not legal advice, not a lawyer's review of a lease, notice or court case, and not a set of legal notice forms; city and county rules aren't covered.

Why it is different

• Built only from our Ohio data files, checked November 2026 against 16 official pages, among them Ohio Laws: Revised Code 5321.16; Ohio Revised Code 5321.17 (Termination of tenancy); Ohio Revised Code 5321.04 (Landlord obligations); Ohio Revised Code 1923.04 (Notice to leave premises); Ohio Revised Code Chapter 5321 (Landlords and tenants), full chapter; Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1923, Forcible Entry and Detainer, plus National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel (a vetted secondary source, marked in the kit) where no official page could be read.
• 1 item the official pages didn't state is left out of the rules and put on a short look-up list with the page to check, never guessed.
• The workbook recalculates with zero formula errors and works out Ohio notice and deposit dates for you.

What is inside

• Start here. How to use the kit, the 22 confirmed Ohio rules at a glance and a short look-up list of 1 point to check: paying to stop the case, each with the official page.
• Ohio landlord rules checklist. Deposits, notice periods, the eviction case and the small claims limit, each confirmed rule with its source link and check date. What it confirms: deposit limit: No maximum in 5321.16; return deadline: Within 30 days after the rental agreement ends and possession is delivered: the balance with an itemized written notice, sent to the forwarding address the tenant gives in writing (5321.16(B)); itemized list of deductions: An itemized written notice of deductions (5321.16(B)); interest on the deposit: 5% a year on the part of the deposit above $50 or one month's rent, whichever is greater, if the tenant stays six months or more; computed and paid yearly (5321.16(A)); where the deposit is held: None stated in 5321.16; penalty the law states: The money owed plus damages equal to the amount wrongfully withheld and reasonable attorney fees; not available to a tenant who gave no forwarding address (5321.16(C)); ending month-to-month (landlord): Notice at least 30 days before the periodic rental date (7 days before the termination date for week-to-week); ending month-to-month (tenant): Notice at least 30 days before the periodic rental date (7 days before the termination date for week-to-week); rent increase notice: R.C. chapter 5321, read in full, sets no notice period for rent increases; rent terms are left to the rental agreement (5321.06); unpaid rent notice: Written notice to leave three or more days before filing, with the wording the statute requires, delivered by certified mail (return receipt), in person, or left at the home or premises; entry notice: Reasonable notice and reasonable times; 24 hours is presumed reasonable; late fee limits: R.C. chapter 5321, read in full, sets no late fee limit; court: A county or municipal court, or the court of common pleas, in its area; filing fee: No statewide amount: each municipal court sets its own schedule of fees and costs by local rule, so the filing fee depends on the court; time to answer or appear: For the possession claim, any defense can be raised at the trial; no written answer is required before it; hearing after filing: Trial can be no sooner than the seventh day after service is complete (the earliest date here assumes service on the filing day).
• Move-in and move-out deposit checklist. A room-by-room condition checklist for both visits and the steps after move-out, with Ohio's return deadline (within 30 days).
• Notice calendar. When each notice must go out: the lead time for every notice the state's text confirms, with a 2027 month-by-month serve-by table worked out with our notice date calculator's rules.
• Eviction timeline sheet. The Ohio case in order from notice to lockout, with each confirmed stage, an example dated from a sample filing day where the rules give periods, and blanks for your own case dates.
• Ohio landlord workbook (Excel). A tenant notice log that dates each notice from the Ohio rules, a deposit tracker that works out the return date for each move-out, and a rent ledger with a running balance.