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

Who it is for

Landlords and property managers with rentals in Pennsylvania, 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 Pennsylvania: 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 Pennsylvania data files, checked November 2026 against 9 official pages, among them Pennsylvania General Assembly: Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951, section 512; Pennsylvania General Assembly: Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951 (full act PDF); Pennsylvania General Assembly: Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951, Section 501 (Notice to quit); Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General: Consumer Guide to Tenant and Landlord Rights (version 1.1, June 13, 2022); Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency: Constable Field Reference Guide, Civil Law (Rules 501-519); Magisterial District Court 2026 Cost schedule (Adams County, Pennsylvania), 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 Pennsylvania notice and deposit dates for you.

What is inside

• Start here. How to use the kit, the 22 confirmed Pennsylvania rules at a glance and a short look-up list of 1 point to check: diversion or mediation (statewide), each with the official page.
• Pennsylvania 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 more than two months' rent in the first year; no more than one month's rent from the second year on; no increase with rent after five years (511.1); return deadline: Within 30 days after the lease ends or the premises are surrendered and accepted, whichever is first: a written list of damages with the balance (512); itemized list of deductions: A written list of any damages, with payment of the balance (512(a)); interest on the deposit: For deposits over $100, from the second anniversary of the deposit: interest to the tenant each year, less 1% a year the landlord may keep (511.2); where the deposit is held: Over $100: in an escrow account at a regulated institution, with written notice of its name and address, or a bond instead (511.2, 511.3); penalty the law states: Double the amount by which the deposit exceeds actual damages; missing the list forfeits the right to withhold (512(b)-(c)); ending month-to-month (landlord): Notice to quit: the tenant removes within 15 days of service for a lease of one year or less or for an indeterminate time; 30 days for a lease of more than one year; ending month-to-month (tenant): The Attorney General's guide says a month-to-month lease renews unless either side gives at least 15 days' notice before the current month ends; rent increase notice: No notice period stated; unpaid rent notice: Notice to quit for nonpayment: the tenant removes within 10 days of service (mobile home parks differ); entry notice: The tenant must give reasonable access for maintenance, repairs or showing the unit; the guide states no notice period; late fee limits: No numeric cap stated; court: A magisterial district judge (MDJ) hears the case and issues the order for possession; Philadelphia has its own court; filing fee: The court's filing cost is scaled to the amount claimed, and service and mileage costs are added; time to answer or appear: The tenant answers by appearing at the hearing; a cross-complaint can be filed before it; hearing after filing: The hearing is set 7 to 15 days after the complaint is filed.
• Move-in and move-out deposit checklist. A room-by-room condition checklist for both visits and the steps after move-out, with Pennsylvania'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 Pennsylvania 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.
• Pennsylvania landlord workbook (Excel). A tenant notice log that dates each notice from the Pennsylvania rules, a deposit tracker that works out the return date for each move-out, and a rent ledger with a running balance.