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

Who it is for

Landlords and property managers with rentals in Wisconsin, 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 Wisconsin: 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 Wisconsin data files, checked November 2026 against 14 official pages, among them Wisconsin Legislature: Wis. Stat. 704.28; Wisconsin Legislature: Wis. Admin. Code ch. ATCP 134, Residential Rental Practices (Register November 2024, No. 827); Wisconsin Legislative Council: Information Memorandum IM-2024-12 (landlord-tenant law); Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection: Landlord/Tenant Guide; Wisconsin Legislature: Wis. Stat. 704.19 (Notice terminating periodic tenancies); Wisconsin Court System: Basic Steps for Handling Small Claims for Eviction Actions (SC-6010V, 09/24), plus Nolo and 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 Wisconsin notice and deposit dates for you.

What is inside

• Start here. How to use the kit, the 22 confirmed Wisconsin rules at a glance and a short look-up list of 1 point to check: diversion or mediation (statewide), each with the official page.
• Wisconsin 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 ATCP 134.06; return deadline: Within 21 days after: the rental agreement ends (tenant leaves on time); the agreement's end, or the new tenant's start if re-rented sooner (tenant leaves early); or the date the landlord learns the tenant left (tenant leaves late) (704.28(4)); itemized list of deductions: A written statement describing each item of physical damage or other claim against the deposit and the amount withheld for each, with the deposit balance within 21 days (ATCP 134.06(2), (4)(a)); interest on the deposit: None stated in ATCP 134; where the deposit is held: None stated in ATCP 134: no account type is required; penalty the law states: A tenant who suffers a monetary loss from a violation may sue under Wis; ending month-to-month (landlord): A 28-day notice, no reason needed; the last day lines up with the last day of a rental period; ending month-to-month (tenant): Either side ends a periodic tenancy with at least 28 days' written notice, effective only at the end of a rental period (rent payable more often than monthly: notice equal to the rent period); rent increase notice: No rent increase notice period in the Legislative Council memo as read; Nolo's 50-state chart (updated 4/25/2024) says there is no Wisconsin statute on the notice required to change rent or other terms; unpaid rent notice: Month-to-month: a 14-day notice with no right to cure, or a 5-day notice with a right to cure; entry notice: At least 12 hours' advance notice, during reasonable hours; late fee limits: Only if the rental agreement specifically provides for it; no fee for not paying a late fee; court: All eviction actions are heard in small claims court, in the county where the rental is; filing fee: $94.50 to file a small claims eviction in both county clerk pages read (Clark and Jefferson); personal service is required and its cost is extra; time to answer or appear: All parties must attend the first court date (the return date); hearing after filing: In an eviction the summons sets the return date (the first court date) 5 to 25 days after the summons is issued, and it must be served at least 5 days before that date (the dates here count from filing).
• Move-in and move-out deposit checklist. A room-by-room condition checklist for both visits and the steps after move-out, with Wisconsin's return deadline (within 21 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 Wisconsin 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.
• Wisconsin landlord workbook (Excel). A tenant notice log that dates each notice from the Wisconsin rules, a deposit tracker that works out the return date for each move-out, and a rent ledger with a running balance.