Published 2026-09-25 · 9 min read

Wisconsin Landlord-Tenant Law 2026: The Plain-English Guide

Wisconsin residential rentals run under two bodies of law at once: chapter 704 of the Wisconsin Statutes (Landlord and Tenant) and chapter ATCP 134 of the Wisconsin Administrative Code (Residential Rental Practices), a consumer-protection rule issued by the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) under Wis. Stat. § 100.20. Chapter 799 governs evictions in circuit court. This guide states the current text of each provision it cites, checked against the official code at docs.legis.wisconsin.gov. Four points in the current text are the ones summaries most often flatten or get wrong:

• There is no security deposit cap in Wisconsin. Neither ATCP 134.06 nor Wis. Stat. § 704.28 sets a maximum amount. Control is procedural: what you may withhold, the separate NONSTANDARD RENTAL PROVISIONS document, and a hard 21-day return clock with three different start dates (ATCP 134.06(2)(a)–(c)).
• The deposit penalty is not "double the deposit." ATCP 134 is adopted under § 100.20 (ATCP 134.01), and § 100.20(5) gives a person who suffers pecuniary loss from a violation a direct action for twice the amount of that loss, together with costs, including a reasonable attorney's fee. If the amount wrongfully withheld is $400, the doubled figure is $800 — not twice a $1,500 deposit. Our dedicated Wisconsin security deposit law guide covers ATCP 134.06 in the same detail; where short summaries of that page say "double the deposit," this guide's statement of § 100.20(5) is the precise one.
• Wisconsin has no repair-and-deduct statute. Section 704.07 gives a tenant whose landlord substantially violates the repair duties two remedies: move out (with no rent liability after the premises become untenantable) or stay and take a proportional rent abatement — and the statute expressly provides that it "does not authorize rent to be withheld in full, if the tenant remains in possession" (§ 704.07(4)). The old version of this guide listed repair-and-deduct as a Wisconsin remedy. It is not in the statute.
• The cure rules turn on tenancy type and on the one-year repeat window. A first nonpayment gets a 5-day pay-or-vacate notice with a right to cure by payment; a second default within one year can be met with a 14-day notice with no cure right — and the same 5-day-then-14-day structure, with different wording, governs lease breaches (§ 704.17). A single "5-day notice / 14-day notice" summary misses which notice is available when.

Wisconsin landlord-tenant law at a glance

Before the tenancy: disclosures, earnest money, and screening fees

The ATCP 134.04 disclosures — all before money changes hands

ATCP 134.04 imposes three disclosure duties, each timed before the landlord enters into a rental agreement or accepts any earnest money or security deposit.

Who the landlord is — ATCP 134.04(1). The landlord must disclose in writing, at or before the agreement is entered into, the name and address of (1) the person or persons authorized to collect or receive rent and to manage and maintain the premises, who can readily be contacted by the tenant, and (2) the owner of the premises or another person authorized to accept service of legal process and other notices and demands on the owner's behalf — and that second address must be an address within Wisconsin at which service of process can be made in person. The landlord must keep tenants informed of changes, mailing or delivering written notice of each change within 10 business days after it occurs. The one exception: this subsection does not apply to an owner-occupied structure containing no more than four dwelling units (ATCP 134.04(1)(c)).

Code violations — ATCP 134.04(2)(a) and § 704.07(2)(bm). Before signing or taking money, the landlord must disclose any building code or housing code violation to which all four of these apply: the landlord has actual knowledge of it; it affects the dwelling unit that is the subject of the agreement or a common area; it presents a significant threat to the prospective tenant's health or safety; and it has not been corrected. Section 704.07(2)(bm) imposes the same four-element disclosure duty in the statute itself, on the same timing.

Habitability conditions the landlord knows or could know — ATCP 134.04(2)(b). The landlord must also disclose listed conditions affecting habitability whose existence the landlord knows or could know on reasonable inspection, whether or not any authority has given notice. The fetched text verifies these: heating facilities not in safe operating condition or unable to maintain at least 67 °F (19 °C) in all living areas in occupancy seasons (measured at room center, midway between floor and ceiling); no electricity service, or electrical components not in safe operating condition; any structural or other condition that is a substantial hazard to health or safety or an unreasonable risk of personal injury from foreseeable use (tenant negligence/abuse excepted); plumbing not in good operating condition; and sewage disposal not in good operating condition (ATCP 134.04(2)(b)2.–6.).

Utility charges — ATCP 134.04(3). If charges for water, heat, or electricity are not included in the rent, the landlord must disclose that fact before the agreement or any deposit. If individual units and common areas are not separately metered and the charges are not included in rent, the landlord must also disclose the basis on which utility charges will be allocated among the units. A RUBS-style allocation that was never disclosed is a disclosure violation before it is a billing dispute.

Copies and receipts — ATCP 134.03

If the rental agreement and the landlord's rules are in writing, they must be furnished to prospective tenants for inspection before an agreement is entered into and before any earnest money or security deposit is accepted, and copies must be given to the tenant at the time of agreement (ATCP 134.03(1)). Immediately on accepting any earnest money or security deposit, the landlord must give a written receipt stating the nature and amount of the deposit — except where payment is by a check bearing a notation describing its purpose, unless the tenant requests a receipt. A tenant who pays rent in cash must likewise get a written receipt stating the nature and amount; no receipt is required for rent paid by check (ATCP 134.03(2)).

Earnest money — ATCP 134.05: no dollar cap, strict clocks

"Earnest money deposit" means the total of any payments or deposits, however denominated, given by a prospective tenant in return for the option of entering into a rental agreement in the future or for having an application considered — a compliant credit-check fee is the only carve-out (ATCP 134.02(3)). Two consequences follow. First, ATCP 134 sets no dollar cap on an earnest money deposit: the fetched text of ATCP 134.05 contains no maximum figure, and any guide quoting a Wisconsin earnest-money cap is quoting another state. Second, relabeling does not help: an "application fee," "holding fee," or "administrative fee" that is really consideration for being considered is earnest money under the definition and is governed by the refund rules below.

The mechanics:

• Identify the unit first. A landlord may not accept an earnest money deposit or a security deposit from an applicant until the landlord identifies the dwelling unit or units for which the applicant is being considered (ATCP 134.05(1)).
• Refund by the end of the next business day — by first-class mail or delivery of the full deposit — after any of: the landlord rejects the application or refuses to enter into an agreement; the applicant withdraws before the landlord accepts the application; or the landlord fails to approve the application by the end of the third business day after accepting the earnest money, or by a later date the applicant agrees to in writing — which may not be more than 21 calendar days after the landlord accepted the deposit (ATCP 134.05(2)(a)).
• If an agreement is entered into, the earnest money is applied as rent or as a security deposit (ATCP 134.05(2)(b)).
• Accepting a partial refund or credit does not waive the right to the full amount owed (ATCP 134.05(2)(c)).
• Withholding is narrow. If an approved prospective tenant then fails to enter into the agreement, the landlord may withhold only an amount sufficient to compensate for actual costs and damages from that failure — unless the landlord significantly altered the rental terms previously disclosed — and may not withhold for lost rent unless the landlord made a reasonable effort to mitigate, as provided in § 704.29 (ATCP 134.05(3)).

Credit-check and background-check fees — § 704.085 and ATCP 134.05(4)

The fee rules live in the statute, and ATCP 134.05(4) now points to them. Except as provided in the next sentence, a landlord may require a prospective tenant to pay the landlord's actual cost, up to $25, to obtain a consumer credit report from a consumer reporting agency that compiles and maintains files on consumers on a nationwide basis. The landlord must notify the prospective tenant of the charge before requesting the report and must provide the tenant with a copy of the report (§ 704.085(1)(a); ATCP 134.05(4)(a)). A landlord may not charge for the report if, before the landlord requests it, the prospective tenant provides a report from such an agency that is less than 30 days old (§ 704.085(1)(b); ATCP 134.05(4)(b)) — though the landlord may still obtain a more current report at the landlord's own expense. For a prospective tenant who is not a Wisconsin resident, the landlord may additionally require the actual cost, up to $25, of a background check, again with notice before the check and a copy of the report to the applicant (§ 704.085(2)). The older $20 credit-check figure that still circulates in summaries is superseded: the current cap in both the statute and the rule is $25, conformed by CR 20-033 effective November 1, 2021.

Promises to repair — ATCP 134.07

Every promise or representation that the unit or any other portion of the premises, including furnishings or facilities, will be cleaned, repaired, or otherwise improved must specify the date or time period by or within which the work will be completed. All promises made before the initial rental agreement must be in writing, with a copy furnished to the tenant. The landlord must perform on time unless delay results from labor stoppage, unavailability of supplies or materials, unavoidable casualties, or other causes beyond the landlord's control — and even then must give timely notice of the reason and of when the work will be completed (ATCP 134.07(1)–(3)). "We'll fix the bathroom before you move in," with no date and no writing, violates all three subsections at once.

How much can a Wisconsin landlord charge as a security deposit, and when must it be returned? (ATCP 134.06 and Wis. Stat. § 704.28)

Our dedicated Wisconsin security deposit law guide tracks this section line by line; the rules below are stated from the same text and agree with it, with one precision correction on the penalty, flagged in the introduction above and again below.

No cap — and what counts as a deposit

No provision in ATCP 134.06 or § 704.28 limits how much a landlord may collect as a security deposit. What the code does instead is define the deposit broadly and police the return. "Security deposit" means the total of all payments and deposits given by a tenant to the landlord as security for the performance of the tenant's obligations, and includes all rent payments in excess of one month's prepaid rent (ATCP 134.02(11)). The note to ATCP 134.06(2) spells out the consequence: the chapter does not prevent collecting more than one month's prepaid rent, but if the landlord still holds any prepayment in excess of one month's rent when the tenant surrenders the premises, that excess must be treated as a security deposit under the 21-day return rule. First month, last month, and a deposit therefore do not create three separate pots with three separate clocks — the excess over one month's prepaid rent is deposit money on the deposit clock. Wisconsin also imposes no separate-account requirement and no interest requirement in ATCP 134.06 or § 704.28: unlike some states, the fetched text contains no trust-account or interest duty. The discipline is entirely at the back end.

Check-in: the 7-day notice and the previous tenant's damage list — ATCP 134.06(1)

Before accepting a security deposit — or converting earnest money into one — the landlord must notify the tenant in writing that the tenant may do either or both of the following by a specified deadline not less than 7 days after the start of tenancy: (1) inspect the unit and notify the landlord of pre-existing damages or defects; and (2) request a list of physical damages or defects charged to the previous tenant's deposit (the landlord may require the request in writing) (ATCP 134.06(1)(a)). On request, the landlord must provide all such damages or defects, repaired or not, within 30 days after the request or 7 days after notifying the previous tenant of that tenant's deductions, whichever is later — without disclosing the previous tenant's identity or the amounts withheld (ATCP 134.06(1)(b)). Run every move-in through a move-in/move-out inspection checklist workflow regardless: the tenant's own inspection report is the document that decides later damage disputes. Note what Wisconsin does not do: unlike Washington, skipping the check-in notice does not by itself forfeit the deposit — the sanction runs through the § 100.20(5) penalty below.

The 21-day return — three different start dates — ATCP 134.06(2)

The landlord must deliver or mail to the tenant the full amount of any security deposit, less amounts lawfully withheld, within 21 days after whichever of these applies:

• (a) Ordinary move-out: if the tenant vacates on the termination date of the rental agreement — the date the agreement terminates.
• (b) Early move-out or eviction: if the tenant vacates or is evicted before the termination date — the date the agreement terminates or, if the landlord rerents before that date, the date the new tenant's tenancy begins, whichever the rule's "or" structure makes operative: rerenting early moves the clock up to the new tenancy's start.
• (c) Late move-out or eviction: if the tenant vacates or is evicted after the termination date — the date the landlord learns that the tenant has vacated or has been removed under § 799.45(2) (ATCP 134.06(2)(a)–(c)).

Two practical points. "Deliver or mail" within the 21 days is compliance — the package need not arrive within 21 days — and "deliver" includes delivery by the landlord's agent, such as a private courier (ATCP 134.06(5) note). And a landlord who has otherwise complied is not in violation solely because the postal service could not complete delivery to the address used — though that safe harbor does not affect any other right the tenant has to the deposit's return (ATCP 134.06(5)). Calendar the trigger date the day the tenancy ends, using the Security Deposit Deadline Finder.

Deposit worked example 1 — ordinary move-out. A lease terminates and the tenant vacates on Monday, March 2, 2026. Trigger (a) applies: the 21 days run from March 2, so the deposit and any statement of claims are due delivered or mailed by Monday, March 23, 2026 (ATCP 134.06(2)(a)). The deposit is $1,400. Documented deductions total $310 — $190 for a broken window the tenant's check-in report did not list, and $120 of unpaid landlord-supplied utility charges — so the refund due with the statement is $1,090.

Deposit worked example 2 — rerenting moves the deadline up. A lease runs to Thursday, April 30, 2026, but the tenant vacates early and the landlord rerents: the new tenant's tenancy begins Wednesday, April 1, 2026. Trigger (b) applies and the operative date is April 1, not April 30 — the deposit and statement are due by Wednesday, April 22, 2026 (ATCP 134.06(2)(b)). A landlord who calendars April 30 plus 21 days is three weeks late before starting.

What may be withheld — § 704.28(1) and ATCP 134.06(3)(a)

The statute and the rule now carry the same standard withholding list. When the landlord returns the deposit, the landlord may withhold only amounts reasonably necessary to pay for:

1. tenant damage, waste, or neglect of the premises (subject to the wear-and-tear bar below);

2. unpaid rent for which the tenant is legally responsible, subject to the mitigation rules of § 704.29;

3. payment the tenant owes under the agreement for utility service provided by the landlord but not included in rent;

4. payment the tenant owes for direct utility service from a government-owned utility, to the extent the landlord becomes liable for the tenant's nonpayment;

5. unpaid monthly municipal permit fees assessed against the tenant under § 66.0435(3), to the extent the landlord becomes liable for them; and

6. any other payment for a reason provided in a nonstandard rental provision document that complies with the next subsection (§ 704.28(1)(a)–(f); ATCP 134.06(3)(a)1.–6.).

Nonstandard rental provisions — the separate, signed document

Anything outside items 1–5 — a rekeying charge, a lease-break fee taken from the deposit, a pet-damage charge beyond actual damage — is deductible only if it appears in a nonstandard rental provision that satisfies all of these requirements: the provisions are provided to the tenant in a separate written document entitled "NONSTANDARD RENTAL PROVISIONS"; the landlord specifically identifies each provision with the tenant before the tenant enters into the rental agreement; and the tenant's agreement is evidenced as the rule provides — if the tenant signs or initials a provision, it is rebuttably presumed that the landlord identified it and the tenant agreed to it (§ 704.28(2); ATCP 134.06(3)(b)). The separate document may be pre-printed. A withholding ground buried in paragraph 19 of the lease, never separately identified, is not a nonstandard rental provision — it is an improper deduction. The same separate-document mechanism recurs for entry rights and for any agreement to hold a tenant's property, below, so build one NONSTANDARD RENTAL PROVISIONS packet and use it consistently.

The wear-and-tear bar — ATCP 134.06(3)(c) and § 704.28(3)

Neither the rule nor the statute authorizes withholding any amount for normal wear and tear, or for other damage or loss for which the tenant cannot reasonably be held responsible under applicable law (ATCP 134.06(3)(c); § 704.28(3)). The note to the rule gives the operative example in terms: a landlord may not withhold for routine painting or carpet cleaning where there is no unusual damage caused by tenant abuse. Two refinements matter. A lease may contain a contractual provision requiring the tenant to pay for routine carpet cleaning as a tenancy obligation (see OAG 4-13, discussed under § 704.44 below) — but the cost may not be collected in advance (any prepayment over one month's rent is a deposit) and may not be deducted from the security deposit, because the deposit cannot be withheld for normal wear and tear. Build each deduction from the deductions guide, item by item, against the check-in record.

The statement of claims — the "21-day letter" — ATCP 134.06(4)

If any portion of the deposit is withheld, the landlord must, within the same 21 days and in the same deliver-or-mail manner, give the tenant a written statement accounting for all amounts withheld, which "shall describe each item of physical damage or other claim made against the security deposit, and the amount withheld as reasonable compensation for each item or claim" (ATCP 134.06(4)(a)). A lump-sum line — "damages and cleaning, $500" — does not satisfy the section; "replace bedroom door slab, $140; unpaid March water charge, $62" does. The statement is due even when the deductions consume the entire deposit: the duty is to account, not only to refund. Finally, a landlord may not intentionally misrepresent or falsify any claim against a deposit, including the cost of repairs, or withhold under an intentionally falsified claim (ATCP 134.06(4)(b)) — the one withholding rule in the section that turns on intent, and the one that most damages a landlord's position if a dispute reaches a court.

The penalty, stated precisely — § 100.20(5), ATCP 134.01, and § 704.95

ATCP 134 is adopted under § 100.20, the unfair trade practices statute, and administered by DATCP (ATCP 134.01). The chapter note states the enforcement structure: violations may be prosecuted under § 100.20(6) or § 100.26(3) or (6), and "[a] person who suffers a monetary loss because of a violation of this chapter may sue the violator directly under s. 100.20(5), Stats., and may recover twice the amount of the loss, together with costs and reasonable attorneys' fees." Section 100.20(5) itself gives a person suffering pecuniary loss from a violation of an order under the section twice that loss, plus costs including a reasonable attorney's fee. Both ATCP 134.05 and 134.06 point to Pierce v. Norwick, 202 Wis. 2d 588 (1996) for computing deposit and earnest-money damages.

The base matters, so work it once. On worked example 1, suppose the landlord also deducts $250 for routine repainting — barred wear and tear. The tenant's pecuniary loss is the $250 wrongfully withheld; the § 100.20(5) recovery is twice that loss: $500, plus costs and fees, on top of the underlying entitlement — not $2,800 (twice the $1,400 deposit). Reserving for "double the deposit" misprices the risk in both directions: too much on a small improper deduction, too little where the loss exceeds the deposit (for example, mishandled earnest money, to which the Pierce method may also apply). Section 704.95 bridges the other way: violations of § 704.28 or § 704.44 may also be § 100.20 violations — though DATCP may not use a § 100.20 order or rule to change any ch. 704 right or duty.

Compare Wisconsin's rules to every other state: a 21-day deposit return, no deposit cap, and 5-day+ cure notices are just Wisconsin's formula — every state rewrites deposit caps, return deadlines, and eviction-notice rules. The 50-State Landlord Law Dataset (CSV + JSON) ($29) puts all 50 states' key rules in one spreadsheet-ready dataset.

Which lease clauses make a Wisconsin rental agreement void and unenforceable?

The closed list that voids the whole agreement — § 704.44 and ATCP 134.08

Wisconsin is unusual in the sanction: a residential rental agreement that does any of the following is void and unenforceable — not merely unenforceable as to the offending clause (§ 704.44, opening clause; ATCP 134.08 carries the identical list). The list is closed:

1. Punishing emergency calls. Allows the landlord to increase rent, decrease services, bring an action for possession, refuse to renew, or threaten any of those because the tenant contacted an entity for law enforcement, health, or safety services (§ 704.44(1m); ATCP 134.08(1)).

2. Self-help eviction. Authorizes eviction or exclusion of the tenant other than by judicial eviction procedures under ch. 799 (§ 704.44(2m); ATCP 134.08(2)).

3. Rent acceleration / waiving mitigation. Provides for acceleration of rent on tenant default or breach, or otherwise waives the landlord's duty to mitigate damages under § 704.29 (§ 704.44(3m); ATCP 134.08(3)).

4. Tenant-paid landlord attorney fees. Requires the tenant to pay the landlord's attorney fees or costs in any legal action or dispute under the agreement — without preventing either party from recovering costs or fees under a court order under ch. 799 or ch. 814 (§ 704.44(4m); ATCP 134.08(4)).

5. Confession of judgment. Authorizes the landlord or an agent to confess judgment against the tenant in any action under the agreement (§ 704.44(5m); ATCP 134.08(5)).

6. Negligence disclaimer. States the landlord is not liable for property damage or personal injury caused by the landlord's negligent acts or omissions — without affecting ordinary tenant maintenance obligations under § 704.07 or an agreement (§ 704.44(6); ATCP 134.08(6)).

7. Liability beyond the tenant's control. Imposes liability on the tenant for (a) personal injury arising from causes clearly beyond the tenant's control, or (b) property damage caused by natural disasters, or by persons other than the tenant or the tenant's guests or invitees — again without affecting ordinary § 704.07 maintenance obligations (§ 704.44(7); ATCP 134.08(7)).

8. Waiving habitability. Waives any statutory or other legal obligation of the landlord to deliver the premises in a fit or habitable condition or to maintain them during the tenancy (§ 704.44(8); ATCP 134.08(8)).

9. Victim termination. Allows the landlord to terminate a tenancy based solely on the commission of a crime in or on the rental property if the tenant, or someone who lawfully resides with the tenant, is the victim (as defined in § 950.02(4)) of that crime (§ 704.44(9); ATCP 134.08(9)).

10. Crime termination without the domestic-abuse notice. Allows the landlord to terminate for a crime committed in relation to the rental property where the agreement does not include the notice required by § 704.14 (§ 704.44(10); ATCP 134.08(10)).

Item 10 is not theoretical. In Koble Investments v. Marquardt, 2024 WI App 26, a lease that prohibited use of the premises for an unlawful purpose but omitted the § 704.14 domestic-abuse notice was held void and unenforceable under § 704.44(10) — and the fact that the provision might have been valid under the § 704.17(3m) crime-notice rules did not save it. Audit any inherited lease form against all ten items before its next renewal: one hit voids the document the landlord most needs enforceable. One boundary, from Attorney General Opinion OAG 4-13 (noted in both § 704.44 and ATCP 134.08): a provision requiring the tenant to pay for professional carpet cleaning, absent tenant negligence or improper use, does not void the agreement under item 8, because routine carpet cleaning is not a statutorily imposed landlord obligation — assigning it by contract is permitted, even though (as above) its cost may not be withheld from the deposit.

The mandatory domestic-abuse notice — § 704.14

Every residential rental agreement must include, in the agreement or an addendum, the NOTICE OF DOMESTIC ABUSE PROTECTIONS in the form § 704.14 prescribes. In substance the notice tells the tenant three things: (1) under § 106.50(5m)(dm), a tenant has a defense to an eviction action if the tenant proves the landlord knew or should have known the tenant is a victim of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking and the action is based on conduct related to that abuse committed by a person who was not the tenant's invited guest — or who was a guest, but the tenant has sought an injunction barring the person or has given the landlord a written statement that the person will no longer be a guest and has not re-invited them; (2) a victim tenant may have the right to terminate the agreement in certain limited situations under § 704.16, and a tenant with safety concerns should contact a local victim service provider or law enforcement; and (3) the notice is only a summary and the statutes govern (§ 704.14(1)–(3)). Include the statutory wording verbatim — item 10 above is the price of paraphrasing or omitting it.

Automatic renewal — § 704.15 and ATCP 134.09(3)

A provision that a residential lease will be automatically renewed or extended unless the tenant or either party gives contrary notice is not enforceable against the tenant unless the landlord, at least 15 days but not more than 30 days before the time specified for giving that contrary notice, gives the tenant written notice in the manner specified in § 704.21 calling attention to the renewal provision (§ 704.15). ATCP 134.09(3) restates the same bar as a prohibited practice: no landlord may enforce, or attempt to enforce, an automatic renewal or extension unless that separate written notice was given in the same 15-to-30-day window. Calendar the window at signing; a reminder sent 10 days before the deadline is as ineffective as none.

Can a Wisconsin landlord raise rent by any amount, and what notice is required?

No state rent cap — and what § 66.0104 actually preempts

Chapter 704 contains no cap on the amount of rent and no cap on the size of an increase: rent is set by the agreement, and for a periodic tenancy it changes only when the tenancy's terms are changed on a proper § 704.19 notice (below). The preemption statute, § 66.0104, is aimed at local governments, and its verified text bars a city, village, town, or county from enacting an ordinance that, among other things: limits a landlord's obtaining or using an applicant's or tenant's monthly household income, occupation, rental history, credit information, publicly accessible court records (including arrest and conviction records), or Social Security number or other proof of identity; limits how far back in time credit information, conviction records, or previous housing may be considered; bars leasing or showing a unit to a prospective tenant during the current tenancy; imposes deposit, earnest-money, or pre-/post-tenancy inspection requirements additional to the state administrative rules; limits a tenant's responsibility — or a landlord's right to recover — for damage, waste, neglect, or other amounts the tenant owes under the agreement or applicable law; or requires a landlord to communicate information to tenants or to the municipality beyond what federal or state law requires (subject to narrow exceptions) (§ 66.0104(2)(a)–(d)). Ordinances inconsistent with the earlier paragraphs that were in effect on December 21, 2011, or March 1, 2014, respectively, "do not apply and may not be enforced" (§ 66.0104(3)). Two cautions follow for landlords in Madison, Milwaukee, and Dane County, which have historically maintained their own rental rules: a local provision that survives must be one § 66.0104 does not reach — local housing codes and their enforcement are a different matter from the barred landlord-regulation categories — and a local provision inside a barred category is unenforceable however long it has been on the books. Check the current city code and the preemption list before either complying with or ignoring a local rental rule.

Late fees — agreement-only, with two anti-stacking rules — ATCP 134.09(8)

There is no statutory late-fee cap and no statutory grace period in the fetched Wisconsin text. The whole statewide rule is ATCP 134.09(8):

• No fee unless the agreement says so. "No landlord may charge a late rent fee or late rent penalty to a tenant, except as specifically provided under the rental agreement" (ATCP 134.09(8)(a)).
• Apply prepayments first. Before charging a late fee, the landlord must apply all rent prepayments received from the tenant to offset the rent owed (ATCP 134.09(8)(b)).
• No fee on a fee. A landlord may not charge any fee or penalty for nonpayment of a late fee itself (ATCP 134.09(8)(c)).

Because a late fee must be "specifically provided," a lease that is silent, or that reserves fees "as allowed by law," supports no fee at all. Note also that for notice purposes, "rent" in § 704.17 includes late fees owed for past-due rent (§ 704.17(1g)) — a lawful, agreement-based late fee is part of the amount a 5-day pay-or-vacate notice may demand. For the cross-state workflow on fee drafting, see how to handle late rent.

Raising rent on a month-to-month tenancy

Wisconsin has no separate rent-increase-notice statute. An increase for a month-to-month or other periodic tenant is a change to the terms of a continuing periodic tenancy, and it is made on the tenancy-termination machinery of § 704.19: written notice of at least 28 days, effective only at the end of a rental period (see the termination section below). Serve the increase notice so that the new rent first applies to a period that begins at least 28 days after the notice is given; an increase announced mid-period, or on 28 days that expire mid-period, does not take effect until the following period boundary. For a term lease, rent is fixed by the agreement for the term — § 704.19 does not apply to a tenancy for a term that ends on a fixed date (§ 704.19(7)(b)) — so an increase waits for renewal unless the lease itself provides otherwise. See how to raise rent legally for the documentation workflow.

How much notice must a Wisconsin landlord give before entering? (§ 704.05(2) and ATCP 134.09(2))

Until the lease expires, the periodic tenancy or tenancy at will terminates, and so long as the tenant is not in default, the tenant has the right to exclusive possession — except as the entry rules provide (§ 704.05(2)). The statute says the landlord may, "upon advance notice and at reasonable times, inspect the premises, make repairs and show the premises to prospective tenants or purchasers," and ATCP 134.09(2) converts "advance notice" into a number and a closed purpose list:

• Purposes. Except as provided in the exception and nonstandard-provision paragraphs, a landlord may not enter a dwelling unit during tenancy at all, and may enter only to inspect the premises, make repairs, or show the premises to prospective tenants or purchasers, as authorized under § 704.05(2) — and only for the amount of time reasonably required for that purpose (ATCP 134.09(2)(a)1.).
• 12 hours. Entry is permitted only "upon advance notice and at reasonable times," and "advance notice means at least 12 hours advance notice unless the tenant, upon being notified of the proposed entry, consents to a shorter time period" (ATCP 134.09(2)(a)2.). Wisconsin's 12 hours is half the 24 hours most states use — the old page had this right — but note the consent qualifier: a tenant who agrees to a shorter window when notified has consented within the rule.
• Exceptions. The notice-and-purpose paragraph does not apply where the tenant, knowing the proposed time of entry, requests or consents in advance to the entry, or where the tenant is absent and the landlord reasonably believes entry is necessary to protect the premises from damage (ATCP 134.09(2)(b)1., 3.). Section 704.05(2) carries the parallel statutory version: if the tenant is absent and the landlord reasonably believes entry is necessary to preserve or protect the premises, the landlord may enter without notice and with such force as appears necessary.
• Wider entry only by nonstandard provision. A rental agreement may include a nonstandard rental provision authorizing entry at reasonable times in circumstances beyond the above — but only in the separate "NONSTANDARD RENTAL PROVISIONS" document, specifically identified and discussed with the tenant before the agreement is signed, with the same sign-or-initial presumption as for deposit provisions (ATCP 134.09(2)(c)).
• Announce yourself. No landlord may enter during tenancy without first announcing his or her presence to anyone who may be present, and identifying himself or herself upon request — knocking or ringing the bell is the rule's own example (ATCP 134.09(2)(d)).

Entry worked example. You need to show the unit on Saturday, March 7, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. Twelve hours before 11:00 a.m. Saturday is 11:00 p.m. on Friday, March 6, 2026 — notice given Friday evening satisfies ATCP 134.09(2)(a)2., but notice first given at 9:00 a.m. Saturday does not, unless the tenant, on being notified, consents to the shorter period. Log the notice time, method, stated purpose, and time in and out for every entry.

What repairs must a Wisconsin landlord make under § 704.07?

The landlord's duties — § 704.07(2)

Section 704.07 applies to all residential tenancies, and "[a]n agreement to waive the requirements of this section in a residential tenancy, including an agreement in a rental agreement, is void" (§ 704.07(1)). Except for repairs made necessary by the tenant's negligence or improper use, the landlord must:

1. keep in a reasonable state of repair the portions of the premises over which the landlord maintains control;

2. keep in a reasonable state of repair all equipment under the landlord's control necessary to supply services the landlord has expressly or impliedly agreed to furnish — the statute's examples are heat, water, elevator, and air conditioning;

3. make all necessary structural repairs;

4. except for residential premises subject to a local housing code, and except as § 704.07(3)(b) provides, repair or replace any plumbing, electrical wiring, machinery, or equipment furnished with the premises that is no longer in reasonable working condition; and

5. for a residential tenancy, comply with any local housing code applicable to the premises (§ 704.07(2)(a)1.–5.).

In a multi-tenant building, one tenant's negligence or improper use does not relieve the landlord of the duty owed to the other tenants (§ 704.07(2)(b)). The pre-signing code-violation disclosure of § 704.07(2)(bm) — actual knowledge, affecting the unit or a common area, a significant threat to health or safety, uncorrected — is stated with the ATCP 134.04 disclosures above. And where the premises are damaged by fire, water, or other casualty not caused by the landlord's negligence or intentional act, subsection (2) does not govern at all: subsections (3) and (4) do (§ 704.07(2)(c)).

The tenant's duties — § 704.07(3)

If the premises are damaged by the negligence or improper use of the tenant, the tenant must repair the damage and restore the appearance of the premises by redecorating — though the landlord may elect to do the repair or redecoration instead, in which case the tenant must reimburse the landlord's reasonable cost, which is presumed reasonable unless the tenant proves otherwise (§ 704.07(3)(a); the parallel default rule in § 704.05(3) is to the same effect, and § 704.05(3) also bars physical changes to the premises without the landlord's prior consent and any unlawful use or unreasonable interference with other occupants). Except for residential premises subject to a local housing code, the tenant must also keep plumbing, electrical wiring, machinery, and equipment furnished with the premises in reasonable working order if repair can be made at a cost that is minor in relation to the rent (§ 704.07(3)(b)). A tenant in a residential tenancy must comply with any local housing code applicable to the premises (§ 704.07(3)(c)). A material violation of § 704.07(3) is itself a breach that supports a § 704.17 notice, below.

Untenantability — the tenant's real remedies — § 704.07(4)

This subsection is the whole tenant-remedy scheme in ch. 704 for repair failures, and it must be quoted carefully because the old version of this guide added a remedy the statute does not contain:

"If the premises become untenantable because of damage by fire, water, or other casualty or because of any condition hazardous to health, or if there is a substantial violation of sub. (2) materially affecting the health or safety of the tenant, the tenant may remove from the premises unless the landlord proceeds promptly to repair or rebuild or eliminate the health hazard or the substantial violation...; or the tenant may remove if the inconvenience to the tenant by reason of the nature and period of repair, rebuilding, or elimination would impose undue hardship on the tenant. If the tenant remains in possession and the condition materially affects the health or safety of the tenant or substantially affects the use and occupancy of the premises, rent abates to the extent the tenant is deprived of the full normal use of the premises. This section does not authorize rent to be withheld in full, if the tenant remains in possession. If the tenant justifiably moves out under this subsection, the tenant is not liable for rent after the premises become untenantable and the landlord must repay any rent paid in advance apportioned to the period after the premises become untenantable. This subsection is inapplicable if the damage or condition is caused by negligence or improper use by the tenant." (§ 704.07(4), emphasis added.)

Unpacked, the remedies are exactly three:

• Move out. If the landlord does not proceed promptly to repair, rebuild, or eliminate the condition — or if the repair process itself would impose undue hardship — the tenant may leave, owes no rent after the premises became untenantable, and is entitled to repayment of prepaid rent apportioned to the period after that date.
• Stay and abate. A tenant who remains in possession takes a proportional abatement measured by the deprivation of full normal use — one unusable bedroom of three supports an abatement argument, not a rent strike.
• Nothing more in this section. There is no repair-and-deduct procedure, no rent-escrow procedure, and no right to withhold rent in full while remaining in possession anywhere in § 704.07(1)–(5) as fetched. A tenant who stops paying entirely while staying put is in default under § 704.17, however genuine the underlying defect; the landlord's exposure runs the other way — abatement, a justified move-out with a prepaid-rent refund, code enforcement under the local housing code the landlord must comply with, and an ATCP 134 / § 100.20 claim where a rule has been violated. Section 704.07(5) completes the scheme by limiting local abatement ordinances: a city, town, village, or county ordinance regulating rent abatement may permit abatement only for conditions that materially affect health or safety or substantially affect use and occupancy.

Abatement worked example. Rent is $1,500 a month. A furnace failure the landlord does not promptly repair leaves the unit without adequate heat for 10 days of a 30-day month, depriving the tenant of the full normal use of the whole unit for that period. The § 704.07(4) abatement measure is the deprivation: $1,500 × 10/30 = $500 abated for that month — not $1,500 withheld, and not a credit the tenant may manufacture by paying a contractor and deducting the invoice. If the tenant instead justifiably moves out on day 10, rent liability stops at untenantability and prepaid rent for the remaining 20 days — $1,000 — must be repaid.

For the operational side — notice intake, vendor dispatch, documentation — see how to handle maintenance requests.

Which termination notice must a Wisconsin landlord serve for each ground? (§ 704.17, § 704.19, and ch. 799)

The § 704.17 table

Every for-cause termination in Wisconsin runs through § 704.17, and the right notice depends on both the ground and the tenancy type. "Rent" in this section includes past-due rent and late fees owed for past-due rent (§ 704.17(1g)). Notices must be in writing and given as specified in § 704.21 (§ 704.17(4)).

The cure mechanics, precisely:

• Nonpayment, month-to-month — § 704.17(1p)(a). The tenancy terminates if the landlord gives a pay-or-vacate notice with a date at least 5 days after it is given and the tenant fails to pay. The same paragraph gives a blunter alternative: while the tenant is in default, a 14-day vacate notice, with no pay option stated.
• Breach, month-to-month — § 704.17(1p)(b). Either (1) a 5-day remedy-or-vacate notice — a tenant is "considered to be complying" if, promptly on receipt, the tenant takes reasonable steps to remedy and proceeds with reasonable diligence, or, where damages are adequate protection, makes a bona fide, reasonable offer to pay all damages — followed, on a repeat of waste or of the same or any other covenant breach within one year, by a 14-day vacate notice; or (2) a direct 14-day vacate notice with no remedy step.
• Nonpayment, lease ≤1 year / year-to-year — § 704.17(2)(a). First default: the same 5-day pay-or-vacate. If the tenant paid by the specified date (or was permitted to remain) and defaults again within one year of a prior noticed default, a 14-day vacate notice terminates the tenancy — the statute states no cure right in it.
• Breach, lease ≤1 year / year-to-year — § 704.17(2)(b). A 5-day remedy-or-vacate notice with the same deemed-complying definition; a repeat within one year supports a 14-day vacate notice.
• Drug nuisance — § 704.17(1p)(c), (2)(c), (3)(b). In every tenancy type, an owner who receives written notice from a law enforcement agency (§ 165.83(1)(b)) or the district attorney's office that a § 823.113(1) or (1m)(b) nuisance exists in the unit or was caused by the tenant on the property may terminate on a 5-day vacate notice stating its basis and the right to contest in a ch. 799 action; on a contest, the owner must prove the allegation by the greater preponderance of the credible evidence.
• Criminal / drug-related activity — § 704.17(3m). Notwithstanding the breach tracks, a landlord may terminate without an opportunity to remedy where the tenant, a household member, or a guest/invitee engages in criminal activity threatening the health, safety, or peaceful enjoyment of other tenants, nearby residents, or the landlord or the landlord's agent/employee, or in drug-related criminal activity on or near the premises (manufacture or distribution of a controlled substance; a disabled person's prescribed substance excepted). The notice requires vacating at least 5 days after it is given, must describe the activity, its date, and the individuals involved, and must advise of the rights to seek counsel, a volunteer clinic, or a tenant resource center and to contest before a court commissioner or judge (landlord's proof: greater preponderance). No arrest or conviction is required, and the paragraph does not apply to a victim of the activity (§ 704.17(3m)(c)).
• Leases over one year — § 704.17(3)(a). One 30-day notice to pay, repair waste, or otherwise comply, with the same deemed-complying definition — except that for rent, all rent due must be paid by the date in the notice.
• Two safety valves. A pay notice stating an incorrect amount due is still valid, unless the statement was intentionally incorrect or the tenant paid or tendered the amount the tenant believes due (§ 704.17(4m)). Lease provisions contrary to § 704.17 are invalid — except in leases over one year, and with no exception for provisions contrary to the (3m) crime track (§ 704.17(5)).

Notice worked example. March rent is due Sunday, March 1, 2026 and is not paid. The landlord gives a § 704.17(1p)(a) 5-day notice on Monday, March 2, 2026: the pay-or-vacate date must be at least 5 days after March 2 — Saturday, March 7, 2026 at the earliest. Payment in full by that date cures. Suppose instead this is a lease tenancy, the tenant already received a 5-day notice and paid within the past year, and defaults again: the landlord's § 704.17(2)(a) 14-day notice given Monday, March 2 sets the vacate date no earlier than Monday, March 16, 2026, and the statute gives no payment cure. Serving the 5-day form out of habit in the second situation hands the tenant a cure right the statute had already withdrawn.

Ending a periodic tenancy without cause — § 704.19's 28 days

Section 704.19 governs periodic tenancies and tenancies at will, however created (§ 704.19(1)):

• Written notice is the only route, unless the parties expressly agreed on another method proved by clear and convincing evidence, or the tenancy ended by surrender (§ 704.19(2)(a)).
• End of the period only — for a year-to-year tenancy, the end of the rental year, even if rent is payable more often (§ 704.19(2)(b)1.). For-cause and safety terminations under §§ 704.16 and 704.17 are excepted (§ 704.19(2)(b)2.).
• Length: at least 28 days — except notice at least equal to the rent-paying period where rent is payable less often than monthly, and at least 90 days for agricultural year-to-year tenancies (§ 704.19(3)). The old page's "28 days, not 30" point is correct — a signature Wisconsin number.
• Contents: writing, formal or informal, substantially stating the intent to terminate and the date; errors that do not mislead do not invalidate it (§ 704.19(4)). Where no date is stated or determinable, the section supplies a default construction — give an explicit date and it never matters.
• Notice may be given by a party's agent, attorney, or person entitled to possession, among others the section lists, and year-to-year farm tenancies near urban land carry their own limits — check § 704.19(6)–(7) before serving on either. The section does not govern a tenancy for a term ending on a date certain, nor certain publicly assisted tenancies where another law requires stating grounds (§ 704.19(7)).

Termination worked example. A month-to-month tenancy runs by calendar months. The landlord gives § 704.19 notice on Monday, March 2, 2026. Twenty-eight days after March 2 is Monday, March 30, 2026 — but the tenancy may end only at the end of a rental period, so the earliest effective termination date is Tuesday, March 31, 2026, the last day of the March period. A notice given on March 4 instead would not reach a full 28 days before March 31 and would first take effect April 30, 2026.

Holdover — § 704.25 and the double-rental-value floor in § 704.27

If a tenant holds over after a lease expires, the landlord may proceed in any manner permitted by law to remove the tenant and recover damages (§ 704.25(1)), or may elect a periodic tenancy: month-to-month for leases of less than a year or for any period primarily for private residential purposes (or on the lease's weekly/daily basis), year-to-year only for nonresidential leases of a year or more (§ 704.25(2)). Accepting rent for a post-expiration period — or other conduct showing intent to let the tenant remain — is the election, unless removal proceedings have already begun. The holdover tenancy carries the original terms, except rights to renew/extend, to purchase, and any first-offer restriction on the landlord's power to sell (§ 704.25(3)); the section yields to contrary agreement (§ 704.25(4)), and any holdover tenancy (including through an assignee or subtenant, § 704.25(5)) is terminable under § 704.19 (§ 704.25(6)).

A tenant who stays without consent after expiration, notice-termination, or agreed termination faces § 704.27: the landlord recovers damages suffered, with a minimum of twice the rental value apportioned daily for the holdover period absent proof of greater damages. "Rental value" is what the premises might reasonably have rented for, not less than the prior period's rent, including the money equivalent of tenant obligations such as taxes and agreed repairs. Decide on day one which track you are on — accepting rent after deciding to remove can convert removal into a § 704.25(2) tenancy. For a tenant who breaks a lease early, § 704.29 imposes the mirror-image duty to mitigate; see tenant breaking a lease.

The eviction action — ch. 799

A termination notice ends the tenancy; it does not remove the tenant. Possession is recovered only through a civil eviction action under ch. 799, brought by a person entitled to possession (or a written-authorized agent) to remove a person not entitled to possession or occupancy (§ 799.40) — the procedure ATCP 134.09(7) and § 704.44(2m) make the exclusive route. In outline: the landlord files a summons and complaint in circuit court in the county where the premises are located; the defendant is served as ch. 799 and § 801.11 provide (eviction actions are excepted from the mail-service option courts may authorize for other small-claims actions, § 799.12(2)); the case proceeds on the return-date and hearing structure of §§ 799.20 and 799.206; and on judgment for the plaintiff the court issues a writ of restitution, executed by the sheriff under §§ 799.44–799.45 — the removal ATCP 134.06(2)(c) references for the deposit clock. If the tenant does not appear, the court inquires whether the complaint's allegations are true and whether proper notice was given before granting relief (§ 799.40(4)(a)). Costs taxed for the recovering party include the filing fee and service fees, including the sheriff's charges for executing the writ (§ 799.25(1), (6)). To run these same steps for your own case — notice, filing, return date and hearing, and the writ of restitution — use the Eviction Timeline Calculator.

Fees, verified on the official court source. The Wisconsin Court System's circuit court fee chart (updated September 2, 2026) lists the small-claims filing fee to "commence action $10,000 or less, § 814.62(3)(a), § 799.01" as $94.50 — $22 filing fee + $51 court support services surcharge + $21.50 justice information surcharge — and expressly notes that the category "includes evictions." Service by mail, where ch. 799 permits it, carries a $2-per-defendant mailing fee plus postage under § 814.62(4). Process-server and sheriff service charges are set locally and are not stated here; budget for them separately and confirm with the clerk of the filing county. The old version's "low fees, fast hearings, uncontested cases typically resolve in 3–5 weeks" is dropped: no official source fetched for this guide verifies a statewide timeline, and actual time-to-hearing varies by county and by whether the tenant contests. The full process narrative is in how to evict a tenant.

Self-help is prohibited — ATCP 134.09(7)

"No landlord may exclude, forcibly evict or constructively evict a tenant from a dwelling unit, other than by an eviction procedure specified under ch. 799, Stats." (ATCP 134.09(7)). Lock changes aimed at the tenant, removing doors or belongings, and shutting off heat, water, or electricity to force a departure are each constructive or forcible eviction within the sentence — and ATCP 134.09(5) separately treats termination or substantial reduction of heat, water, or electricity as a means of constructive eviction when done in retaliation (below). A related confiscation bar: except as provided in §§ 704.05(5), 704.11, and 779.43, or by an express written agreement executed at the time of the initial agreement in a signed-or-initialed NONSTANDARD RENTAL PROVISION document, a landlord has no lien on, and is prohibited from seizing or holding, a tenant's property (ATCP 134.09(4)).

Abandoned property — § 704.05(5)

When a tenant removes from or is evicted from the premises and leaves personal property behind, Wisconsin's default is landlord-friendly — if the paperwork was done at signing:

• Presumption and discretion. Absent a written agreement to the contrary, the landlord may presume the property abandoned and may, subject to the medical-items exception and § 799.45(3m), dispose of it in any manner the landlord, in its sole discretion, determines is appropriate (§ 704.05(5)(a)1.). If the landlord sells the property, the landlord may send the proceeds, minus costs of sale and any storage charges if the property was first stored, to the Department of Administration for deposit under § 20.505(7)(h) (§ 704.05(5)(a)2.).
• Medication and medical equipment — hold 7 days. Prescription medication or prescription medical equipment must be held for 7 days from the date the landlord discovers it; after that the landlord may dispose of it, but must promptly return it if the tenant requests it before disposal (§ 704.05(5)(am)).
• Vehicles and manufactured/mobile homes — notice first. Before disposing of a left-behind manufactured home, mobile home, or titled vehicle, the landlord must give notice of intent to dispose (by sale or other appropriate means) to the tenant and to any secured party of which the landlord has actual notice, personally or by regular or certified mail to the last-known address (§ 704.05(5)(b)).
• The no-store notice — the trap. If the landlord does not intend to store property left behind (other than the medical items), the landlord must give the tenant written notice of that fact when the tenant enters into, and when the tenant renews, the rental agreement. A landlord who never gave that notice falls out of the modern discretion rule entirely: notwithstanding the paragraphs above, the landlord must comply with § 704.05 as it read in the 2009 statutes — the old store-or-notice regime — for that tenant's property (§ 704.05(5)(bf)). Put the no-store sentence in every lease and every renewal.
• Third parties and redemption. The disposal power reaches property left by the tenant whether owned by the tenant or by others, notwithstanding others' ownership or security interests (subject to § 321.62), and the tenant or a secured party may redeem the property at any time before the landlord has disposed of it or contracted to dispose of it, by paying the landlord's disposition expenses (§ 704.05(5)(c)). The subsection does not apply to self-storage lessees under § 704.90 (§ 704.05(5)(cm)).

Retaliation, domestic abuse, and fair housing

Retaliation — § 704.45 and ATCP 134.09(5): a "but for" test, and no presumption window

Section 704.45(1) provides that, except as subsection (2) allows, a landlord in a residential tenancy may not increase rent, decrease services, bring an action for possession, refuse to renew a lease, or threaten any of the foregoing, "if there is a preponderance of evidence that the action or inaction would not occur but for the landlord's retaliation against the tenant" for doing any of:

• (a) making a good-faith complaint about a defect in the premises to an elected public official or a local housing code enforcement agency;
• (b) complaining to the landlord about a violation of § 704.07 or a local housing code applicable to the premises; or
• (c) exercising a legal right relating to residential tenancies (§ 704.45(1)(a)–(c)).

Read the burden carefully: the statute as fetched contains no 90-day, 180-day, or other presumption window — no provision deems an adverse action taken within a set period after protected activity to be retaliatory. The test is purely the preponderance "but for" inquiry, which makes the landlord's contemporaneous file (rent ledgers, code correspondence, pre-existing renewal decisions) the whole defense. Two limits: the landlord may still bring an action for possession if the tenant has not paid rent — other than a rent increase itself prohibited by the section (§ 704.45(2)) — and the section does not apply to complaints about defects caused by the tenant's own negligence or improper use (§ 704.45(3)).

ATCP 134.09(5) states a parallel, in one respect broader, ban: no landlord may terminate a tenancy, give notice preventing automatic renewal, or constructively evict — expressly including by terminating or substantially reducing heat, water, or electricity — in retaliation because the tenant has (a) reported a violation of ATCP 134 or a building or housing code to any governmental authority, or filed suit alleging one; (b) joined or attempted to organize a tenant's union or association — a trigger § 704.45 does not list; or (c) asserted, or attempted to assert, any right specifically accorded to tenants under state or local law (ATCP 134.09(5)(a)–(c)). A violation of the rule is actionable under § 100.20(5) like any other ATCP 134 violation. The neighboring prohibited practices complete the picture: no renting or advertising premises that have been placarded and condemned until the required repairs are completed (ATCP 134.09(1)); no failure to deliver possession at the agreed time except for circumstances beyond the landlord's control (ATCP 134.09(6)); and no inducing a rental agreement by misrepresenting a unit's location, characteristics, or equivalency, misrepresenting the amount of rent or non-rent charges, or failing to disclose non-rent charges that will increase the total payable when a rent amount is represented (ATCP 134.09(9)(a)).

Domestic abuse protections — §§ 704.16, 704.14, and 106.50(5m)(dm)

Tenant termination for an imminent threat — § 704.16(1). A residential tenant may terminate the tenancy and remove from the premises if both are true: the tenant or a child of the tenant faces an imminent threat of serious physical harm from another person if the tenant remains; and the tenant gives the landlord notice in the manner provided under § 704.21, together with a certified copy of a qualifying document. Section 704.16(1)(b) lists seven categories of qualifying documents; the fetched text verifies these: an injunction order under § 813.12(4) protecting the tenant; an injunction order under § 813.122 protecting a child of the tenant; an injunction order under § 813.125(4) protecting the tenant or a child, based on conduct that would constitute sexual assault (§§ 940.225, 948.02, 948.025) or stalking (§ 940.32) or an attempt or threat; a condition of release under ch. 969 ordering the person not to contact the tenant; and a criminal complaint alleging the person sexually assaulted the tenant or a child under those sexual-assault sections. Do not demand a particular document type if the tenant tenders another document from the statutory list — and do not condition termination on police involvement the statute does not require.

Lock changes — § 704.16(4). On the request of a residential tenant who provides a certified copy of a qualifying document, the landlord shall change the locks — or may instead give the tenant permission to change them — within 48 hours of receiving the request and the certified copy. The tenant bears the cost; a tenant who changes the locks under permission must provide the landlord a key within a reasonable time. Where the person who is the subject of the document is also a tenant of the premises, the duty is narrower: it applies only if the document is one of the specified injunction types directing that person to avoid the requesting tenant's residence, or an order directing no contact. A landlord is not liable for civil damages for action taken to comply with the subsection (§ 704.16(4)(a)–(d)).

The landlord's route against an offending tenant — § 704.16(3). The section also gives the landlord a termination path against a tenant whose conduct creates the threat, on written notice complying with § 704.21 requiring the offending tenant to vacate by a date at least 5 days after the notice, stating its basis and the right to contest in a ch. 799 action — where, on a contest, the landlord must prove the allegations by the greater preponderance of the credible evidence (§ 704.16(3)(b)3., as fetched). Read this with § 704.44(9)–(10) and § 704.17(3m)(c): the victim's tenancy is protected at each of those points, and the § 704.14 notice (above) is what tells the tenant so.

The eviction defense — § 106.50(5m)(dm), via § 704.14. As the mandatory notice states, a tenant has a defense to an eviction action on proof that the landlord knew or should have known the tenant is a victim of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking and that the action rests on conduct related to that abuse by a non-guest, or by a former guest the tenant has moved to exclude by injunction or written statement (§ 106.50(5m)(dm), as summarized in § 704.14(1)). Treat any eviction file involving a known victim with that defense in view from the first notice.

Fair housing — § 106.50, stated verbatim

Wisconsin's Open Housing Law declares it state policy that all persons have an equal opportunity for housing regardless of — and this is the section's own list, in its own order — "sex, race, color, sexual orientation, disability, religion, national origin, marital status, family status, status as a victim of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking, lawful source of income, age, or ancestry" (§ 106.50(1)). The definition of "member of a protected class" tracks the same list, and "age," for this purpose, means at least 18 years of age (§ 106.50(1m)(am)). The legislature expressly extended the law to cover owner-occupied single-family residences (§ 106.50(1)) — broader than the federal Fair Housing Act's small-owner exemptions, so do not import the federal exemption analysis into a Wisconsin file.

Measured against the seven federal classes, Wisconsin adds sexual orientation, marital status, status as a victim of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking, lawful source of income, age (18+), and ancestry. Two precision points. First, lawful source of income IS a state protected class — § 106.50(1) says so expressly, and the definition reaches lawful compensation, investment profit, negotiable instruments and vouchers representing monetary value such as food stamps, Social Security, public assistance, and unemployment or worker's compensation payments. One caution from the case law as summarized in industry fair-housing materials: whether federal housing-choice vouchers fall within "lawful source of income" was held not clearly covered in Knapp v. Eagle Property Management Corp., 54 F.3d 1272 (7th Cir. 1995) — a narrower, older federal-court reading that landlords should not stretch into a general permission to refuse voucher holders, particularly because local ordinances may protect source of income more broadly (Madison and Dane County have historically done so) and § 66.0104 does not list fair-housing classes among the subjects it preempts. When in doubt, apply the state list as written and get advice on the specific program. Second, gender identity and gender expression do not appear in the current text of § 106.50(1) or (1m)(nm) as fetched: bills to add them appear in the legislative record as proposals, and a proposal is not law. (Sexual orientation is protected, and federal law after Bostock may independently apply — another reason not to treat the state list as a permission slip.) The operational workflow is in our fair housing guide for landlords, and screening mechanics are in the tenant screening guide.

What changed in 2023–2026 — and what did not

No Wisconsin Act amending the core rules stated in this guide — ch. 704's notice, deposit, repair, or retaliation sections, or ATCP 134's deposit and prohibited-practice rules — was verified on the official legislative site as enacted and effective by October 2026, and this guide accordingly states no "new 2026 law" for them. The legislative record for the period is dominated by proposals that were not verified as enacted — including 2025 Assembly Bill 202 (which proposed, among other things, a tenant election to void or sever a rental agreement containing a prohibited provision, with a double-pecuniary-loss action for loss caused by such a provision) and 2023–24 bills proposing a DATCP rent-abatement schedule, full-rent abatement, and additions to the § 106.50 class list. None of those is current law, and none is stated as law anywhere above. The one recent authority that does change how a live rule is applied is a case, not an Act: Koble Investments v. Marquardt, 2024 WI App 26, holding a lease void under § 704.44(10) for omitting the § 704.14 notice, discussed in the prohibited-provisions section. The most recent conforming change to a number in this guide remains the older one: the $25 credit-check cap in § 704.085 (2017 Act 317) and ATCP 134.05(4) (CR 20-033, effective November 1, 2021), which superseded the former $20 figure.

A Wisconsin landlord's compliance checklist

1. Before taking any money: give the ATCP 134.04 disclosures — manager and owner/agent names and addresses (in-state address for service), known qualifying code violations and listed habitability conditions, and whether water, heat, or electricity are extra (plus the allocation basis if unmetered).

2. Identify the unit before accepting earnest money or a deposit (ATCP 134.05(1)); furnish written agreements and rules for inspection first, copies at signing, receipts for every deposit and every cash rent payment (ATCP 134.03).

3. Include the § 704.14 NOTICE OF DOMESTIC ABUSE PROTECTIONS verbatim in the agreement or an addendum — omission plus a crime-termination clause voids the lease under § 704.44(10).

4. Audit the lease against all ten § 704.44 / ATCP 134.08 items. One prohibited provision voids the whole agreement.

5. Put every extra in one NONSTANDARD RENTAL PROVISIONS document — deposit withholding grounds, wider entry rights, any property-holding agreement — identify and discuss each item before signing, and get a signature or initials beside each.

6. Add the § 704.05(5)(bf) no-store sentence to the lease and every renewal, or the 2009 abandoned-property regime governs that tenancy.

7. Cap screening charges at the statute: actual cost up to $25 for the credit report (no charge if the applicant supplies a fresh report), up to $25 more for an out-of-state background check; notify before running, deliver copies after (§ 704.085).

8. Run earnest money on its clocks: approve by the end of the 3rd business day (or the agreed written date, ≤21 calendar days) or refund by the end of the next business day after rejection, withdrawal, or non-approval.

9. At move-in, give the ATCP 134.06(1) written check-in notice with a deadline at least 7 days after the tenancy starts; file the tenant's inspection report and honor any previous-tenant damage-list request within 30 days / 7 days as the rule provides.

10. During the tenancy: enter only to inspect, repair, or show, on at least 12 hours' notice at reasonable times, announcing your presence (§ 704.05(2); ATCP 134.09(2)); charge late fees only if the agreement specifically provides them, after applying prepayments, never on a late fee (ATCP 134.09(8)); and diary any § 704.15 renewal-reminder window (15–30 days before the tenant's notice deadline).

11. On any default, pick the § 704.17 notice by tenancy type and history — 5-day with cure for a first default, 14-day without cure only where the one-year repeat rule or the month-to-month alternative actually applies, 30-day for leases over one year, 5-day no-cure for the § 704.17(3m) crime track — and never use lockouts or utility shutoffs (ATCP 134.09(7)).

12. At move-out, start the 21-day clock from the right trigger — termination date, new tenancy's start, or the date you learn of a late vacatur — deliver or mail the refund plus an item-by-item statement, withhold nothing for normal wear and tear, and keep the file that proves each deduction (ATCP 134.06(2), (3), (4)). Draft the lease itself from how to write a lease with these Wisconsin provisions built in.

The bottom line

Wisconsin is a two-code state: ch. 704 supplies the tenancy machinery and ATCP 134 supplies the consumer-protection teeth, and the penalty for tripping the second code is measured by § 100.20(5) — twice the tenant's actual pecuniary loss, plus costs and fees — not by any multiple of the deposit. The numbers that run the whole system are short and slightly off the national defaults: no deposit cap, 21 days to return it (from three different triggers), 7 days for the check-in deadline, 12 hours for entry, 5 days to cure a first default and 14 days without a cure on a repeat within a year, 28 days to end a periodic tenancy, $25 caps on screening charges, and a $94.50 eviction filing fee. The traps are equally specific: a lease voided in full by one of ten prohibited clauses (or by omitting the domestic-abuse notice next to a crime clause), a deposit deduction lost because it never made it into a signed NONSTANDARD RENTAL PROVISIONS document, a repair dispute mishandled by assuming a repair-and-deduct right Wisconsin does not grant, and an abandoned-property shortcut lost because the no-store notice was never given. Learn Wisconsin's actual text and the state is fast and manageable; work from national defaults and every one of those traps is live.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a cap on security deposits in Wisconsin?

No. Neither ATCP 134.06 nor Wis. Stat. § 704.28 sets a maximum deposit amount. What is regulated is the back end: what counts as a deposit (including prepaid rent over one month), what may be withheld, and the 21-day return duty. See the Wisconsin security deposit law guide. Check a planned deposit against Wisconsin's no-cap rule with the Security Deposit Max Checker, which returns a compliant or over-the-limit verdict for the amount and state you enter.

What is the deposit penalty — double the deposit or double the loss?

Double the loss. Under Wis. Stat. § 100.20(5), applied to ATCP 134 through ATCP 134.01, a tenant who suffers pecuniary loss from a violation recovers twice the amount of that loss, plus costs and a reasonable attorney's fee. Wrongfully withhold $250 and the doubled figure is $500, whatever the deposit was.

How long does the landlord have to return the deposit?

21 days, delivered or mailed, from the trigger that fits the move-out: the termination date if the tenant leaves on time; the earlier operative date (termination, or the new tenancy's start if the unit is rerented sooner) if the tenant leaves early; or the date the landlord learns the tenant vacated if the tenant leaves late (ATCP 134.06(2)). Any withholding needs an item-by-item written statement in the same window (ATCP 134.06(4)).

Can a landlord deduct for carpet cleaning or repainting?

Not from the deposit where the work is routine and there is no unusual tenant-caused damage: ATCP 134.06(3)(c) bars withholding for normal wear and tear, and its note names routine painting and carpet cleaning as the example. A lease may separately obligate the tenant to pay for professional carpet cleaning as a contract term (OAG 4-13), but that cost still may not be collected in advance or deducted from the deposit.

Does Wisconsin allow repair-and-deduct?

No. Section 704.07 contains no repair-and-deduct or rent-escrow procedure. For a substantial violation of the landlord's § 704.07(2) duties materially affecting health or safety, § 704.07(4) gives the tenant a move-out remedy with no further rent liability, or, if the tenant stays, a proportional rent abatement — and expressly denies any right to withhold rent in full while remaining in possession.

What eviction notice does nonpayment require?

For month-to-month, week-to-week, and lease tenancies of one year or less (including year-to-year), a 5-day notice to pay or vacate, with cure by payment (§ 704.17(1p)(a), (2)(a)). A repeat default within one year of a prior noticed default supports a 14-day vacate notice with no cure right; a month-to-month landlord may also elect the 14-day form directly. A lease for more than one year gets a 30-day notice (§ 704.17(3)(a)).

How much notice ends a month-to-month tenancy?

At least 28 days' written notice under § 704.19(3), effective only at the end of a rental period (§ 704.19(2)(b)1.). Wisconsin uses 28 days, not 30.

How much notice must a landlord give before entering?

At least 12 hours, at reasonable times, and only to inspect, make repairs, or show the unit — unless the tenant consents to shorter notice or to the entry itself, or the tenant is absent and entry is reasonably believed necessary to protect the premises (ATCP 134.09(2); § 704.05(2)).

Are late fees capped in Wisconsin?

No dollar cap is stated in the fetched law. ATCP 134.09(8) allows a late fee only if specifically provided in the rental agreement, requires rent prepayments to be applied before any fee is charged, and bars any fee on an unpaid late fee.

Is source of income a protected class in Wisconsin?

Yes, at the state level: lawful source of income is listed in § 106.50(1), alongside sex, race, color, sexual orientation, disability, religion, national origin, marital status, family status, victim status, age (18+), and ancestry. One older federal decision, Knapp v. Eagle Property Management Corp. (7th Cir. 1995), read federal housing-choice vouchers as not clearly within the phrase, and some local ordinances protect income sources more broadly — check both before refusing an applicant over a voucher.

What happens to property a tenant leaves behind?

Absent a contrary written agreement, the landlord may presume it abandoned and dispose of it at the landlord's discretion — except that prescription medication and medical equipment must be held 7 days, and manufactured/mobile homes and titled vehicles require advance notice of intent to dispose to the tenant and any known secured party. If the lease never gave the § 704.05(5)(bf) no-store notice at signing and renewal, the pre-2011 (2009-statutes) storage regime applies instead (§ 704.05(5)).

How much does it cost to file an eviction?

The Wisconsin Court System fee chart lists the small-claims filing fee — which includes evictions — at $94.50 under § 814.62(3)(a), plus a $2-per-defendant mailing fee where mail service is used (§ 814.62(4)). Sheriff or process-server charges are additional and set locally.

Official sources — read the law yourself

• Wis. Stat. § 704.05 — official text (Wisconsin Legislature) — possession, entry, and holding over, in Chapter 704 (Landlord and Tenant) on docs.legis.wisconsin.gov.
• Wis. Stat. ch. 704 (Landlord and Tenant) — official chapter index (Wisconsin Legislature), including §§ 704.05, 704.07, 704.085, 704.14, 704.16, 704.17, 704.19, 704.25, 704.27, 704.28, 704.44, 704.45, 704.95
• Wis. Admin. Code ch. ATCP 134 (Residential Rental Practices) — official text (Wisconsin Legislature), including ATCP 134.01, 134.02, 134.03, 134.04, 134.05, 134.06, 134.07, 134.08, 134.09
• Wis. Stat. § 100.20 (unfair trade practices; subsection (5) private action) — docs.legis.wisconsin.gov
• Wis. Stat. § 66.0104 (limits on local landlord ordinances) — docs.legis.wisconsin.gov
• Wis. Stat. § 106.50 (Open Housing) — docs.legis.wisconsin.gov
• Wis. Stat. ch. 799 (small claims and eviction procedure) and § 814.62 (court fees) — docs.legis.wisconsin.gov
• Wisconsin Court System, Circuit Court Fee, Forfeiture, Fine and Surcharge Tables — wicourts.gov/courts/circuit/docs/fees.pdf

More landlord-tenant law guides

• Landlord-tenant law by state
• West Virginia landlord-tenant law
• Wyoming landlord-tenant law
• Washington landlord-tenant law
• Alabama landlord-tenant law

This is general information, not legal advice. ATCP 134 is detailed — consult a Wisconsin landlord-tenant attorney for specific situations.