Be Aware of Recent Landlord/Tenant Law Changes
The Oregon legislature passed several landlord/tenant-related bills in the 2025 session that landlords must comply with. Some are already in effect. Here is a summary.
Manufactured Home Park Rent Control
HB 3054: Effective September 1, 2025
Landlords may not increase park space rent more than 6% annually if park has more than 30 spaces. There is an exception for up to a 12% increase once every five years if it’s related to a significant project to add, replace, repair, or upgrade infrastructure for the facility and approved by majority of tenants. For parks with 30 spaces or less, the existing law (7% + Western Region CPI w/max of 10%) still applies. The bill also prohibited park landlords from enforcing point of sale aesthetic or cosmetic improvement requirements, and from requiring that a selling tenant, prospective purchaser or purchaser consent to the inspection of the interior of the dwelling or home, or obtain an inspection of the interior of the dwelling or home by a third party.
Termination Notice Changes:
HB 2134: Effective Date January 1, 2026
If a landlord gives a 90-day notice after first year of occupancy to terminate the tenancy at the end of the lease period for qualifying landlord reason under 90.427(5), the tenant may give 30-day notice and move out sooner.
SB 586: Effective Date September 29, 2025
If seller/landlord has accepted offer from buyer who intends to move in as primary resident, the Seller will be able to choose one of two options:
- Seller can issue a 90-day termination notice. Landlords who own five or more rental units must pay one month’s rent relocation assistance (same as current law) OR
- Seller can issue 60-day termination notice + one additional month’s rent. This would be a total of one month’s rent for landlords who own four or fewer rental units and two months’ rent for landlords who own five or more rental units.
- Seller/landlord may now terminate tenant in one unit of a fully-occupied plex if buyer intends to move into that unit.
- Landlord must now present written evidence of the offer to purchase at or before the time of delivering the termination notice. Previously, landlords had up to 120 days to deliver evidence of the offer to purchase.
Immigration Status
SB 599: Bill broken into two sets of effective dates
Effective Date May 28, 2025
- When evaluating an application, a landlord may not reject an application because the applicant or a member of the applicant’s household refuses to produce a Social Security number or prove lawful presence in the United States.
- When evaluating an application, a landlord may not inquire into the immigration or citizenship status of an applicant or member of the applicant’s household.
Effective Date June 27, 2025
Except as required by a federal program that provides rent subsidies or affordable rents:
- A landlord may not inquire about the immigration or citizenship status of an applicant, a tenant, or a member of an applicant’s or a tenant’s household.
- A landlord may not discriminate against an applicant, a tenant, or a member of an applicant’s or a tenant’s household on the basis of actual or perceived immigration or citizenship status.
- If landlord requires identity verification of applicant or tenant, they must accept any combination of the following to verify name, date of birth, and physical appearance:
- (a) A Social Security card or evidence of a Social Security number
- (b) A certified copy of a record of live birth
- (c) A permanent resident card issued by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
- (d) An immigrant or nonimmigrant visa
- (e) An individual taxpayer identification number card issued by the IRS
- (f) Passport, driver license, or other government-issued ID, regardless of expiration date; or
- (g) Any nongovernment identification or combination of identifications that would permit a reasonable verification of identity.
- A landlord may not, with the intent or purpose of harassing, retaliating against, or intimidating, disclose or threaten to disclose the immigration or citizenship status of an applicant, a tenant, or a member of an applicant’s or a tenant’s household.
Hold Deposits
HB 3521. Effective Date January 1, 2026.
- Prior to receiving a hold deposit, requires landlord to provide a written statement describing rent, fees, terms of an agreement to execute a rental agreement, conditions for refunding deposits, and whether the deposit is used towards money due or refunded.
- Allows tenant to reject the agreement and get hold deposit back due to the discovery of material defects relating to the premise’s habitability.
- Increases from 4 days to 5 days the time landlord has to return hold deposit if rental agreement is not executed or if the tenant rejects the agreement based on uninhabitability within 5 business days.
- Increases penalty for failure to timely return deposit from $150 to an amount equal to deposit (e.g., if hold deposit was $500, landlord would be required to return the $500 plus an additional $500 penalty)
- Penalizes landlord for failure to return the deposit by “a penalty equal to the greater of the deposit or an amount agreed to by the parties” if the delay was due to an act of God.
Unit Access
HB 3378. Effective Date January 1, 2026
- ORS 90.320 now requires working locks on entrance doors and latches for windows that may access the dwelling unit, where previously latches were not inherently required on common areas.
- If landlord provides unit access via a software application on a tenant’s mobile phone or other device, landlord must also provide one alternative means of access, including an access code or a fob, key card, or other tangible key.
Squatters
HB 3522. Effective Date January 1, 2026
- An owner or landlord may take possession pursuant to ORS 105.100 to 105.168 (F.E.D.) of the premises from a squatter after giving the person 24 hours’ written notice of the termination of the occupancy. The notice must specify the date and time by which the person must vacate and state that the cause of the termination is the person’s status as a squatter. The notice does not create a right of occupancy or tenancy for the squatter.
- “Squatter” means a person occupying a dwelling unit, or occupying any other property and using it for dwelling purposes, who is not so entitled under a rental agreement or who is not authorized by the tenant to occupy that dwelling unit.