Can a tenant withhold rent for repairs in Ohio?

In Ohio, a tenant who is current on rent may give the landlord written notice of a failure to meet the landlord’s repair, rental agreement or code obligations and, if the landlord does not remedy it within a reasonable time or within 30 days, whichever is sooner, deposit all rent due with the clerk of the municipal or county court. The notice must specify the acts, omissions or code violations that constitute noncompliance and be sent to the person or place where rent is normally paid. Instead of depositing rent, the tenant may apply to the court for an order directing the landlord to remedy the condition, which may also reduce the rent until the condition is remedied or let deposited rent be used to remedy it, or the tenant may terminate the rental agreement. The remedy does not apply to a landlord who is a party to rental agreements covering three or fewer dwelling units and gives written notice of that fact, or to a dwelling unit occupied by a student tenant. The clerk gives the landlord written notice of the deposit, holds the rent in a separate rent escrow account, and may charge a fee of one percent of the rent deposited as court costs. The landlord may apply for release of the rent on the ground that the condition has been remedied, that the tenant did not give the required notice or was not current in rent when the deposits began, or that there was no violation, and a trial must be held within sixty days of the landlord’s complaint unless continued for good cause. If the condition was the result of the tenant’s act or omission, or the tenant intentionally acted in bad faith, the tenant is liable for the landlord’s damages and costs, plus reasonable attorney’s fees for intentional bad faith. Repair-and-deduct is a different remedy with its own rules. This is Ohio Rev. Code §§ 5321.07, 5321.08, 5321.09.

WhatOhio
Rent withholdingWritten notice, then deposit rent with the court clerk
How it worksThe rent is paid into court or an escrow account instead

What the statute says

“Deposit all rent that is due and thereafter becomes due the landlord with the clerk of the municipal or county court having jurisdiction in the territory in which the residential premises are located …”

Quoted word for word from the section’s text.

Source

Ohio Rev. Code §§ 5321.07, 5321.08, 5321.09

Read the statute in the Ohio Revised Code (Ohio Legislative Service Commission): codes.ohio.gov.

Checked against the statute on November 15, 2026.

This is a summary of a published statute, not legal advice. Rules change, local ordinances can add to them, and the terms of a specific lease may differ. Check the citation and speak to a lawyer before acting.

How Seayora uses this rule

Every deadline on this page runs from the tenant’s notice. A repair request filed in Seayora keeps the date it was made and every update after it, on the website and both phone apps, so owner and tenant are working from the same date.

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