Can a tenant withhold rent for repairs in South Dakota?
In South Dakota, if the landlord neglects, within a reasonable time after notice, to make repairs needed to keep the premises fit for human habitation and the repairs cost more than one month’s rent, the tenant may, after written notice stating the specific reason, withhold rent and immediately deposit it in a separate bank or savings and loan account kept only for the repairs. The tenant must give the landlord written evidence of each deposit. The account is kept until the landlord makes the repairs, when the tenant releases the deposit to the landlord, or until enough money has accumulated for the tenant to have the repairs made and paid for. The landlord’s duty to repair does not apply when the disrepair was caused by the negligent, willful or malicious conduct of the tenant or a person under the tenant’s direction or control. Repair-and-deduct is a different remedy with its own rules. This is SDCL §§ 43-32-9, 43-32-8.
| What | South Dakota |
|---|---|
| Rent withholding | Bank-account escrow if repairs exceed one month’s rent |
| How it works | The rent is paid into court or an escrow account instead |
What the statute says
“If the cost of necessary repairs exceeds one month’s rent, after written notice stating the specific reason for the withholding, the lessee may withhold payment of rent and immediately deposit it in a separate bank or savings and loan account …”
Quoted word for word from the section’s text.
Source
Read the statute in the South Dakota Codified Laws (South Dakota Legislature): sdlegislature.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.
Guides on this rule
- Rent Withholding Laws by State: When Tenants Can Withhold Rent — When a tenant may withhold rent or pay it into escrow over repairs, with the notice and conditions in each of the 19 states with a statute.
Compare this rule in every state
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- Every South Dakota rule on one page
The same question in other states
- California
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico