Can a tenant repair and deduct from rent in Kentucky?

Yes, within limits. In Kentucky, in the cities and counties that have adopted the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, if a landlord willfully fails to fix a condition affecting health and safety within 14 days after written notice and the repair costs less than $100 or half a month’s rent, whichever is greater, the tenant may have the work done and deduct the cost after giving the landlord an itemized statement of work paid for in full. Each step has to be followed as the statute sets it out, including the written notice and the waiting period, or the deduction can be treated as unpaid rent. This is KRS § 383.635; KRS § 383.500.

WhatKentucky
Repair and deductAllowed by statute, within a cap
LimitUp to $100 or half a month’s rent (URLTA areas)

Source

KRS § 383.635; KRS § 383.500

Read the statute in the Kentucky Revised Statutes (Kentucky General Assembly): apps.legislature.ky.gov.

Checked against the statute on October 23, 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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