# Virginia HB848: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; material noncompliance by landlord, rent escrow, relief. Virginia HB848, Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; material noncompliance by landlord, rent escrow, relief., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Rae Cousins (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-05-14 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP1118)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB848-2026 - As of: 2026-10-12 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: Virginia HB848 - State: Virginia - Session: 2026 Regular Session - Title: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; material noncompliance by landlord, rent escrow, relief. - Status: signed - Chamber: House - Introduced: 2026-01-13 - Last action: 2026-05-14, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP1118) - Sponsor: Rae Cousins (Democratic) - Cosponsors: 0 - Touches household money: yes - Roll calls: 11 (309 yes, 112 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 1 ## Summary Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; material noncompliance by landlord; rent escrow; relief. Removes the requirement that, prior to the granting of any relief, a tenant shall pay into escrow any amount of rent called for under the rental agreement. The bill requires the tenant, during the pendency of the action, to pay into escrow the amount of rent that becomes due within five days of the date due under the rental agreement, unless or until such amount is modified by a subsequent order of the court. The bill also provides that a failure of the tenant to make timely payments into escrow shall not be grounds for dismissal of the underlying action but may be considered by the court when issuing an order. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2027. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Easier renter claims with rent deposit rules: mixed, low. Beginning January 1, 2027, Virginia renters can file a landlord-compliance claim without first paying overdue rent, late charges, attorney fees, or other amounts owed. Claims cover major lease or legal violations and conditions that threaten life, health, or safety. Examples include missing heat, w… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: Rae Cousins (Democratic), House ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2026-04-22 | House | House concurred in Governor's recommendation | pass | 67 | 33 | | | 2026-04-22 | Senate | Passed by for the day (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 | | | 2026-03-11 | House | Senate amendment agreed to by House | pass | 70 | 29 | | | 2026-03-10 | Senate | Passed Senate with amendment | pass | 20 | 19 | | | 2026-03-10 | Senate | General Laws and Technology Amendment agreed to | pass | 0 | 0 | | | 2026-03-06 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 | | | 2026-03-06 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) | pass | 39 | 0 | | | 2026-03-04 | Senate | Reported from General Laws and Technology with amendment | pass | 9 | 6 | | | 2026-02-09 | House | Read third time and passed House | pass | 73 | 25 | | | 2026-02-03 | House | Reported from General Laws | pass | 21 | 0 | | | 2026-01-29 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | 10 | 0 | | ## Actions (38) - 2026-05-14: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP1118) (Governor) - 2026-05-14: Approved by Governor - Chapter 1118 (effective - 1/1/2027) (Governor) - 2026-04-22: Passed by for the day (Voice Vote) (Senate) - 2026-04-22: House concurred in Governor's recommendation (67-Y 33-N 0-A) (House) - 2026-04-22: Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., May 23, 2026 (Governor) - 2026-04-22: Communicated to Governor (House) - 2026-04-11: Governor's recommendation received by House (Governor) - 2026-04-01: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB848) (House) - 2026-03-31: Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 (Governor) - 2026-03-31: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026 (House) - 2026-03-31: Signed by Speaker (House) - 2026-03-30: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB848ER) (House) - 2026-03-30: Enrolled (House) - 2026-03-30: Signed by President (Senate) - 2026-03-11: Senate amendment agreed to by House (70-Y 29-N 0-A) (House) - 2026-03-10: Passed Senate with amendment (20-Y 19-N 0-A) (Senate) - 2026-03-10: General Laws and Technology Amendment agreed to (Senate) - 2026-03-10: Engrossed by Senate as amended (Senate) - 2026-03-10: Read third time (Senate) - 2026-03-09: Passed by for the day (Senate) - 2026-03-06: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate) - 2026-03-06: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (39-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate) - 2026-03-06: Rules suspended (Senate) - 2026-03-04: Reported from General Laws and Technology with amendment (9-Y 6-N) (Senate) - 2026-03-03: Senate committee offered (Senate) - 2026-02-25: Assigned GL&T sub: Housing (Senate) - 2026-02-10: Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology (Senate) - 2026-02-10: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate) - 2026-02-09: Read third time and passed House (73-Y 25-N 0-A) (House) - 2026-02-06: Read second time and engrossed (House) - 2026-02-06: Moved from Uncontested Calendar to Regular Calendar (House) - 2026-02-05: Read first time (House) - 2026-02-03: Reported from General Laws (21-Y 0-N) (House) - 2026-01-29: Subcommittee recommends reporting (10-Y 0-N) (House) - 2026-01-26: Assigned HGL sub: Housing/Consumer Protection (House) - 2026-01-23: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB848) (House) - 2026-01-13: Referred to Committee on General Laws (House) - 2026-01-13: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26101055D (House) ## Bill text - Chaptered, 2026-05-14: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1225716.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1225715.PDF) - Gov Recommendation, 2026-04-11: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1219060.HTML) - Enrolled, 2026-03-30: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1212297.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1212296.PDF) - Amendment, 2026-03-10: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1204051.HTML) - Amendment, 2026-03-05: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1196437.HTML) - Amendment, 2026-03-03: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1191111.HTML) - Introduced, 2026-01-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086184.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086182.PDF) ## Related bills - HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed) - SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed) - HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with rental agreement. (signed) - HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for certain individuals. (signed) - HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, termination by landlord. (signed) - HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil penalty. (signed) ## Sources - [Chaptered (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1225716.HTML) - [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1225715.PDF) - [Gov Recommendation (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1219060.HTML) - [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1212297.HTML) - [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1212296.PDF) - [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1204051.HTML) - [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1196437.HTML) - [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1191111.HTML) - [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086184.HTML) - [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086182.PDF) ## Related - [HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB5-2026) - [SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB199-2026) - [HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB95-2026) - [HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1393-2026) - [HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, terminat…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB834-2026) - [HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB675-2026) - [Virginia bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia/bills) - [Virginia state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia) - [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB848-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).