Adair County Kentucky Landlord-Tenant Law: What Every Columbia Landlord Needs to Know Under HB128
If you own or manage rental property in Adair County, Kentucky, the legal landscape changed materially when House Bill 128 was passed by the 2023 Kentucky General Assembly. The legislation — formally titled the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act — rewrote KRS Chapter 383 from the ground up and applies to all residential leases made on or after its effective date. For most Adair County landlords, that means your newer leases operate under a substantially different set of rules than anything that governed Kentucky rentals before 2024. Understanding those differences, and knowing exactly where and how to file when things go sideways, is the foundation of operating legally in this county.
The Courthouse, the Court, and the Filing Process
Evictions in Adair County are Forcible Detainer actions filed in District Court at the Adair County Judicial Center, 201 Campbellsville Street, Suite 101, Columbia, KY 42728. Circuit Court Clerk Dennis Loy handles filings at (270) 384-2626. The office is open Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, and accepts payment by cash, check, money order, or online via ePay. The historic 1887 Adair County Courthouse on the Columbia public square — listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1974 and designed by the McDonald Brothers of Louisville in Victorian eclectic style — still handles county government business but eviction filings go to the Judicial Center on Campbellsville Street. Do not confuse the two addresses when you show up to file.
Before you file anything, the notice period must expire. For nonpayment of rent, HB128 requires a 14-day written notice to pay or vacate — a significant change from the old 7-day requirement. The notice must state that if rent remains unpaid after 14 days, the lease terminates. Serve it in a way you can document: personal delivery, certified mail, or another verifiable method. If the tenant pays in full within 14 days, the lease continues and you cannot proceed with the eviction. For lease violations other than nonpayment, serve a 14-day notice to cure; if the violation is not remedied within 14 days, the lease terminates on a date no sooner than 30 days from the original notice. Only after the notice period expires without compliance can you file the Forcible Detainer complaint at the Judicial Center.
The Lindsey Wilson College Rental Market
Lindsey Wilson College is the dominant force in the Adair County rental market. The college traces its origins to 1903, when the Methodist Conference of Louisville opened a training school for preachers and teachers in Columbia. It became Lindsey Wilson Junior College in 1923 and was elevated to a four-year liberal arts institution in 1985. Today it enrolls approximately 2,700 students — a number that represents a substantial fraction of the county’s entire population of 18,903 — and offers more than 20 degree programs with an emphasis on education, counseling, and business. The college fields NAIA athletics and its campus sits within easy walking distance of much of Columbia’s rental housing stock.
Screening student applicants requires care. Financial aid disbursements, parental support payments, and scholarship income are periodic transfers rather than recurring monthly wages, which means standard income verification ratios (typically 2.5x to 3x monthly rent) may not apply cleanly. The practical approach is to require a financially qualified guarantor or co-signer for student-only applicants who cannot demonstrate sufficient independent income. Screen every applicant and every guarantor through your standard process. On joint leases, require each co-tenant to qualify independently or collectively. LWC is affiliated with the United Methodist Church, and its campus culture reflects that affiliation — but religion is a protected class under the Fair Housing Act. Never ask about religious affiliation, church membership, or denominational background during screening. Apply your criteria consistently regardless of any perception of the applicant’s religious identity.
Security Deposits: The New Rules Matter
HB128 overhauled Kentucky’s security deposit rules. The cap is now two times the monthly periodic rent, not counting the first month’s rent or fees. If you allow pets or permit the tenant to make alterations, you may require an additional deposit commensurate with the additional risk. Every security deposit must be held in a dedicated bank account — not mixed with your personal funds or operating accounts — with an account title that makes clear it holds tenant security deposits. You must maintain records showing how much of the account belongs to each individual tenant.
After the lease ends and the tenant vacates, you have 30 days to return the deposit or mail it with an itemized written statement of deductions. Miss that window and the penalty is steep: a court may award the tenant $250 or two times the amount wrongfully withheld, whichever is greater, on top of the actual deposit amount. In a small market like Columbia, that kind of judgment is disproportionately painful relative to the rental income involved. Build the 30-day return deadline into your post-move-out process as a hard deadline, not a loose goal.
Habitability: No Longer Negotiable
The most consequential change HB128 made for Kentucky landlords is the creation of a nonwaivable habitability duty. Under prior Kentucky law, habitability protections were limited and could be contracted around in various ways. Under HB128, no lease provision — regardless of what it says or what the tenant signs — can eliminate the landlord’s obligation to maintain the premises. The statute lists 13 specific categories that must be maintained: building code compliance, weather protection, plumbing, water supply, heating and ventilation, electrical systems, control of pests and hazardous substances including radon, lead paint, asbestos, and toxic mold, clean and safe common areas, trash receptacles where required, floors and windows in good repair, landlord-supplied appliances, locks on exterior doors and windows, and required safety equipment. If you include a clause in your lease trying to waive any of these obligations, it is unenforceable — and if you try to enforce it or accept the tenant’s compliance with it, a court can award the tenant up to three times the periodic rent.
If a tenant notifies you of a habitability problem, you have 14 days to cure most issues (or 5 days for essential service failures or immediate health and safety threats). After that window closes without a remedy, the tenant’s options are broad: they can withhold rent, make repairs and deduct the cost (up to one month’s rent per repair), terminate the lease, seek damages, or pursue injunctive relief. Getting maintenance calls addressed promptly is not just good management practice under HB128 — it is legally necessary.
Green River Lake, Seasonal Rentals, and the Rural Market
Beyond the college market, Adair County’s rental landscape includes rural residential housing serving the county’s agricultural, healthcare, and government workforce. The county is also adjacent to Green River Lake State Park and Holmes Bend Marina, which attract outdoor tourism and support some short-term and seasonal rental activity in the lake corridor of southern Adair County. Note that HB128 expressly exempts vacation rentals from its coverage if the rental is for vacation purposes only, the unit is fully furnished, the tenant has a principal residence elsewhere, and the occupancy does not exceed 30 consecutive days. If your property functions as a vacation rental under those parameters, the Act does not apply. If, however, a tenant occupies the unit as their primary residence — even seasonally — the full protections of HB128 apply.
For rural residential landlords in Adair County, the practical day-to-day rules remain straightforward: screen applicants consistently, document everything in writing, give proper notice before entry (24 hours for standard entry, 72 hours for routine maintenance), do not attempt self-help evictions under any circumstances, and get your deposit accounting done within 30 days of move-out. The penalties for getting these basics wrong are now steeper under HB128 than they were under prior law. A self-help eviction — changing the locks, cutting utilities, or removing a tenant’s belongings — exposes you to three times the periodic rent or three times actual damages. There is no shortcut to recovering possession; Forcible Detainer through District Court is the only legal path.
This guide is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. HB128 applies to leases made on or after its effective date; prior law governs older leases. Consult a licensed Kentucky attorney for advice specific to your situation. Last updated: March 2026.
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