February 05, 2026
Landlord charging for 12 months of trash bills when I only lived there for 9 months
Dear Consumer Ed:
Can a landlord charge me for a full year of trash bills if I only lived in the apartment for nine months?
Consumer Ed says:
In Georgia, landlord-tenant relationships are generally governed by the terms of your lease agreement, except for some general protections provided by Georgia law. If you and your landlord have a lease agreement, you need to look at the terms of that lease to see what, if anything, it states about payment for trash services. If you are terminating a 12-month lease after only having lived in the apartment for 9 months, you need to see whether your lease still obligates you to pay certain tenant-related fees, including trash fees, for the full 12 months or for some other period beyond the date of early termination.
For additional information about landlord-tenant issues, you can view the Georgia Landlord-Tenant Handbook at the Department of Community Affairs' website.
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