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Rent Regulations

N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C: § 356-C:7

Waiver Prohibited.

In Force
Verified 10/20/2026 · Next check 10/27/2026
effective 10/20/2026New HampshireProhibited Clauses

Operative Text

N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C: § 356-C:7
No lease or rental agreement, oral or written, shall contain any provision by which the tenant prospectively waives any of his rights under this chapter; and any such waiver shall be deemed contrary to public policy and shall be unenforceable and void.
Source: Legislative text reproduced verbatim
Plain English

Under N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C:7, any clause in a lease or rental agreement—whether spoken or written—that attempts to have a tenant give up rights granted by Chapter 356-C in advance is treated as contrary to public policy, unenforceable, and void. The provision applies to both oral and written agreements, meaning the form of the agreement does not affect the outcome. The rights established by Chapter 356-C cannot be contracted away before a dispute or situation arises.

Written by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.6 · Reviewed on October 20, 2026

Plain English — not legal advice.

For Property Managers

Property owners and managers operating under Chapter 356-C should be aware that § 356-C:7 renders any lease clause that purports to strip tenants of their statutory rights legally ineffective from the outset. Compliant operators generally review their lease templates to ensure no language asks tenants to waive protections afforded by Chapter 356-C, since including such language provides no legal benefit and may signal broader compliance concerns. Standard lease review practices typically involve confirming that no prospective waiver language—explicit or implied—appears in any rental agreement, oral or written.

General guidance for property managers — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult an attorney for advice on your case.

For Tenants

Section 356-C:7 means that if a lease or rental agreement contains language asking you to give up rights provided by Chapter 356-C before any issue arises, that language has no legal force. Tenants who encounter such clauses can raise the unenforceability of those provisions as a defense if a landlord attempts to rely on them. Tenant-rights organizations and legal aid services familiar with New Hampshire housing law can help individuals understand which specific rights Chapter 356-C protects and how § 356-C:7 may apply to their rental agreement.

General guidance for tenants — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult a tenant-rights organization or attorney for advice on your case.

Generated October 20, 2026 — auto-generated, not yet human-reviewed. See /transparency for methodology.

Effective Timeline

Current
Oct 20, 2026
Click on timeline segments to view historical versions.

References Out

No outbound references recorded yet for this provision.

References In

Rules and statutes that cite this regulation

N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C:6
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C:9
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C:3
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C:6
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C:3
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C:3
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C:3
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C:6
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C:3
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 356-C:8

Related Rules

§ 28
Waivers of Secs. 23 to 27 void and unenforceable
§ 966.6
§ 966.6 Prohibited lease provisions.
§ 12
Stay of proceedings; validity of waiver in lease

Source Information

Source:https://gc.nh.gov/rsa/html/XXXI/356-C/356-C-7.htm
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