LoomLease Prorate rent
Lease glossary

NSF (non-sufficient funds)

NSF, short for non-sufficient funds, means a bank refused a check or electronic payment because the account did not have enough money to cover it. For rent, a bounced payment counts as unpaid, and the lease may add a returned-payment fee on top.

Also called insufficient funds · bounced payment

Example

A tenant pays $1,500 rent by check on October 1, 2026, and it comes back NSF on October 6. The rent is now unpaid, the lease’s $35 returned-check fee applies, and because the grace period ended on October 5, so does the $75 late fee. The tenant owes $1,500 + $35 + $75 = $1,610, and after a second bounced check many leases let the landlord insist on certified funds.

In a lease it looks like…

If any payment is returned for non-sufficient funds, Tenant shall pay a returned-payment fee of $35 in addition to any late fee, and Landlord may require that future payments be made by certified funds or money order.

By state

Many states cap returned-check fees, commonly somewhere between $25 and $40, and some limit how a late fee and a returned-payment fee can be combined.

Late fee laws by state

Plain English, not legal advice. Last reviewed September 29, 2026.