Tenants must follow lease terms, pay rent on time, and maintain the property. Landlords handle repairs, provide disclosures, and follow legal eviction procedures.
By Brad Nakase, Attorney
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Getting into a new lease agreement requires careful consideration of several details. It’s already difficult enough to locate a suitable apartment or renters for an investment property. After that, there’s the problem of settling disputes with landlords, tenants, or property managers. Complicating matters further are laws that are particular to certain states. In this article, we will go over the fundamentals of what landlords and tenants should think about before making any form of agreement, with California rental law as our guide.
Lessor and Lessee are the parties to a lease, which is a legally binding agreement. Lessees are people who pay regular payments to the property owner, who grants them the right to reside and use the property for a set length of time. Although most leases are executed in writing, verbal leases can also be legally executed. But if the tenant plans to stay for more than a year, the lease needs to be in writing.
If tenants pay their rent on time and don’t break the rules, landlords have a long-term renter and tenants have peace of mind. Unless otherwise specified in the contract, tenants also have the privilege of maintaining their current rent amount without any increases. If a tenant has to terminate the lease early, it might be difficult to move because of the terms of the lease. There are a few options available to them: pay a hefty charge, locate a new tenant, or pay rent for the remaining months.
It is crucial to comprehend all the specifics contained within the lease agreement as it serves to safeguard both the landlord and the tenant. The duties of each party to a lease will change from one property owner to the next, and they will remain constant during the term of the lease. Below, we will go over those duties thoroughly.
Although they are not identical, rental agreements (also called periodic rental agreements) are comparable to leases. Weekly and monthly rents are common examples of the shorter-term contracts, although six- to twelve-month leases are the more common longer-term options. Legally, a rental agreement might be either verbal or written.
Verbal renting agreement: The landlord consents to leasing the unit to the renter, and the tenant agrees to pay the rent every week or month. Without a written record of the agreement, it may be difficult to enforce this verbal understanding and resolve any disputes that may arise in the future.
California law mandates that landlords or real estate agents provide the following non-negotiable disclosures within fifteen days of an oral rental agreement:
Written rental agreement: In order for a rental agreement that lasts longer than a year to be legally binding and enforceable, it must be fully documented in writing. If the landlord offers to cover utilities or if there are pets, a formal agreement can be the best choice, even for short-term rentals. Both the landlord and the tenant will be on the same page regarding their duties and the repercussions of not meeting them if everything is in writing, including the amount of rent, the period of time between payments, and the necessity of written notice.
Rental agreements should include the following clauses, whether they are verbal or written:
The process of acquiring a rental property may include several costs. It is common practice to charge an application fee to tenants before they are even asked to sign the lease. After that, there’s the security deposit, which may cover things like cleaning, damages, and pets. It is permissible for landlords to request two or even three months’ rent in advance for fully furnished units, but less than that for unfurnished ones. Let’s have a look at the typical deposits and costs for renting:
In most cases, a pet deposit is required of tenants whose rental units permit dogs. Some states don’t let you get your money back on this kind of deposit, but California has made it illegal to do so. In California, you can add a pet deposit to your security deposit. The payment is fully refundable, but you’ll have to pay to fix any damage your pet may have caused.
Landlords and tenants in California are not obligated to complete a move-in checklist, however it is highly advised that they do so. Before you move in, you might want to take pictures of the unit and add a date to them so you have proof of its physical condition. This evidence might make a huge difference in a damages lawsuit against a landlord or tenant.
The lease should contain all the necessary details regarding the renting arrangement. The lengthy contract has several pages that contain terms, prices, regulations, policies, and more. However, it might be difficult to understand the rights and duties of tenants and landlords. What follows is a rundown of the landlord’s responsibilities as well as the tenants’ responsibilities, including maintenance information.
What the landlord is responsible for
Landlords have a duty to ensure that their rental properties are fit for human habitation in their capacity as owners. One way to keep a rental property habitable is to fix anything that could make it uninhabitable. The “implied warranty of habitability” was codified into law in California in response to this decision, requiring landlords to remedy material damage or defects that substantially impair the property’s condition. The only cases when this wouldn’t apply are when renters, their dogs, or visitors cause damage.
Proper notification to renters is another responsibility of landlords. Performing repairs, responding to emergencies, showing the unit to potential tenants, complying with a court order, or inspecting a waterbed installation are all reasons why a contractor or property management would require access to the unit. By law, landlords are required to provide tenants with a minimum of twenty-four hours’ notice before evicting them from their rental property. Notification is not required in cases of crises, abandonment, or oral permission given in person.
What the tenant is responsible for
Paying rent in whole and on time is one of the primary duties of a tenant. The tenant risks receiving an eviction notice if they do not comply with this. The renter is given three days to either pay the rent or vacate the premises. Landlords have the right to pursue legal action against tenants who fail to pay rent.
It is the tenant’s responsibility to keep their apartment and any shared areas in it in good condition. Proper use of utilities, keeping the premises clean, disposing of garbage in a hygienic manner, and notifying the landlord of broken security equipment (such as door and window locks) are all tenants’ responsibilities. The responsibility for fixing damages caused by abuse or neglect, whether by renters, their pets, or guests, lies with the tenants, as mentioned before. Repair responsibilities should be clearly defined in the rental agreement or lease.
Legally, both the owner and the tenant have responsibility for repairs. However, what happens in the event that a repair is necessary in accordance with the implied warranty of habitability? The renter is obligated to provide prompt written and verbal notice to the landlord. Keeping a rental property in good repair is important for landlords since they are managing a real estate investment. But there could be a few who aren’t very attentive or considerate.
If the following apply, tenants may have no choice but to seek a solution on their own:
Tenants have options to attempt to fix the problem based on the degree of the damage if landlords refuse to help with repairs without an adequate reason. Gather as much evidence as you can, including witness statements, written accounts, visual evidence, and video. In the event that the matter is brought before a judge, it will be necessary to present tangible proof. All of these choices come with their own set of dangers:
The use of rented property for unlawful purposes is strictly prohibited and may result in eviction proceedings. But it is the responsibility of landlords to ensure that they comply with all applicable laws. It is against the law for landlords in the state of California to:
It requires a lot of preparation to move out of a rental property. Moving requires cleaning, assembling furniture and other possessions, and occasionally fixing minor issues. It is important for tenants to know how to end their rental or lease arrangement in a timely manner without jeopardizing the return of their security deposit. Two of the most important parts of concluding a rental agreement or lease are as follows:
When a tenant decides that they want to end their rental agreement, they should be sure to do so in writing. It is also important for them to think about the timing of their decision. Normally, notice is provided between rent payments. This means that if a tenant Pays rent on a monthly basis, they would need to provide 30 days of notice.
If a tenant has a weekly agreement, they would need to provide notice seven days ahead of time. There are different kinds of rental agreements and leases, so it is important to speak with the landlord about the proper notice time. Should a tenant fail to provide the appropriate to notice time, they could be required to pay the next month’s rent, regardless of whether they live at the property anymore.
After a tenant gives notice and moves away, they can anticipate getting their security deposit returned, assuming they handled any repairs and cleaning. In California, the law says that security deposits need to be refundable. That said, landlords are legally allowed to use the deposit money towards things like repairs, cleaning, and replacement. Whatever is left over is returned to the tenant 21 days following their move out date.
If a tenant does not receive any portion of their deposit, they should write to and call their landlords as soon as possible. It is possible that there was simply a misunderstanding, or it could be the deliberate withholding of money. It is unlawful for landlords in California to withhold security deposits, except for the lawful reasons mentioned above.
A tenant believes that a landlord is unlawfully withholding their deposit, they may use their move-in, checklist, pictures, and other kinds of evidence to prove their case to the property manager. However, if the landlord does not comply, it may be necessary to hire a third-party for mediation.
In the case of a month-to-month tenancy, evictions may be served via a 30-day or 60-day period of notice. Based on local laws, the landlord may not have to provide any rationale for the decision to evict. A tenant will receive either 30 or 60 days to negotiate a way to remain or to move out. In the event of a rental contract breach, there may be three-day eviction notices. If the issue concerns, a late payment of rent, tenants have the option of either paying the overdue rent or leaving the unit. Such eviction notices may be provided in writing for these reasons:
According to California law, landlords are required to utilize the unlawful detainer legal process as a way of removing tenants from monthly tenancy. It is unlawful for landlords to force a tenant to move out by blocking the entrance or cutting off the power. If a tenant believes that they were unlawfully evicted, they should seek the assistance of a lawyer as soon as possible.
Occasionally, a tenant may abandon their rental property. In this situation, a tenant may leave trash or belongings behind for the landlord to handle. If it is clear that the tenant has left with no intention of returning, the landlord may throw away any obvious trash. The landlord is also free to use the security deposit to cover the cost of any repairs and cleaning.
According to California law, abandoned property, like furniture, bicycles, and medicine should be removed first. If the tenant has officially moved out, and the agreement has been terminated, any remaining belongings can be considered abandoned. A landlord can take the following steps in this situation:
A rental agreement can be in writing, verbal, implied, or a mixture of these. If you pay the rent for a property, you have a contract. If an old owner sold the property to a new owner, then you have a contract with the new owner. After an original lease term expires, you still have a contract for the property by continuing to pay rent with a landlord accepts. According to the wording of a lease, you could have a renewed lease for the same period of time, such as a year, or the more traditional monthly tenancy.
This kind of month-to-month tenancy occurs under the same conditions in terms as the original lease, except that it operates on a monthly basis. If you pay your rent by doing construction in place of payment, manage the property, live there as a worker, do in-home care for the owner (like taking care of a disabled or elderly person), or act as caretaker for the property, then you possess a contract.
There are certain terms that are included in a lease that may not be readily apparent. One of these has to do with your security deposit. You have a legal right to receive your security deposit within 21 days of your move-out. Any deductions made should I have a legal basis. By law, there can be no nonrefundable security deposits. Landlord may try to get away with a nonrefundable security deposit by calling it a cleaning fee or a rental fee or final rent, but it still legally qualifies as a security deposit.
A law known as the warranty of habitability means that your landlord is required to supply basics, like electricity, water, heat, locks, and other essentials as a condition of your rent.
For a rental unit to be legal, it must have a certificate of occupancy from the city. The purpose of this law is to prove that the unit is compliant with zoning and building laws. If the unit violates this law, the landlord is not allowed to accept rent for that property. Prospective tenants should be aware that there are many such cases, such as converted garages and illegal duplexes.
In cities with rent control, such as Los Angeles, a landlord needs to register their rental unit and charge an acceptable rent. If a tenant lives in a mobile home park, they have supplementary rights under the Mobilehome Residency Law.
Section 1597.40 of the Health and Safety Code contains special laws concerning tenant-run, licensed daycare operations. These laws protect a tenant against lease prohibitions and eviction. The point of this law is to encourage daycare employment.
The landlord can’t treat kids badly because they are kids. There used to be buildings that were only for adults, but now only senior citizen houses can keep kids out. An apartment’s manager can, however, limit the number of people who can live there.
In rental rules, as in other businesses, it is illegal to treat people differently because of their race, gender, sex, or nationality. The Fair Housing Council handles these kinds of cases all the time, and they have people who look into them and even go to court.
Individuals who rent out a room or file for eviction do not automatically possess the legal right to do so. People are required by law to get licenses and file certain paperwork with the government. If they don’t, they are often punished by not being able to sue or collect on the deal that was made. This arrangement sometimes works out well for tenants.
If a rent-controlled unit isn’t registered, the owner can’t demand rent or sue to get the renter to leave.
Certain landlords run their businesses under “fictitious business names,” like “California Apartments,” which are noted on your rental agreement and the checks you cash. But take note. People who use these kinds of names have to file a “d.b.a.” statement with the County Clerk, get the notice out there, and update it every 5 years. Failure to do so stops them from suing; according to Business and Professions Code Section 17918, they can’t sue until they’ve met the reporting requirements.
Real estate brokers must be registered according to Section 10131 of the Business and Professions Code. However, more and more people who handle other people’s property aren’t brokers but do it anyway. They do it sometimes with a “power of attorney” form and other times with just a contract that says they can, but the law says neither of those is enough.
In the event that a manager operates without a license, the agreements are not binding by law. If one of those people manages your property and signed the rental agreement, you don’t owe them any rent and they can’t make you follow the terms of the agreement. They don’t even have the power to kick you out. The owners would have to intervene at some point and attempt to reclaim control.
There are too many factors to go into detail here, but the cases above should show you that your rights are not limited to the paper you sign. Talk to an attorney for more information that applies to you.
The landlord is effectively selling you the right to use their rental property exclusively when they rent it out to you. When a landlord opts to receive payment instead of exclusive possession, it’s the same as if they sold the property – they lose all right to possession. With one notable exception, a landlord who enters your rented apartment is trespassing, just like any stranger.
Your landlord has the right to enter your rental unit under Civil Code Section 1954 in two situations: (1) in the event of an emergency (such as a fire or a broken pipe), or (2) with reasonable notice, but only during normal business hours, to inspect, repair, or conduct showings. A decent amount of notice is generally 24 hours, while shorter notice might also be acceptable. No one needs to be home for them to come, but they will take responsibility for any damage or theft that occurs as a result of their access.
There is no formal authority that can say whether or not a manager can look into your apartment because they have a key, but there are ways to prevent them. Compose a letter informing the owner and the local authorities of the manager’s break-in. Put a chain lock on the door or change the locks so the manager can’t get in. You might want to consider relocating if the owner doesn’t put any restrictions on the manager’s access; at least that way, you can have some privacy.
It is now mandatory for landlords to equip rental units with deadbolt locks on doors and sufficient window locks. A breach of this warranty of habitability gives the tenant the right to vacate the premises, request repairs and deductions, or refuse to pay rent.
There are situations where a landlord may try to evict a renter for refusing to engage in sexual activity. The law still seems to allow such an eviction, even though the sexual harassment rules in California now allow a renter to sue the management and landlord for sexual harassment.
Most judges now recognize that residential renters have unique needs in this area of landlord-tenant law. The landlord plans to charge you a late fee, which might be a set sum or a percentage of the rent, if you fail to pay the rent by the specified date. While many contracts include late fees as a means of encouraging prompt payments, a new legislative amendment outlaws such penalties in residential rental agreements. But there is no legal recourse if your landlord tries to take it from you.
The legal term for late fees is “liquidated damages clauses,” which means that a predetermined penalty is used to punish a specific contract promise (in this example, the failure to pay rent by the specified date). Unless it is impossible or very difficult to compute the precise losses sustained by the violation, a residential rental agreement cannot contain a liquidated damages provision, according to Civil Code Section 1671. If this occurs, the late fee provision will be null and invalid and have no force or effect, similar to a nonrefundable security deposit provision. On the other hand, if the contract allows it, interest might be as high as 30 cents every day.
Landlords sometimes attempt to rationalize the late charge by citing the various tasks that arise as a result of even a single late payment, such as additional computations, bank trips, phone calls, and so on. Obviously this is all an illusion; in fact, the management firm receives the same amount regardless of payment status, and the extra effort required is very little.
Damages for nonpayment include the original sum plus interest at the statutory rate [1/3650th of the amount each day – around 20 cents], according to Civil Code Section 3302. This is the stronger argument. Consequently, the late payment penalty is easy to calculate because it is defined by law.
Here we have the legal argument. It would be helpful to have a hard copy on hand in case you ever need to present your case before a judge or landlord.
At the tactical level, you must decide how and when to address the problem. The late fee provision is null and unlawful, thus signing a lease with it does not mean you give up any of your rights. Paying it in protest or passing it off as rent in advance are two ways to deal with the demand and avoid trouble right now. You will be credited for any overpayment of the late charge if you are evicted for nonpayment of rent at a later date. Your 3-day notice will be invalid since it wants more rent than was due. For example, it asks a month’s rent, but you only owe a month less that previous overpayment of the late fee.
You either end up winning the lawsuit due to a technicality or you get yourself into a strong position to negotiate a settlement that benefits you. In the event that you are now in a financial bind and are unable to pay even the current rent, you should hope that you receive the eviction notice that requests the rent in addition to the late charge. The situation is the same; however, the notification is worthless on its face, therefore you are not required to apply previous overpayments for credit.
The law does not establish a formal “grace period” for rent payments. As a general rule, rental agreements state that a late charge is required on or before the 5th of each month. Again, threatening to break the law on a certain date doesn’t help the landlord’s case because the late fee is already against the law. The statute effectively establishes a grace period.
No landlord may provide a three-day notice to pay rent or vacate the premises if the rent is due on the first. The notice must be served on the second. Day 2 is the “zero” day of the three-day notice, therefore the fifth of the month is the final day to pay and satisfy that notice. Your last day will be pushed out to the following business day, which may be as late as the 9th, in the event that the third day happens to be a legal holiday or a weekend as well.
Your best bet if your paycheck isn’t arriving in time to cover the first month’s rent is to ask your landlord to let you put a month’s worth of rent in your security deposit instead. That way, you’ll be paying them a month ahead of schedule. Basically, you would pay April in March, but even if you paid it on March 15th, it would still be considered March rent. Even then, it would be early. The little amount of interest you’ll lose is insignificant when weighed against the time and effort you’ll save and the strategic edge you’ll gain—just when you need it most.
“Breaking the lease” may be necessary at some point. Something bad may have happened to you recently, such a work transfer, a layoff, or a return to the east coast to care for your parents. You don’t want to leave anything hanging, yet more pressing matters come up than your rental agreement.
Rent at X address is considered ended thirty days after either party gives thirty days’ written notice to that effect in a month-to-month tenancy. Nonetheless, a tenant with a one-year residency is entitled to a 60-day notice, unless the eviction is being done to accommodate the new buyer of the house or condo, in which case the notice period is reduced to 30 days. A one-year or longer lease is another matter. If you sign a lease and do not move out before the end of the term, you are still liable for the whole amount of the rent.
On the surface, certain rental agreements seem like leases because they state that the security deposit is non-refundable in the event that the tenant does not remain for the entire year. However, upon closer inspection, it becomes clear that these agreements are actually month-to-month contracts with unlawful clauses about the non-refundable security deposit. You should know exactly what you’re getting into.
Even if you don’t have a good cause to break the lease, the landlord still has a legal obligation to try to find a new tenant as soon as possible. There is a legal phrase for this: “mitigating damages.” You decide to vacate the premises in the fourth month of your one-year lease, for instance. In the sixth month, the landlord finds a new tenant willing to pay the same amount as before. You are responsible for the remaining balance of month 4 and the entirety of month 5, but not beyond that. Rent cannot be collected twice by the landlord.
The other option is that your landlord finds a new tenant for your $1,000 unit who will pay $900 per month from the day you vacate. For the rest of your lease, you’d have to pay the $100 shortfall. But, due to the failure to mitigate damages, the landlord will not receive any compensation from you if you can prove that they did not attempt to re-rent the apartment. The landlord either doesn’t try very hard to re-rent or charges you more than what you paid, creating a gray area. It would be up to the judge to decide if this constituted a mitigation of damages.
If you do not have a good cause to end the lease, the proper thing to do is to notify the landlord in writing that you are leaving and retain a copy. In the letter, you should also mention that your unit will be available for viewing by potential tenants according to Civil Code 1954 [reasonable advance notice, like 24 hours, during normal business hours].
You may also place your own ad in the Recycler or a similar publication and receive calls from potential tenants. Take note of their names, as well as their home and place of employment phone numbers, and thereafter provide them to the landlord in order to serve as substitutes. If the owner says they failed to find anyone, you can use the list to show that they didn’t do enough to limit the damage.
You cannot use reasons such as moving out, a change in your life, the departure of your co-tenant, or a lack of funds as a legitimate basis to terminate your lease. The unit itself must be the basis for a legitimate termination in order to be justified under the law. Clearly, the lease terminates in the event of a fire or if the unit is yellow-tagged due to earthquake damage. Uninhabitable circumstances, however, can be used as a basis for eviction under the law.
When a tenant vacates a unit due to uninhabitable circumstances, the landlord is not required to provide notice to end the tenancy (of any type). It is not necessary for the conditions to be so harsh that you may refuse to pay rent. Instead, they fall under the same legal umbrella as repair and deduction remedies. In other words, you have the option to either stay put or fix and deduct if the condition makes it uninhabitable.
It seems like every rental property has at least one major flaw. Some of these issues include broken electrical outlets, sluggish drains, insufficient trash cans, missing screens, and missing locks. You can lawfully end the lease provided you have a valid cause, and the worse the reason, the better. This is true even if you had to move to, say, Chicago by chance. Although verbal communication is acceptable, you must have provided fair advance notice.
To ensure that the judge may review the record of your reasonable advance notice, it is advisable to note in your termination letter that you had previously brought the fault to the manager’s attention last month and that it remains unresolved. You have the right to end your lease if the landlord does not remedy the uninhabitable circumstances within a reasonable amount of time. In case you ever need to prove it, having witnesses and photos would be great.
On occasion, the landlord may be willing to end the lease, but only if you pay a certain amount. Be cautious with the words used. Paying just one month’s rent should be enough to release you from the remainder of the lease, according to a good release clause. But sometimes the management firm will tell you that you have to pay them to be “released,” but you’ll still have to pay them until they find new tenants.
In this case, the money you paid to be “released” would be for naught because you’d still have to pay the rest. Check that you aren’t also forfeiting your deposit. Despite their assurances that you are “released” or that you “don’t worry about it,” they may later serve you a bill or judgment for the balance of the lease. Putting it in writing is a sign of sincerity.
Subletting the property to another party is an extra layer of security. The managers might not allow sub-leasing, which can be a problem. But how can they rationalize booting out a paying subtenant when they’re the ones responsible for mitigating damages? In terms of your lease term rent, they can’t say that they have minimized their losses, even when they receive the vacant apartment. By doing so, they hurt themselves. Subtenants have been known to sign fresh leases after assuming control of the property.
1. The Hide-and-Seek Landlord
Earlier, we covered how the landlord has to specify the authorized manager, owner, and payment details (whether in the lease or posted somewhere) in order to collect rent. If the landlord is unable to accept personal delivery of the rent due to circumstances such as an unknown address or the use of a post office box or deposit box, the tenant has the option to mail the rent, which will be considered “paid” on the day it reaches the mailbox, regardless of how long it takes for the landlord to receive it.
There are a few ways to prove that you sent the rent via certified or registered mail: with a witness, a statement of proof of service, or even just sending a copy to yourself with a postmark that shows the date (which may be the following postal day). According to the new Civil Code 1962, you are required to notify your landlord by phone that you have sent him the rent.
You can avoid tracking down the landlord entirely if you just submit the summons and complaint [need to be registered or certified mail] to the location where you pay the rent, even if the landlord refuses to provide the full agent’s name, address, and phone number. You should know this for small claims disputes in which you sue to recover your security deposit. In such case, a sheriff is not even necessary for the purpose of serving the documents. Make sure to send the Plaintiff’s Claim at least ten days prior to the trial date for minor claims.
Any three-day notice to pay or resign must also provide the payee’s name, address, phone number, availability, and banking information, as well as the method of payment, according to Civil Code 1962. Unfortunately, the majority of landlords are unaware of this new legislation and continue to utilize outdated forms that exclude this crucial detail. The courts will next decide what occurs in the event that they do not provide this information; for example, the notice may be invalid due to its lack of specificity, or the absence of specificity may only be relevant if the renter attempted to pay the rent but was unsure of the location or method.
2. Holding Landlords Accountable for Others’ Criminal Acts
The landlord might still face legal action for crimes that occur in the complex, such car thefts, if he or she is careless, like not fixing the garage security gate. This holds true even if the landlord does not have insurance for it. Their frequent denial of responsibility is a ploy. Additionally, if the landlord’s resident manager or another employee engaged in the alleged misconduct, the landlord will be personally liable to you as if he had committed the act personally. As stated in the contract, criminal activity is a problem of habitability, not limited to mere carelessness.
A further defense may be that their insurance “doesn’t cover it,” thereby denying any responsibility. That is their issue: they are unable to evade responsibility by not having insurance. Insurance sales would plummet if that were enough. Not having “renter’s insurance” is also not a justification for their carelessness or a factor in determining how much you can recover. For specifics, consult an attorney regarding your theft.
3. Utility Sharing
Under Civil Code Section 1940.9, a landlord must disclose this fact to tenants and arrange for a fair division of service costs (e.g., you pay half) if a tenant’s utility bill covers both their unit and another unit, a laundry room, or the garage. In the event that your landlord fails to do so, you have the option to pursue legal action, even in a small claims court, in order to recover the amounts spent outside of your unit, wherever they may be.
4. Report on Pesticides and Toxic Molds
Landlords that use a regular pest control service have a responsibility to provide tenants with information on the pesticides used, including the names of the active chemicals, any known health risks, and other pertinent details.
Many people are concerned about toxic mold. Serious lung infections can develop as a result of landlords’ failure to address issues such as leaking pipes, roofs, and unprotected walls. Because mold is a habitability concern, landlords are now required by New Health and Safety Code 26147 to notify both existing and potential tenants of the problem and take appropriate action. In spite of the passage of this law in 2001, the criteria and procedures for treatment have not been defined as of yet [2004]. It is critical that you notify your landlord in writing of the mold infestation in your unit and request its removal. In the event that you acquire a mold illness, he will be unable to deny knowing about it.
5. Pest Control
In order to fumigate a structure for termites, it is necessary to tent it for two or three days and remove the tenants. Although this is a common occurrence, there is currently no legislation dictating the proper course of action. Having to temporarily vacate their apartment comes with a hefty price tag: not only do tenants have to pay for food and lodging, but they also have to spend a lot of time packing up their essentials (such as clothing, medicine, and any necessary medications), rerouting mail and phone calls, finding alternative transportation, and arranging for childcare.
Early birds are kept away longer if renters leave on various days. The expense of the out-of-town stay might easily exceed the monthly rent. If you already paid the rent for that month and then had to pay for these additional expenses, you may end up paying twice as much for that one month of hassle.
One of two things can happen that makes fumigation a problem: either the building’s City Inspectors demand it (quite unusual), or the landlord is selling or refinancing the property, in which case you can anticipate a rent hike soon (to cover the increased mortgage). Buyers and lenders alike will want to see a termite report and, if found, have the property treated.
Your landlord may be able to use the funds from your security deposits to cover your short-term living expenses until the loan or sale goes through, or they may decide to sell the building and use the proceeds to pay for your move. In most cases, the only thing you’ll receive is a few days’ notice that you’ll need to vacate the premises.
Keep in mind that this is only a practical approach and not the law. Upon receiving this notification, gather your neighbors and devise a strategy. How much will it cost for lodging and meals for a few days (reserve a reasonably priced hotel nearby)? And what if it extends beyond that? What is the deadline for this? How are you going to ensure that everyone complies? How much is the price of the substitute food? Make a pact and list everything so you can show the landlord. Each tenant should obtain a written agreement from the landlord stating that the landlord would advance $X to each of them as compensation for the temporary move.
The agreement should also provide a start date for when they may sign out and receive the money, as well as a return date for when they can return to the property. You should also mention that the landlord would either pay the additional expenditures immediately or deduct them from future rentals. To the landlord, this may seem like an expensive idea, but he must realize that he wants it, he has the means to pay for it, and that he has an even worse choice: to wait and initiate eviction procedures, which would cause him much more trouble and cost.
Because of the risks posed by the pesticides, the fumigation cannot start if even a single resident stays, therefore his worst-case scenario is when all but one renter decides to go. He must thus find a solution that satisfies everyone; now is not the time to divide and conquer. In any case, it may be wise for you to begin exploring potential new residences.
The arrival of a new landlord almost always results in a rent hike, and a refinancing of the property typically leads to a larger mortgage as the seller “pulls out equity” to purchase another apartment complex, which in turn causes a rent hike. So, don’t let the landlord’s eviction threats scare you. Instead, you should have the building inspector look for any further issues that might necessitate repairs and delay the sale or refinancing of the property. The landlord is doing more harm than good by acting tough around you.
6. Foreclosure
You shouldn’t assume that your landlord has been making mortgage payments simply because you’ve been paying rent. Over the last decade, many individuals have tried to “robbing Peter to pay Paul” in order to pay off their mortgages, as they were in a desperate situation to get rich fast in real estate. The bank may forcibly remove you from your home following the foreclosure sale, even if you did nothing wrong.
Similarly, you could have been a homeowner who, for whatever reason—a loss of employment, an illness in the family, or something else entirely—found yourself on the verge of foreclosure and eviction. Lastly, real estate scam artists may have tricked you into signing paperwork that would allow them to evict you, even if they had previously pledged to assist you with refinancing. You should not give up hope in any of these situations.
It is necessary to go through the eviction procedure before the new owner—sometimes the foreclosing bank—can lawfully take possession after the “Trustee’s Sale” that ends the foreclosure. There is a waiting period, as there is with other types of evictions, so you have time to consider your choices. In order to initiate an eviction case, the prior owner must provide three days’ notice, and any renter of the previous owner must provide thirty days’ notice.
Being a renter in this situation and receiving only a three-day notice gives you a tactical edge when you begin to fight for your eviction. In the event of real estate fraud, there are remedies available, such as the ability to reverse the title in “equity acquisitions” or to use the fraud as a defense against eviction. If you need help deciding how to tackle the situation, your lawyer may go over the specifics of each strategy with you.
Foreclosure does not put an end to your financial hardship if you were a previous owner of a home that became “over-encumbered” (i.e., you owe more on it than it’s worth). Any amount that remains after the trustee sells your property and pays off your mortgage is considered taxable income, up to the amount that the sale could not cover.
To escape the tax ramifications of the foreclosure and start again, many foreclosed homeowners end up filing for bankruptcy. For the best possible outcome, it’s a good idea to synchronize the filing of your bankruptcy with any other legal actions you could be facing, such as an eviction or the date of a foreclosure auction. If you need assistance deciding whether or not to file for bankruptcy, your attorney can walk you through the process.
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