REAL ESTATE - LEASING/RENTALS Landlord Tenant Laws and Statutes, Executive Orders, Hazard Control Resources by STATE Legal disputes are an inevitable event between landlords and tenants in the landlording business. Landlord Association.Org feels it is essential that you know and understand your responsibilities and legal rights as a landlord before taking any landlord-tenant issue(s) to the next step. Landlord Association.Org also feels it is vital that you know and understand your tenant's responsibilities and legal rights as well. There are very strict guidelines, procedures and timeframes which must be followed in order to be successful. Landlord Association.Org strongly encourages every landlord to seek the legal counsel of a qualified attorney before starting any legal action(s). http://www.landlordassociation.org/statelaws.html Lease Termination Notice Requirements All rental agreements and leases should contain information about how much notice is required to terminate. This table shows the amount of time a landlord or a tenant needs to give ther other person in order to lawfully terminate a rental agreement or lease. The table also shows how much notice is required to raise the rent. http://www.landlordassociation.org/LeaseTerminationNotice.html The National Landlord Tenant Guide: Tools and Resources for Landlord & Tenants http://www.rentlaw.com/ Landlord Association.Org is a dynamic online company developed by property investors and landlords who want to extend information and services to others who are involved in real estate investing throughout the United States. http://www.landlordassociation.org/statelaws.html Lease Agreement & Forms http://www.buyincomeproperties.com/FreeRealEstateForms.htm#rentalagree Rental Agreement and Forms http://www.buyincomeproperties.com/FreeRealEstateForms.htm#rentalforms Rental Addendums http://www.buyincomeproperties.com/FreeRealEstateForms.htm#rentaladden Lease Options http://www.buyincomeproperties.com/FreeRealEstateForms.htm#leaseoptions Official Site of the National Association of REALTORS® Find a home....The most comprehensive source for real estate listings. http://www.realtor.com/ Insurance for Landlords http://www.landlordassociation.org/insurance.html http://www.rentlaw.com/landlordinsurance.htm How to Select A Property Manager or Property Management Agency What is property management? What does a property manager or property management company do? Property management is the operation of commercial and/or residential real estate. Property managers or property management companies are often hired to serve as liaisons between a landlord and the tenants. Some manage home owner associations (HOAs). Property managers may also manage property construction, development, repair and maintenance. Their primary duties often include accepting rents, as well as responding to and handling maintenance issues, evicting tenants (if needed) and advertising and filling vacancies which includes screening and selecting tenants. At times, property managers may be involved in and/or initiating litigation with tenants, contractors or insurance agencies. Litigation is frequently considered a completely distinctive role which can be handled by or in consultation with trained attorneys. In situations where a property manager is not working in consultation with an attorney, special attention must be given to Landlord Tenant Law, especially when dealing with evictions, non-payment of rent, harassment, reduction of pre-arranged services, and public nuisance. Therefore, property managers must keep up to date with new laws and practices in the localities, cities and states in which they manage property. Property management fees are commonly based on a percentage of the gross rent collected each month (typically 3%-10%), and may also include lease commissions as well as additional fees to cover repair and maintenance costs. Some states require property managers and/or property management companies to be licensed real estate brokers or that they be licensed real estate salespersons working with licensed real estate brokers. Other states that do not require licensing require property managers and/or property management companies to register with the state. http://www.landlordassociation.org/management.html Paying too much for rent? Charging too little? http://www.rentometer.com/ Two Ways to Search Tenant Screening Firms Search Tool For Tenant Screening Firms http://www.brbpublications.com/prs/tenantscr.aspx Full profiles are only available for PRRN Members and Associate Members. Other firms are listed by name and location. Full profiles for the entire Vendors and Search Firms Database (600+ firms) are available in The National Directory of Public Record Vendors. 1. Select Your Home State OR View All States 2. By Company Name Select a Letter Tenant screening firms search certain categories of public records in order to prepare an overall report about a person. Generally, these application specialists must utilize online access to properly perform these services. Many offer special services such as: Credit Reports Local Document Retrieval Forcible Detainer Check Former Landlord Interviews http://www.brbpublications.com/prs/tenantscr.aspx Landlord-tenant law: an overview Landlord-tenant law governs the rental of commercial and residential property. It is composed primarily of state statutory and common law. A number of states have based their statutory law on either the Uniform Residential Landlord And Tenant Act (URLTA) http://www.law.cornell.edu/uniform/vol7.html#lndtn or the Model Residential Landlord-Tenant Code http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex-cgi/wexlink?wexns=USC&wexname=42:3604 . Federal statutory law may be a factor in times of national/regional emergencies and in preventing forms of discrimination. The basis of the legal relationship between a landlord and tenant is grounded in both contract and property law. The tenant has a property interest in the land (historically, a non-freehold estate) for a given period of time. See State Property Statues http://www.law.cornell.edu/topics/state_statutes3.html#property The length of the tenancy may be for a given period of time, for an indefinite period of time, (e.g.,renewable/cancelable on a month to month basis), terminable at any time by either party (at will), or at sufferance if the agreement has been terminated and the tenant refuses to leave (holds over). See Restatement of The Law 2d Property: Landlord and Tenant § § 1.4-1.8 http://www.ali.org/ali/proplt.htm http://www.ali.org/ali/proplt.htm . If the tenancy is tenancy for years or periodic, the tenant has the right to possess the land, to restrict others (including the landlord) from entering upon it, and to sublease or assign the property. The landlord-tenant agreement may eliminate or limit these rights. The landlord-tenant agreement is normally embodied in a lease. The lease, though not historically or strictly a contract, may be subject to concepts embodied in contract law. SeeContracts; § 1.103 of the URLTA. http://www.law.upenn.edu/bll/ulc/fnact99/1970s/urlta72.htm The landlord-tenant relationship is founded on duties proscribed by either statutory law , the common law, or the individual lease. What provisions may be contained in a lease is normally regulated by statutory law. See § 1.403 of the URLTA. Basic to all leases is the implied covenant of quiet enjoyment. This covenant ensure the tenant that his possession will not be disturbed by someone with a superior legal title to the land including the landlord. See Restatement 2d § 4.1-4.3. A breach of the covenant of quiet enjoyment may be actual or constructive. A constructive eviction occurs when the landlord causes the premises to become uninhabitable. Housing codes were established to ensure that residential rental units were habitable at the time of rental and during the tenancy. Depending on the state, housing code violations may lead to administrative action or to the tenant being allowed to withhold rent. The habitability of a residential rental unit is also ensured by warranties of habitability which are prescribed by common and/or statutory law. See § 2.104 of the URLTA http://www.law.upenn.edu/bll/ulc/fnact99/1970s/urlta72.htm . A breach of the warranty of habitability or a covenant within the lease may constitute constructive eviction, allow the tenant to withhold rent, repair the problem and deduct the cost from the rent, or recover damages. See URLTA § § 4.101 & 4.104 & 4.105. http://www.law.upenn.edu/bll/ulc/fnact99/1970s/urlta72.htm Unless the lease states otherwise, there is an assumption that the tenant has a duty to pay rent. State statutes may provide for a reasonable rental value to be paid absent a rental price provision. See URLTA § 1.401(b) http://www.law.upenn.edu/bll/ulc/fnact99/1970s/urlta72.htm . In commercial leases rent is commonly calculated in part or whole as a percentage of the tenants sales. Rent acceleration clauses that cause all the rent to become due if the tenant breaches a provision of the lease are common in both residential and commercial leases. Summary eviction statutes commonly allow a landlord to quickly evict a tenant who breaches statutorily specified lease provisions. Self-help as a method of eviction is generally restricted. Some states do not even allow it for tenants who have held over after the end of a lease. See URLTA § 4.207 http://www.law.upenn.edu/bll/ulc/fnact99/1970s/urlta72.htm &; Restatement 2d. § 14.2 http://www.ali.org/ali/proplt.htm . Landlords are also restricted from evicting tenants in retaliation of action the tenant took in regards to enforcing a provision of the lease or applicable law. See URLTA § §. 4.197 & 5.101. http://www.law.upenn.edu/bll/ulc/fnact99/1970s/urlta72.htm Federal law prohibits discrimination in housing and the rental market. See Civil Rights Act of 1866 http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex-cgi/wexlink?wexns=USC&wexname=42:1982 & 42 U.S. Code, Chapter 45, Federal Fair Housing Act. http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex-cgi/wexlink?wexns=USC&wexname=42:chapter45