Legal, Financial, And Security Concerns In Renting A New Apartment
Renting can be a lifestyle choice
Many issues arise when renting a new apartment or dealing with an existing landlord. For many of us, renting rather than buying is a personal choice. In opting to rent, we are choosing not to be burdened with a mortgage, property taxes, and having to make repairs while retaining the freedom to relocate whenever and wherever we want.
No matter your reason for choosing to rent, there are important legal, financial, and safety issues to consider. This article focuses on your legal rights and obligations as a tenant and what you need to know before signing a rental agreement.
Different Types of Rental Agreements
Fixed-Term rental agreement
A lease for a fixed term (for example, six months or a year) legally obligates both the tenant and the landlord to the terms and conditions until the lease either terminates or is renewed.
For the fixed term of the lease, the landlord may neither evict the tenant nor raise the rent. Likewise, the tenant is legally obligated to pay the full amount of the rent on time and for the entire lease term.
Month-to-Month rental agreement
A month-to-month rental agreement gives both parties more flexibility. Either party may terminate the lease by giving the other written notice, usually at least 30 days prior to the term ending. The landlord may raise the rent at any time simply by providing the tenant with similar notice.
A month-to-month rental term provides flexibility for both sides. It is suitable for landlords in a rising rental market and suitable for tenants whose future plans are tenuous.
No matter what type of lease you choose, make sure you have all the essential terms covered fully spelled out in a written lease. By being thorough, even on a month-to-month lease, the parties can minimize the chances of later getting into a dispute over their respective legal duties and obligations under the lease.
Oral Rental Agreements
Are oral rental agreements legally enforceable?
Usually, tenants and landlords are bound by an oral rental agreement. The “statute of frauds” requires rental agreements to be in writing for more than a certain length of time, usually one year.
Most states still allow a month-to-month rental agreement to be either oral or written. Both are considered legally enforceable agreements.
Essential terms still need to be in writing in some states
Some states require that even if the rental agreement is oral, the landlord must provide the tenant with a written document stating the landlord’s name, address, phone number, and the person designated to receive or collect the rent. In most cases, the writing should also include the manner and time of month the rent is to be paid.
Proving An Oral Rental Agreement
People sometimes say, “It’s your word against mine, so you can’t prove it.” Not true.
Most rental agreements can be proved by the testimony of the people who agreed to the terms of the lease or by other people who heard the deal being made. If there is a dispute as to what was said, the judge or jury decides who is telling the truth.
If one person’s word is believed over another person’s word, then it’s proven.
Rental Discrimination Pervasive
Sadly, most U.S. cities have a long and sordid history of rental discrimination. Suppose you, as a potential tenant, believe you have been unlawfully discriminated against during a rental application. In that case, you should contact a tenant lawyer and file a complaint with the U.S. Housing Department.
If the landlord insists that you move out after your term expires, you must vacate the premises. If you refuse after receiving formal and legal notice to vacate, the tenant will be considered a tenant holdover.
Property law follows basic contract law principles. In the case of a tenant holdover, the landlord can evict you and sue for damages based on the terms of your lease.
Unlawful Discrimination – Rental Applicant
Under what circumstances can a landlord refuse to rent to me?
Gone are the days when a landlord could say, it’s my property, so I can rent to whomever I like and refuse anyone I don’t like for whatever reason….” This attitude is no longer acceptable, and landlords must realize that their decisions have legal limits and consequences.
The general rule is for any reason, so long as the reason does not qualify as having an unlawful and discriminatory purpose.
A landlord can refuse to rent to someone because he finds the tenant strange, quirky, cold, unfriendly, a smoker, or poor credit risk – even if the landlord is wrong in his assessment of the applicant – there is no law to stop them from rejecting a tenant.
An unlawful purpose is any discrimination that targets a protected class of people based on their:
- Race or Color
- Religion
- Gender
- Sexual Preference
- Age
- Disability
- Maternity or Family Status
- National Origin
- Based on a legally protected status under the U.S. Fair Housing Department.
To learn more about the U.S. Fair Housing Department, the laws, and what they cover, including how to file a discrimination complaint, visit their website.
Unlawful Discrimination – Tenant As A Boarder
Can the owner discriminate against me because of my religion?
I am renting a room in a single-family residence, and the owner lives with her two children. I am the only border. The other day, I shared with the owner that I am a practicing Muslim. The owner’s reaction was primarily non-verbal to what I had shared with her, but I could tell she was disturbed by what I had told her.
About a week later, she made some rude comments about the Muslim faith and told me that Muslims invaded our country on 9-11 and that she did not understand how a religion could be so hateful.
One month later, the owner said she was raising my rent for financial reasons and that I would have to vacate if I could not pay the new rent. I believe that I am being discriminated against because of my religion.
As stated, under common law, a private owner of one’s dwelling is considered the master of his own domain. So long the homeowner’s conduct is private and not part of a business, the owner’s discriminatory conduct has generally not been actionable under state or federal law.
New laws protecting boarders
Over the past few years, primarily due to past Covid lockdowns and current economic conditions, many people are still experiencing financial hardship, and many cannot afford an apartment of their own. They must instead find cheaper rent by renting a room in another person’s home.
Lawmakers have recognized the potential for homeowner-boarder abuse and enacted laws to protect tenants from discrimination in shared boarding situations.
The one-boarder rule
The general rule in many jurisdictions is that the owner of a single-family home may not discriminate against a boarder unless you happen to be the only boarder in the house.
Stated another way, if the homeowner is doing a business out of boarding, such as running an Airbnb, then the owner will be subject to the same laws prohibiting discrimination as any other landlord. This includes discriminating against a tenant because of age, race, religion, marital status, sexual orientation, or medical condition.
Since you are the only renter in the home, it is unlikely that you will be able to make a discrimination claim against the owner. The owner’s two children would probably not qualify as renters within the context of these types of laws.
Apartment Privacy
Do I have a legal right to privacy?
When a landlord rents out an apartment, it becomes the tenant’s home, and the tenant has just as much right to privacy in her home as the landlord has in his. Each has the right to the quiet enjoyment of their property – to be the master of one’s domain. Notwithstanding, apartment buildings must be maintained and comply with the housing code.
Sometimes, the landlord needs access to the tenant’s apartment to make the necessary repairs or keep the premises in a good and habitable condition. This can sometimes conflict with the tenant’s right to privacy.
Today, however, most jurisdictions have landlord-tenant laws that balance the two competing interests – the landlord’s interest to preserve and maintain the value of the rental premises versus the interest of the tenant to be left alone in the privacy and sanctity of the tenant’s residence.
Apartment Safety and Security
You need more than just a roof over your head. You need to feel safe and know your belongings are secure. Make sure you fully investigate the security and safety features of any apartment building you are considering renting.
Do I have a legal right to safety?
Yes. Your landlord has a legal duty to provide you with the quiet enjoyment of your property, which includes the obligation to provide you with a reasonably safe premise – whether that means ridding your premises of rat infestation or keeping you safe from criminal intruders.
The landlord’s duty to keep you safe is not absolute
The landlord is not the insurer of your safety. Especially from unforeseeable third-party criminal acts unless you can prove that the danger came from some physical deficiency of the property itself. For example, inadequate exterior lighting, exterior locks disrepair, and failure of your landlord to take “reasonable” measures to keep your premises safe and secure, especially given the foreseeable and dangerous character of the neighborhood.
Without proving the danger, the property had some physical deficiency that connected the property to the danger; the tenant must prove that the landlord knew or should have known of the threat but failed to take reasonable remedial measures to make the premises safe.
Another way of understanding this is to ask whether, under the circumstances, the danger to you and your child was reasonably foreseeable to the landlord. The answer to this question is multifactorial and requires common sense. Each case is measured against what is reasonably foreseeable under the circumstances.
Lack of Security a Legal Basis to Break the Lease
Tenant Claims Her Apartment Is Dangerous
A mother and her two children moved to a ground-floor apartment with a patio deck. On one occasion, she noticed that an intruder was trying to climb the eight-foot tree-lined fence that faced her apartment and served as a perimeter separating her unit from street-level traffic. The trees and shrubbery along the fence provided visual cover but not safety since the wall could be climbed.
Concerned about the safety of her children, the tenant wanted to break the lease on the legal grounds of lack of safety. The mother met with the landlord to see if she could be let out of her one-year lease, but the landlord declined the tenant’s request. As an alternative, the tenant agreed to move from the ground-floor apartment to an upper-level apartment in the same building under the same lease terms. The landlord was unwilling to accept this request as well.
The tenant asked whether the building would consider adding additional lighting that would illuminate the area between her patio and perimeter wall. The landlord told the tenant that installing a flood light was too expensive since there was no outside electrical source near that area of the building. without
The tenant’s legal rights
The mother may have a legal basis to break the lease if she can prove the landlord breached the covenant of quiet enjoyment by failing to take reasonable protective measures to make her premises safe. But again, this is a question of fact for a judge or jury to decide.
The landlord’s lawyer would likely argue that the tenant assumed the risk in that she was aware that a first-floor unit exposed her to the possibility of increased danger but that she was willing to assume the risk.
If the tenant broke the lease and were sued by the landlord for breach of contract, the case would turn on arguments and factors such as whether there was adequate lighting outside the tenant’s immediate patio area that would add to the safety of the ground-floor apartment and whether the barrier wall between her deck and the walkway was high enough to keep intruders out. Also considered would be the crime rate of her neighborhood.
Seek Legal Advice Before Breaking A Lease
Choosing to break a lease, even under these conditions, may have legal and financial consequences you did not anticipate. If you are deciding whether to break a lease, you should first seek the advice of a local tenant rights lawyer. Keep in mind that most leases contain an attorney fees clause that always favors the landlord.
This means should the matter go to trial and you lose, you may be responsible not only for your own attorney fees but also for those of your former landlord.
The Best Security Are Your Neighbors
The best protection comes from the community of other renters in your building. For this reason, you should get to know your neighbors and build friendly and supportive relationships with them.
Rental Insurance for Your New Apartment
Do I need to purchase rental insurance?
Suppose your building burns down, or a flood, tornado, or other disaster destroys all your belongings. Many renters assume that the landlord’s insurance covers all tenants in the building against such risks of loss – but this is rarely the case.
It’s more likely the landlord will require you, the renter, to buy your own insurance as a condition of the lease and to include the landlord’s name on the policy as proof the tenant purchased the insurance.
Rental insurance premiums are competitively priced. With rental insurance, you will know that the insurance company will pay you, at the very least, for certain types of losses, such as theft and loss of your personal property.
Value Of Your Personal Property
The value of your personal property may be more expensive than you think, especially if you own such items as an expensive dining or bedroom set, high-end computers, camera equipment, sound systems, home theaters, or an expensive set of golf clubs. If so, you will likely want to invest in rental insurance.
In addition, most renters’ insurance includes liability coverage that protects you against lawsuits should a third party be injured on the property and name you as a defendant.
Can A Landlord Legally Raise My Rent And When?
Mostly depends on the type of lease you have
If you have a lease for a fixed term (6 months or a year), then the landlord may not raise the rent during that year (unless the lease says otherwise, which they rarely do).
If you have a month-to-month rental agreement (oral or written), the landlord may raise the rent as often as he likes – if he gives you proper notice of the rent increase ahead of time. State law usually requires him to give 30-day written notice before the rent increase takes effect.
If you live in a community with a rent control law, the landlord cannot raise the rent unless the rent control law permits the landlord to do so. Most rent control laws allow landlords to raise the rent once a year by some percentage set by the city rent control board.
I Got Injured on The Property
Is the landlord legally responsible for my injuries?
Landlord Liability will often depend on whether the landlord had or should have had prior notice of the danger and knowingly failed to take reasonable steps to protect the tenants. Landlords can be said to legally cause a tenant injury in various ways.
- Failing to repair a loose stair or railing can cause a tenant to fall.
- Not repairing faulty wiring can lead to an apartment fire that injures a tenant and destroys their belongings.
- Delay in repairing a roof might cause dampness and dangerous forms of mold to grow.
- The landlord knew the adjoining building was infested with bed bugs but refused to have his own building sprayed to protect his tenants.
- Delay in repairing a broken window, especially in the cold months can lead to illness.
Landlord Locks Tenant Out Of Apartment For Not Paying Rent
Tenant Lock-Out Is Considered Self-Help And Is Strictly Prohibited
It is against the law for a landlord to use “self-help” to evict a tenant. Even if you have stopped paying the rent. The landlord is legally prohibited from locking you out, physically throwing you out, cutting off your utilities (power & water), taking the law into his own hands in any way, or hiring others to assist.
These acts of “self-help” are highly illegal, and judges are not reluctant to punish property owners and landlords with heavy fines and other civil sanctions where there is evidence of self-help. The landlord must use the judicial process: he must sue you in court, giving you legal notice (a “summons”) of the lawsuit and a chance to defend yourself.
If the landlord wins and obtains a “judgment” against you, by default or otherwise, and you still won’t get out, the landlord must obtain an order for the sheriff or marshal to physically throw you out.
Call a tenant rights lawyer immediately if the landlord uses self-help. You might have a strong lawsuit against the landlord.
In many states, the tenant will be allowed to move out in the middle of the lease if the unit is infested with vermin or dangerous mold or violates the state’s fire code or other conditions that violate the state’s Health and Safety Codes.
Tenant Rights Attorneys
Should you have legal questions consider consulting with a verified Tenant Rights Attorney.
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