If you’ve noticed the distinctive smell of marijuana wafting out of your rental properties, how did you handle it? Some might think that smoking pot is as harmless as drinking a beer, but it’s still illegal. And if you’re ignoring a tenant’s drug use, you could be putting your business at risk.

Did you know that illegal drug use by tenants in your rental units could subject you to related property damage and personal injury suffered by other tenants or the public? Is it worth it to you?

Your best move as a landlord is to include a clause in your lease agreement that tenants agree to not violate any applicable laws, including the possession, use or sale of illegal drugs. If and when a tenant violates the lease by choosing to smoke marijuana, you have the grounds to evict.

Some landlords might think evicting over pot smoking is overkill. But allowing it can leave you open to litigation; the potential for harm is just too great. Besides, if you can smell marijuana, your other tenants probably can, too. What message are you sending if you fail to enforce the law, as well as the terms of your lease agreement?

When Does a Landlord Need a Lawyer?

When you’re starting out. It could be worth the extra expense to have your lease agreements, pet policies, security deposits and other legal documents prepared by a a law professional. You don’t want to discover during a tenant dispute that the lease you downloaded from the Internet is illegal in your state. And you don’t want to be sued for having discriminatory language on your lease. If you prepare your own lease documents or use publicly-available documents, you should at least have a lawyer review them before you use them.

When you experience your first eviction. Having an experienced attorney prepare all the required documentation the first time you evict a tenant is an investment in your landlord education.

When a tenant files a complaint. Sure, you can represent yourself. And if a tenant files a baseless complaint, you might just need to present the attorney-prepared documents with the tenant’s signature as proof of your innocence. But if things get sticky, if the complaint is regarding something serious like discrimination, or your tenant hires a lawyer, you might want to do the same for yourself.

When you want to reinforce a policy with a tenant. If you’ve done the phone call, email, letter routine to a tenant in violation of the lease, a quick letter from an attorney will often produce a quick result.

If you’re going into mediation or arbitration with a tenant or former tenant. It’s good to know your options, your legal standing, and what you can choose to compromise on when you go into the arbitration process.

If your tenant files a lawsuit for damages. You don’t want to take a lawsuit too lightly. Tenants who have been injured on your rental property, who have suffered losses due to your alleged negligence, or who have banded with their neighbors to file discrimination or other charges probably mean business. You probably don’t want to face serious charges without an attorney by your side.

Whenever things get dicey between you and your tenants, it could be worth the expense to hire a good landlord/tenant attorney.

This time it’s a young woman who is simply too loud. She plays her TV at top volume, listens to bass-busting music late at night, and has way too many parties with her also-loud friends.

Elaine has reminded the young tenant about her rules on disturbing the peace. She’s asked her to discontinue the behavior. And now, other tenants are complaining. Elaine is ready to issue a Three-Day Notice to Quit. Is that her best option?

According to our sources, no. This non-conditional notice is generally used when whatever is happening to breach the lease cannot be corrected. Examples include illegal behavior like selling drugs, irreparable damage to the property, or subleasing the property without permission. The notice tells the tenant that if they are not out in three days, eviction proceedings will begin.

In this case, Elaine’s tenant could still correct her problem—just by quitting the loud parties and turning down her stereo equipment. Therefore, a Three-Day Notice to Perform Covenant or Quit is the better recourse. It must specifically state the behavior that breaches the lease so the tenant can correct it.

Then if the problem continues over the three-day period, Elaine can start eviction proceedings. But what if the tenant quiets down for three days, and turns up the volume again? Hopefully, the threat of eviction is enough to inspire behavior modification in this tenant. If not, another Three-Day Notice to Perform Covenant can be issued. After a few of these, it might be time for the Three Day Notice to Quit!

Legal disclaimer:
The contents of this article are intended for general information purposes only, and should not be relied upon as a substitute for obtaining legal advice applicable to your situation. Always consult your legal advisor for your particular situation.

Until a few months ago. Christopher surprised a tenant—although completely unintentionally—and discovered signs of drug use in his property. Here’s what happened: while doing some routine maintenance at Apartment #1 of a duplex, he realized he needed to shut off the water main. Unfortunately, the main fed both living units. So Christopher knocked on the door of Apartment #2 to see if anyone was home, and to let them know the water would be off for a few minutes.

When his tenant opened the door, she appeared surprised at seeing Christopher; she quickly stepped out and closed the door behind her. While Christopher maintained his tenant’s privacy by not looking into the apartment, he couldn’t help but notice the odor wafting out the door and into his nostrils! It was definitely marijuana.

Christopher informed the tenant of the impending water shut off and left, feeling conflicted about how to handle the situation. But he soon made a decision.

If you were the landlord what would you do?

A. Nothing. Marijuana should be legal.
B. Nothing. If the tenant is not hurting anyone, it’s none of my business.
C. Have a talk with the tenant. Let her know that illegal drugs are not tolerated on my property and give her written warning that the next time it happens, I will start eviction proceedings.
D. Start eviction proceedings immediately. Illegal drug use harms all my tenants and the community and could make me liable for any related property damage or personal injury.

Christopher chose door D. Backed by a solid rental agreement that clearly states illegal drugs are not allowed on his property, Christopher did what he always did when it came to handling tenant issues: he enforced the terms of the lease, as agreed to by the tenant.

Christopher did not want to evict this tenant. He had no prior issues with her, and she paid her rent on time. But he strongly believes in treating all tenants equally and enforcing his lease and tenant rules fairly. He felt he had no choice other than to evict this lease-breaking tenant.

The outcome of this story? While evicting tenantsis never pleasant, Christopher discovered he did it just in time to prevent the occupants of Apartment #1 from moving away. Turns out they had noticed marijuana odors from the apartment next door for months and no longer wanted their kids subjected to it. When they discovered their neighbor had been evicted, they thanked Christopher for keeping of the duplex drug-free and enforcing the lease.

What are your risks when considering applicants

The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discriminating against tenants on the basis of race, religion, sex, disability, or national origin. Some states have laws making it illegal to discriminate based on sexual orientation or marital status.

Of course there are legitimate reasons to turn down an applicant. Just be sure to document your process thoroughly and to be fair and consistent with each applicant—so you are well prepared if you’re ever accused of discrimination.

Here are some legitimate reasons to turn down a rental applicant:

Income level: It is legal to use a prospective tenant’s income as a basis to approve or reject their application. Be sure to check the income of all tenants on the application to avoid any potential problems.

Bad Credit History: Prior bankruptcies or low credit score are objective criteria for rejecting tenants.

Exceeding Occupancy: You do not have to rent to a family of six applying to rent your one-bedroom apartment.

Inadequate Rental History: You may require a reasonable number of positive rental references, and reject an applicant based on a negative reference from a previous landlord.

Past Eviction: If an applicant has ever been evicted, you may reject the application. However, if he or she won an eviction lawsuit brought by a previous landlord, you cannot hold the lawsuit against them.

Criminal Record: If an applicant has been convicted of a crime, it is probably enough reason to reject their application. Take care, however, to make a distinction between an arrest and a conviction.

Pets: If you do not allow pets in your rental unit, you may reject a pet-owning applicant. However, be aware of how the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) views therapy pets. You may have to make an exception to your no-pet rule to accommodate a disabled tenant.

As always, staying consistent with procedures is extremely important—especially when considering whom to approve or reject as tenants. Keep your paperwork in tip-top shape, and follow the same process with each applicant. Favoring any person or type of person over another is a lawsuit waiting to happen.

Your best practice is to run credit and background checks on each applicant. Screening tenants is quick, easy, and inexpensive—and it could potentially save you thousands in legal fees. Use the facts—just the facts—to determine whether or not you approve an applicant.

The law protects tenants from evictions, rent increases, and other penalties a landlord might impose out of retaliation. Most often, this occurs after a tenant files a complaint or other action against the landlord. If you decide to evict a tenant, raise the rent, or terminate a lease, you must be prepared to prove it is not in retaliation for the tenant’s actions.

What is considered retaliatory action? If your tenant files a complaint through proper channels about your lack of maintenance or a code violation, you may not raise their rent, break their lease, or evict them. You may not threaten eviction or reduce services, either.

If you do decide to evict a tenant for legitimate reasons, such as severe property damage, non-payment or continual late payment of rent, or illegal activity, you must prove that your reason is legal. The law assumes a tenant who has filed a complaint and subsequently is evicted is being treated illegally. You cannot punish a tenant for exercising their rights under the law.

The reality is that once a tenant files a legal complaint, it becomes more difficult to later evict them, even with just cause. The best practice is to prevent such complaints with regular inspection schedules, proper maintenance, and good communication. In addition, prescreening tenants and checking references will be good clues as to their rental habits and history—before you enter a legal agreement to lease your property.

Stessed Out Over Problem Tenants?

Every landlord defines “problem tenants” differently, but all can agree they are just not easy to deal with. You might be considered lucky if your problem tenant is just late with the rent or is loud and disruptive at 3 a.m. While some bend the rules, others break your property, causing costly damages. And in extreme cases, tenants threaten harm to others or engage in illegal activity. Problem tenants cause much more than headaches for their landlords. What are your options in dealing with them?

Laws vary by state and even locality, so be sure to check with legal resources before proceeding to any action. Tenants have rights, too. You do not want to be sued for taking illegal action against a problem tenant. If you intend to end the tenancy for a rules violation, you must give the tenant written notice, with time for them to correct the problem. If a tenant is late on rent, you send a notice giving them a number of days to pay or they must vacate the premises. For recurring problems such as late payment, or major damages, you would send an unconditional notice to move, with no time to correct the issue.

When you have exhausted other options, there is often no choice other than to evict. Consistent late rent, severe property damage, illegal activity or non-payment of rent are good reasons to proceed to eviction.

It’s a good practice to communicate regularly with tenants, and to carefully document all communication. If you are claiming damages or lease violations, you must have proof if you end up in court, so make notes, send correspondence by certified mail when necessary, and take photos of all damages.

The best defense against problem tenantsis to prevent them from moving into your property in the first place. Prescreening tenants with reference, background and credit checks is not 100% foolproof, but it’s a good practice to establish. While there are no guarantees, and even the most cautious landlords have their share of bad tenants, prescreening will definitely help you avoid them.

Next Post: Illegal Retaliation

Many a time, landlords with rental property find that along with their bonafide tenant, they are saddled with a friend he / she allowed to stay over, while the guest searched for a place to live. However, come time to move and the visitor refuses to comply. Now, while most landlords want the original tenant to stay, as does the tenant, the guest is the one that they want to leave. In such a situation, most would be tempted to change the locks on the doors, allowing access only to the original tenant and, excluding his / her visitor. The question that arises is, whether such an act would be legal.

As long as, rent has not been accepted from the tenant’s guest or any indication given that he / she has been accepted as a tenant, the latter is nothing, but an unauthorised occupant. The fact that your tenant allowed a guest to stay for a while, does not turn the guest into a co-tenant.

Theoretically, an unauthorised occupant is nothing other than a trespasser, and states have ways to get rid of them, so you can begin with a call to your local police. There is no legal reason, why you and your tenant cannot change the locks to keep out a trespasser.

However, while the law may be on your side, you are restricted from taking it safely in your own hands. Most often, many long-term guests will claim they were treated like tenants, which means they have the same rights as bonafide tenants. And, as everyone knows freedom from illegal evictions, including lock changing is a significant tenant right.

So, unfortunately, the wisest course a landlord stuck with an unwanted guest can take, instead of changing locks and being sued in court, is to file an eviction action against this interloper.

That apart, landlords should make themselves cognisant with all rules and regulations before drafting tenancy leases or rental agreements. They must also take all necessary precautions, such as, tenant screenings, background checks on prospective tenants, including making certain all rental lease clauses are adhered to, as insurance for a litigation free landlord / tenant relationship. A simple click of the mouse and any landlord or property manager can visit www.e-renter.com for their tenant screening and background check services. www.e-renter.com, the best tenant screening agency in America!

When is it legal for a landlord to terminate a lease, and thereby end an unwanted tenancy, is a relatively easy question to answer. One can say a landlord is within his legal rights to terminate a lease, when the tenant flagrantly violates any of its clauses, such as, paying rent late, keeping pets in direct violation of a No Pets clause, substantially damaging the property, or participating in illegal activities on or near the premises e.g. selling drugs or some such.

However, a landlord is required to send adequate notice to a tenant telling him / her that the tenancy has been terminated. State laws have set out extremely detailed requirements regarding the drafting and delivery or serving of a termination notice. The reason for terminating the tenancy must be clearly stated, with a warning that the tenant must vacate the premises or face an eviction lawsuit. Or else, the notice should warn the tenant of eviction, if he / she does not clean up his / her act, e.g. pay the rent, or find a new home for the pet.

In case, the tenant complies or vacates the rental property, the landlord has just saved himself some expensive litigation expenditure. However, if the tenant refuses to comply with the termination notice, the landlord can file an eviction lawsuit against the tenant.

That apart, landlords should make themselves cognisant with all rules and regulations before drafting tenancy leases or rental agreements. They must also take all necessary precautions, such as, tenant screenings, background checks on prospective tenants, including making certain all rental lease clauses are adhered to, as insurance for a litigation free landlord / tenant relationship. A simple click of the mouse and any landlord or property manager can visit www.e-renter.com for their tenant screening and background check services. www.e-renter.com, the best tenant screening agency in America!

It is crucial for landlords to be aware of state laws governing rental businesses before renting out their property. Not only, do successful landlords have loads of practical know-how, as also business moxie, along with being familiar with the market. Thirty-years ago, the rental business was unrelated to law, however, today federal and state laws closely regulate nearly every aspect of it. Ignorance about the rules can land a landlord in serious legal hot water; therefore, it is best to avoid making the following top ten mistakes made by most landlords:

1. Using Generic or Outdated Lease Forms
   As every landlord knows, it is of the utmost importance to draw up a written lease or rental agreement, before allowing tenants to move in. However, if a wrong form is used, it can land a landlord into big trouble. That is why; landlords are advised to steer clear of so-called ‘standard’ forms sold everywhere, as it is more than probable they are not compliant with state laws. Using a stationery store lease that short-cuts tenants’ rights may well see you losing your tenant eviction lawsuit, due to an unenforceable lease clause. On the other hand, some standard forms actually impose greater obligations and restrictions on landlords than the state laws! For example, there are standard lease forms that require landlords to return security deposits within ten days. That is incorrect and no state requires it.Therefore, avoid making this mistake, either brush up your knowledge of state and federal laws or hire a lawyer to draw up a water-tight lease for you.
2. Asking the Wrong Questions During Applicant Screening
   Whilst, tenant screening is the most important aspect of a rental business, there are limits to the kind of questions that may be asked of prospective applicants. Asking a disabled person about his / her disability, or if a couple is married, may be questions asked in all innocence, but they could be misconstrued as illegal forms of discrimination. In case, you turn down the applicant on other grounds and the rejection has nothing to do with the offending question, a disappointed tenant has sufficient ammunition to lodge a fair housing complaint. Play it safe and steer clear of sensitive topics and issues.

That apart, landlords should make themselves cognisant with all rules and regulations before drafting tenancy leases or rental agreements. They must also take all necessary precautions, such as, tenant screenings, background checks on prospective tenants, including making certain all rental lease clauses are adhered to, as insurance for a litigation free landlord / tenant relationship. A simple click of the mouse and any landlord or property manager can visit www.e-renter.com for their tenant screening and background check services. www.e-renter.com, the best tenant screening agency in America!