Question: New tenants moved in last month. The wife now wants me to take her name off the lease because she is moving out and getting a divorce. They agreed to a one-year lease. What can I do?
Ted Kimball
Kimball, Tirey & St. John LLP
Answer: You are not legally required to release the wife from liability under the lease. If you do, and the husband is unable to pay or declares bankruptcy, you would not be able to pursue your losses from the wife.
Question: One of our tenants owes us for past-due rent, and part of his security deposit. He has given us a check for the amount of the rent, but I want to first apply it to the deposit and then serve a three-day notice to pay rent or quit for the unpaid balance. Is that legal?
Answer: Yes, but only if the tenant did not designate where the money was to be applied on his check, or other written correspondence. You could avoid the issue by applying the payment to rent and then serving a three-day notice to pay the balance of the deposit, or quit. Failure to pay could lead to a successful eviction.
Question: What can you do about a tenant being cruel to an animal, such as by keeping a large dog in small quarters outside with the dog crying in the rain, cold and heat?
Answer: You have a right to report any criminal or inhumane acts occurring on the rental property. If the mistreatment constitutes a crime, you could evict the tenant for carrying on illegal activity on the premises.
Kimball, Tirey & St. John LLP is a full service real estate law firm representing residential and commercial property owners and managers. This article is for general information purposes only. Laws may have changed since this article was published. Before acting, be sure to receive legal advice from our office. If you have questions, please contact your local KTS office. For contact information, please visit our website: www.kts-law.com. For past Legal Alerts, Questions & Answers, and Legal Articles, please consult the resource library section of our website.