Question: One of our tenants was recently arrested and is incarcerated. How does this affect his lease? Is it considered abandonment?
Ted Kimball
Kimball, Tirey & St. John LLP
Answer: The incarceration of a tenant does not have a legal effect on the tenant’s right under the lease. If the tenant breaches any part of the lease agreement, such as non-payment of rent, the landlord may take legal steps to evict, and can serve notices to the tenant while in jail.
Question: One of our residents is a day sleeper and complains about the noisy children next door. They are under school age, and I don’t know how or if I should enforce excessive noise.
Answer: Most courts recognize that apartment living is in closer proximity than single family homes and occupants must be more tolerant of disruptions, considering also the time of day or night and the cause of the disruption. If the noise the children make is not excessive for daytime tolerance, it is likely there is no violation of the lease or community rules. Having another witness to the noise would be helpful to see which side you end up on!
Question: One of our month-to-month residents gave a 30-day notice to vacate the unit and now it is the 30th day and he refuses to move. What can I do now? Do I have to serve him with my 30-day notice?
Answer: If the tenant’s notice was in writing, the tenant is legally bound to vacate the unit within the 30-day time frame. Failure to do so allows you to immediately file an action for unlawful detainer (tenant eviction).
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.