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Thanks to CAA, a recently signed law ensuring a tenant’s ability to pay rent through a third party also contains protections for landlords. Historically, landlords have been unwilling to accept payments from third parties over concerns that a third party would claim a right to possession of the unit. The California Apartment Association worked with the author, Assemblyman Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, to prevent this from happening.

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Question: If a rental unit is broken into and there is subsequent damage, who is responsible for the repairs? Answer: If the damage is to the rental property as opposed to the tenant’s personal items, the tenant could be held responsible if the landlord could prove the tenant was negligent for instance by leaving their doors or windows unlocked. Otherwise, the landlord would likely be responsible to fix the repair, but would not be responsible for the tenant’s personal items.

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Question: If a guest causes problems or damages the property, what is my recourse? Answer: The tenant is responsible to pay for the repair of any damage caused by their guest’s negligence or intentional act. If they fail to pay, a three-day notice to perform conditions and covenants or quit can be served, followed by an eviction.

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Question: A couple moved into our rental unit one month ago. Since they moved in, we have received eight complaints from the neighbors, who are now at the point of wanting to vacate because of these complaints. What should I do? Answer: If the disturbances are major and continuous, the court may grant an eviction based upon a 3-day notice to quit, but the disturbances to the quiet enjoyment of the neighboring property must be severe, and there must be witnesses to prove your case in court if the case is contested.

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Question: I have signed a lease for one year with a tenant, and now he wants to leave after four months. What is my recourse? Answer: The tenant is responsible for the rent up to the date the lease expires or the date that you re-lease the property, whichever occurs first. You must use due diligence in trying to re-lease the premises.

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Question: How can we determine if the roaches in the apartment were the result of bad housekeeping? Is it our responsibility to get rid of the roaches? Answer: Ask your pest control professional to give his or her opinion on how the roaches came into the apartment unit. The court will rely heavily on expert testimony in these cases. If you can prove the tenant was responsible for the infestation, they are responsible for the cost of removal.

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Landlords losing the ability to use Ratio Utility Billing Systems on San Jose’s rent-controlled housing will want to read a newly published paper from the California Apartment Association. The Industry Insight paper, just for CAA members, reviews the petition process underway to offset losses from the banning of RUBS in the city’s rent-controlled units. If landlords currently using RUBS are granted an offset, they’ll be permitted to add a portion of their RUBS charge to the tenant’s monthly base rent. The paper covers everything from eligibility for the pass-through to notifying tenants of plans to file the petition to offset… Read More

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Question: I have a two-bedroom apartment rented to two roommates. One roommate always pays the rent on time. The other roommate is habitually late. Can I do an eviction based on a partial payment even though the month is not over? Answer: Both tenants are responsible for the entire amount of the rent so long as they are on the same rental agreement/lease. You should serve a three-day notice to pay rent or quit for the balance of the rent and name both roommates. If they do not comply, commence an unlawful detainer action naming both.

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Question: We are terminating a month-to-month tenant who has rented the property for over 15 years. We gave the tenant a 60-day notice and the tenant acknowledged this and initially thanked us for giving them more than 30 days’ notice. Now the tenant is demanding an additional 30 days due to their new residence not being ready in time. We have already made other commitments for the property. We stated we cannot extend more time. The tenant states that they are entitled to the extension because they have rented the property for over 10 years.  Where do we stand? Answer: … Read More

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Question: What is the first step to take if I want to evict a renter for non-payment of rent? Answer: You should serve a 3-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit for the rent. If they fail to comply, you can start an unlawful detainer action, but make sure not to accept rent after the action is commenced if you want the eviction to go forward. Question: What are we allowed, by law, to charge a tenant as a security deposit? Answer: You are allowed to charge up to twice the amount of the monthly rent as a security deposit,… Read More

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