News: Ted Kimball

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Question: One of our single tenants who was renting a small one bedroom unit recently died. There are still three months remaining on his lease.  What should I do with the security deposit? Answer: A tenancy for a specified term does not terminate on the death of either the landlord or the tenant. Once the executor or administrator of the decedent’s estate returns possession, you should account for the use of the deposit and direct the accounting to the administrator or executor. Question: I understand that if a building contains 16 or more units there must be a resident manager.… Read More

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Question: This month’s rent check from a tenant had a second name printed below the tenant’s name on the upper left corner of the check. If I cash the check for this month’s rent, am I changing the terms of tenancy? Answer: The mere fact that another person is listed on the check does not change the terms of the tenancy. You should inquire about the other person or find other ways to determine if there is an unauthorized occupant, and if so, either have the extra person apply for residency or serve a 3-day notice to perform covenants or… Read More

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Question: My rental property is a house in a rural area. I do allow animals but do not want any pit bulls.  Can I specifically state that? Answer: You can determine what type of animals, if any, you allow on the property and should make this clear in the lease or lease addendum. If the animal is a support animal for a disabled resident, however, different rules apply. Question: Our tenant has a roommate who is paying him half the rent. The roommate is not on the rental agreement. When the tenant vacates, can I ask the roommate to also… Read More

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Question: How long is an eviction kept on credit reports? Does it state the apartment complex or the owner’s name on the credit report? Answer: Credit bureaus delete judgments from a consumer’s credit report after seven years. The apartment complex will appear on the credit report as the plaintiff in the eviction case if the case is filed in court with the apartment complex named as the plaintiff. Question: I have a resident who was just put in a detoxification clinic. Her sister wants me to allow her inside to remove all of her personal possessions and move her out… Read More

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Question: My renter was backing downstairs, carrying a 38-pound bag of clothes and fell and broke her wrist. Can I be sued and a judgment obtained against me? Answer: You would only be liable if you were negligent in the way you maintained the stairs, and your negligence was a proximate cause of the injury. You should notify your insurance carrier as soon as possible. Question: Our window was broken by a golf ball hit by the tenant of a neighboring property. They admitted they owed me for a new window but moved away before I could collect on it.… Read More

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Question: We have served our tenant a 60-day notice of termination of tenancy; however, the renter has quit paying the rent. Now we are preparing to send a three-day notice to pay rent or quit. What is the next step if the tenant doesn’t pay? Answer: If the tenant does not comply with the three-day notice by paying the rent, you can commence eviction procedures. If the rent owed is paid, the 60-day notice is still valid unless you asked for rent that goes beyond the 60-day notice period. Question: Our tenants were supposed to move out in two weeks.… Read More

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Question: Our tenant, who has lived there for more than one year, is on a month-to-month term, and the house he is renting has been listed for sale. We understand that when a property is being sold, the 60-day notice of termination of tenancy is not required and that a 30-day notice is permitted once an escrow is opened. Is that correct? Answer: A 30-day notice may be given in these circumstances only: if it is a single-family residence, the buyer is going to move in and live there for at least one year; the notice is given within 120… Read More

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Question: I suspect there are at least five people living in a one-bedroom apartment in one of our units. The lease only allows three persons and they have not paid rent. I want to serve a three-day notice to pay rent or quit, but I do not know all of their names. What should I do? Answer: If you serve a three-day notice, address it to the occupants for which you have the names and also to “all others in possession.” If they pay the rent, however, you may have agreed to the additional people living there. If you do… Read More

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Question: I am an owner of several small apartment buildings. What legal responsibility and liability does an owner have for changing locks when changing tenants? Answer: An owner or manager of rental property is held to the same standard of care that would be required by a reasonable and prudent owner or manager in like circumstances. In other words, if one of your residents claims he or she was robbed or injured by someone who had a key to his or her apartment, this person could claim you were responsible. The tenant could prevail in court if the trier of… Read More

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Question: My tenant fixes his motorcycle in the living room of his apartment. I have warned him that he did not have a right to use our apartment as an auto repair shop. He says as long as he leaves the apartment clean, he has the right to work on his motorcycle. What should I do? Answer: You should review your lease to see if he is breaching any particular condition of promise. If not, and you are on a month-to-month tenancy, you could threaten to serve him with a 30-day notice to quit, or to change the terms of… Read More

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