The all-in-one resource every landlord needs. The best, most effective way to make and save money as a landlord is to keep up with the law -- and with Every Landlord's Legal Guide, you can do it. From move-in to move-out, Every Landlord's Legal Guide helps you handle the issues you're likely to face, helping you avoid hassles and headaches -- not to mention legal fees. Here is everything you need to: -choose tenants -prepare a lease or rental agreement -collect and return deposits -avoid discrimination charges -hire a property manager -keep up with repairs and maintenance -minimize liability -deal with problem tenants -and more Every Landlord's Legal Guide provides over 30 documents you'll need, including leases and rental agreements, as tear-outs and on CD-ROM. The 8th edition is completely revised to provide your state's current laws, and discusses how new federal bankruptcy laws affect your ability to evict tenants. The CD-ROM is not included with the digital version of this book. Forms from the CD-ROM are available under APPENDIX C- Tear Out Forms

Choosing tenants is the most important decision any landlord makes, and to do it well you need a reliable system. Follow the steps in this chapter to maximize your chances of selecting tenants who will pay their rent on time, keep their units in good condition, and not cause you any legal or practical problems later. Before you advertise your property for rent, make a number of basic decisions -- including how much rent to charge, whether to offer a fixed-term lease or a month-to-month tenancy, how many tenants can occupy each rental unit, how big a security deposit to require, and whether you'll allow pets. Making these important decisions should dovetail with writing your lease or rental agreement. (See Chapter 2.) A. Avoiding Fair Housing Complaints and Lawsuits Federal and state antidiscrimination laws limit what you can say and do in the tenant selection process. Because the topic of discrimination is so important we devote a whole chapter to it later in the book (Chapter 5), including legal reasons for refusing to rent to a tenant and how to avoid discrimination in your tenant selection process. You should read Chapter 5 before you run an ad or interview prospective tenants. For now, keep in mind four important points: You are legally free to choose among prospective tenants as long as your decisions are based on legitimate business criteria. You are entitled to reject applicants with bad credit histories, income that you reasonably regard as insufficient to pay the rent, or past behavior -- such as property damage or consistent late rent payments -- that makes someone a bad risk. A valid occupancy limit that is clearly tied to health and safety or legitimate business needs can also be a legal basis for refusing tenants. It goes without saying that you may legally refuse to rent to someone who can't come up with the security deposit or meet some other condition of the tenancy. Fair housing laws specify clearly illegal reasons to refuse to rent to a tenant. Federal law prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, religion, national origin, gender, age, familial status, or physical or mental disability (including recovering alcoholics and people with a past drug addiction). Many states and cities also prohibit discrimination based on marital status or sexual orientation. Anybody who deals with prospective tenants must follow fair housing laws. This includes owners, landlords, managers, and real estate agents, and all of their employees. As the property owner, you may be held legally responsible for your employees' discriminatory statements or conduct, including sexual harassment. (Chapter 6, Section E, explains how to protect yourself from your employee's illegal acts.) Consistency is crucial when dealing with prospective tenants. If you don't treat all tenants more or less equally -- for example, if you arbitrarily set tougher standards for renting to a member of a racial minority -- you are violating federal laws and opening yourself up to lawsuits. B. How to Advertise Rental Property You can advertise rental property in many ways: putting an "Apartment for Rent" sign in front of the building or in one of the windows taking out newspaper ads posting flyers on neighborhood bulletin boards, such as the local laundromat or coffee shop listing with a local homefinders' or apartment-finding service that provides a centralized listing of rental units for a particular geographic area Posting a notice online (see "Online Apartment Listing Services," below, for details) listing with a local real estate broker that handles rentals hiring a property management company, which will advertise

 

The all-in-one resource every landlord needs. The best, most effective way to make and save money as a landlord is to keep up with the law -- and with Every Landlord's Legal Guide, you can do it.

I. How Landlords Can Use This Book A. What This Book Covers-And How to Use It B. What This Book Doesn't Cover C. Guide to Icons Used in This Book 1. Screening Tenants: Your Most Important Decision A. Avoiding Fair Housing Complaints and Lawsuits B. How to Advertise Rental Property C. Renting Property That's Still Occupied D. Dealing With Prospective Tenants and Accepting Rental Applications E. Checking References, Credit History, and More F. Choosing-And Rejecting-An Applicant G. Finder's Fees and Holding Deposits 2. Preparing Leases and Rental Agreements A. Which Is Better, a Lease or a Rental Agreement? B. Using the Forms in This Book C. Completing the Lease or Rental Agreement Form D. Changing a Lease or Rental Agreement E. Signing a Lease or Rental Agreement F. About Cosigners 3. Basic Rent Rules A. How Much Can You Charge? B. Rent Control C. When Rent Is Due D. Where and How Rent Is Due E. Late Charges and Discounts for Early Payments F. Returned Check Charges G. Partial or Delayed Rent Payments H. Raising the Rent 4. Security Deposits A. Purpose and Use of Security Deposits B. Dollar Limits on Deposits C. How Much Deposit Should You Charge? D. Last Month's Rent E. Interest and Accounts on Deposits F. Nonrefundable Deposits and Fees G. How to Increase Deposits H. Handling Deposits When You Buy or Sell Rental Property 5. Discrimination A. Legal Reasons for Rejecting a Rental Applicant B. Sources of Antidiscrimination Laws C. Types of Illegal Discrimination D. Valid Occupancy Limits E. Managers and Discrimination F. Unlawful Discrimination Complaints G. Insurance Coverage in Discrimination Claims 6. Property Managers A. Hiring Your Own Resident Manager B. How to Prepare a Property Manager Agreement C. Your Legal Obligations as an Employer D. Management Companies E. Your Liability for a Manager's Acts F. Notifying Tenants of the Manager G. Firing a Manager H. Evicting a Manager 7. Getting the Tenant Moved In A. Inspect the Rental Unit B. Photograph the Rental Unit C. Send New Tenants a Move-In Letter D. Cash Rent and Security Deposit Checks E. Organize Your Tenant Records F. Organize Income and Expenses for Schedule E 8. Cotenants, Sublets, and Assignments A. Cotenants B. What to Do When a Tenant Wants to Sublet or Assign C. When a Tenant Brings in a Roommate D. Guests and New Occupants You Haven't Approved 9. Landlord's Duty to Repair and Maintain the Premises A. The Implied Warranty of Habitability B. How to Meet Your Legal Responsibilities C. Tenant Responses to Unfit Premises: Paying Less Rent D. Tenant Responses: Calling Inspectors, Filing Lawsuits, and Moving Out E. Minor Repairs F. Delegating Landlord's Responsibilities to Tenants G. Avoiding Problems by Adopting a Good Maintenance and Repair System H. Tenant Updates and Landlord's Regular Safety and Maintenance Inspections I. Tenants' Alterations and Improvements J. Cable TV Access K. Satellite Dishes and Antennas 10. Landlord's Liability for Dangerous Conditions 11. Landlord's Liability for Environmental Health Hazards 12. Landlord's Liability for Criminal Acts and Activities 13. Landlord's Right of Entry and Tenants' Privacy 14. Ending a Tenancy 15. Returning Security Deposits and Other Move-Out Issues 16. Problems With Tenants: How to Resolve Disputes Without a Lawyer 18. Lawyers and Legal Research Appendixes B. How to Use the CD-ROM C. Tear-Out Forms Index
*The CD-ROM is not included with the digital version of this book.

"If there is one item a landlord needs it's a reliable legal guide.... This book provides as comprehensive and authoritative a basic reference as you are going to find. It's big, profusely illustrated, and deals in real life problems."

 

"When it comes to handling tenants, no landlord should be without a copy of Every Landlord's Legal Guide..."

 

"Hailed as a bible by real estate trade publications."

 

Ms. Stewart has been a Nolo editor and author since 1989, writing and editing books on landlord-tenant law, real estate, and other consumer issues. She is the co-author of Every Landlord's Legal Guide, Every Tenant's Legal Guide, Leases and Rental Agreements, and Renters' Rights. She has edited dozens of Nolo books, including Every Landlord's Guide to Finding Great Tenants, How to Buy a House in California, and Nolo's LeaseWriter Plus software for landlords, and Parent Savvy.

 

Every Landlord's Legal Guide by Marcia Stewart
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