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Top 10 Renter’s Rights

October 27, 2007 – 10:51 pm

If you are currently looking for a rental, you should know all of your renter’s rights. Below is a list of the top 10 rights you have when you are looking to rent. These vary by state so it is best to contact your local government, local law firm or local certified property manager to get the laws in your state.

  1. The Fair Housing Act
    1. Hud: Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (Fair Housing Act), as amended, prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of dwellings, and in other housing-related transactions, based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status (including children under the age of 18 living with parents of legal custodians, pregnant women, and people securing custody of children under the age of 18), and handicap (disability).
  2. Military Clause
    1. If tenant is an active duty member, it is important to have a “military clause” in the lease that allows them to break their lease if they are sent to a new place for duty.
    2. Sample “Military Clause”
    3. Most states allow for active military to break their lease even without a military clause but it is best to protect oneself and have one in the lease.
  3. Eviction Laws
    1. What can the landlord evict the tenant for?
      1. Not paying rent. These are known as Pay Rent or Quit notices. In most states, tenant has 3 - 5 days to pay rent after you receiving notice.
      2. Violating the lease agreement. This could be something like having pets in the dwelling even though the lease forbids pets.
      3. Doing something illegal on the premises.
      4. Tenant refuses to allow landlord to enter premises to make repairs or inspection.
  4. Breaking the Lease
    1. When can tenant break a lease?
      1. Home is just not livable and landlord has done nothing about it. Keep everything in writing.
      2. Try to find another qualified tenant to replace
      3. Pay the remaining months of rent.
      4. Be up front with the landlord.
  5. Health Code Laws
    1. All housing needs to comply with local and state health laws. This means the home must be structurally safe, mold free, weather proofed and have functioning heat, water and electricity.
  6. Privacy Rights
    1. When can a landlord enter an apartment or home?
      1. to make needed repairs (or in some states, just to determine whether repairs are necessary)
      2. in cases of emergency, or
      3. to show the property to prospective new tenants or purchasers.
      4. In most states, the law requires at lease a 24 hour period to enter the premises.
  7. Demanding Repairs
    1. Landlord is required to offer their tenants livable premises.
    2. Landlords must fix major problems.
  8. Security Deposit - The general rule is that tenants are not responsible for normal wear and tear.
    1. View chart of what is considered ordinary wear and tear from Nolo.com
  9. Tenant’s Property - If a tenant does not pay rent, landlords usually can’t legally seize a tenant’s property. If however, the property is abandoned remaining property defined by law could be confiscated.
  10. Attorney Fees - In some states, it’s illegal to put a provision in the lease agreement that states the tenant must pay landlords legal fees in the event of legal action.

  1. 27 Responses to “Top 10 Renter’s Rights”

  2. I was just reading something about REO properties, and how you may not be able to evict renters who live in a “rent controled” (or something like that) area…do you know anything about that?

    By Konnie McKee Your Prince William County REALtor on Oct 28, 2007

  3. Hi Konnie,

    Yes, you are correct. In some states there are Rent Control Exceptions. These are called “just cause eviction protection”

    The landlord needs to have more legal justification to evict.

    By Dan on Oct 28, 2007

  4. My lease has in writing
    “As of 11/01/04 there is a $200 non refundable sercurity deposit required up front prior to moving in for new renters.”
    Is it legal to with hold a sercurity deposit with out just cause?

    By Haeli on Nov 12, 2007

  5. Hi Haeli,

    A few states, such as California prohibit landlords from charging any fee or deposit that is non-refundable. It is best to make sure it is legal within your state by doing some research or contacting a lawyer.
    States that allow for a non-refundable deposit are Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

    By Dan on Nov 12, 2007

  6. Just moved out of my apartment in Clear Spring MD to another location. Landlord has held security deposit of $350 and wants another $900 to replace carpets and paint. The carpet was over 10 years old and stained when I moved in and wallpaper on walls was from the 70’s. Can he charge me the full price for new?

    By Sue on Nov 30, 2007

  7. Hi Sue,

    If the carpet and paint was destroyed beyond normal wear and tear, and the landlord had documented everything with photos and can prove that the carpet was destroyed because of the tenant, the landlord can take the deposit and receive more money if deposit does not cover expenses. It is always important for a tenant to take their own photos and document everything prior to moving into a place to protect the tenant against a he said / she said dispute.

    By Dan on Nov 30, 2007

  8. It seems that we are now spying on everywhere. When the world does not feel safe, schools and businesses to return to the use of electronic means. Usually, this consists of hidden cameras. Sometimes there is even a bathroom hidden cameras.

    Schools are using more and more surveillance. That should help keep students safe. It also helps solve crimes that have already occurred. Knowing the cameras have reason to think students before they came to misbehavior.

    By blackman on Jan 5, 2008

  9. I wanted to know how much notice an apartment can require you to give before moving out. we are in the state of Texas and if our lease is up on the last day of say March our apartment wants us to turn in written notice that we will be moving. They want this done 60 days in advance, which would be Feb. 1st. Can they require that we give 60 days notice to vacate and if we don’t do so what can they do?

    By vicki on Jan 24, 2008

  10. i have mice problems. Is that my responsibility to get rid of them or can i ask the landlords. We (landlord and i ) believe that the weather and undeveloped part (due to fire) of the apartments are causing the mice to come indoors.

    By Julia on Feb 17, 2008

  11. if your roommate is threatening to you by yelling and being drunk, is there a loop hole to get out of your lease?

    By annie on Feb 23, 2008

  12. My landlord never provided me with a copy of the lease nor ever had me sign anything. Although I did write him checks for due rent. I am in the process of moving before my lease is actually supposed to be terminated. Can the landlord legally take action against me for obtain the rent up to the closing of the lease? He has my name, but not previous renters history, no signature on the lease, there was no credit check, no nothing although I have informed him of my intentions to leaving the property within 5days. Can he obtain anything from me, or what type of legal action can he take?

    By Scott on Mar 18, 2008

  13. I was wondering who’s responsibility is it to paint. I have lived in this house two uears in June. We are moving next month.(military) The walls in this house was clean and I tried to keep them that way but everytime I would wipe them down it would look smudged and looks horrible. No thanks to a couple of toddlers too. The paint is cheap flat paint maybe even primer. The landlord made it seem as though I needed to get it done professionally when he did a walk through six months ago. I was just curious. I’ll paint if I have to but if it is not required then I won’t of course. Thanks

    By Marie on Mar 26, 2008

  14. i would like to know how long after an eviction notice has been signed by a jugde do you have before you have to move out???

    By tammy on Mar 27, 2008

  15. I was wondering who’s responsibility is it to paint. I have lived in this house two uears in June. We are moving next month.(military) The walls in this house was clean and I tried to keep them that way but everytime I would wipe them down it would look smudged and looks horrible. No thanks to a couple of toddlers too. The paint is cheap flat paint maybe even primer. The landlord made it seem as though I needed to get it done professionally when he did a walk through six months ago. I was just curious. I’ll paint if I have to but if it is not required then I won’t of course. Thanks

    By Marie on Mar 29, 2008

  16. AGHH! I REALLY NEED SOME HELP, I HOPE THERE IS SOMEONE OUT THERE WHO CAN GIVE ME ANY INPUT ON MY SITUATION. 2.5 MONTHS AGO THE HOME I AM RENTING BEGAN TO LEAK AT THE TOPS OF ALMOST EVERY WINDOW IN THE PLACE. THE MOLD IN MY BEDROOM WAS SO BAD I HAD TO RIP OUT THE CARPETING MYSELF…OWNER DOESN’T CARE. MY BED HAD MILDEW ON IT AND I HAD TO THROW IT OUT. COLDWELL BANKER SAID “YES, WE WILL ABSOLUTELY REPLACE YOUR BED. MY RENTAL AGENCY IS FANTASTIC, THEY ARE DOING EVERYTHING THEY CAN TO GET THE OWNER TO FIX OUR MOLD AND MILDEW PROBLEMS…I HAVEN’T BEEN ABLE TO SLEEP/USE MY BEDROOM IN OVER 2 MONTHS I’VE HAD TO SLEEP ON AN AIR MATRESS IN MY LIVING ROOM [ WHICH IS ONLY TOLERABLE FOR SO LONG] I’VE BEEN TOLD BY MANY PEOPLE, THAT BECAUSE OF OUR CURRENT SITUATION THAT THE LAW MIGHT BE ON OUR [TENTANTS] SIDE AND IT’S POSSIBLE THAT I WON’T HAVE TO PAY ANY RENT UNTILL HE RESOLVES THE PROBLEMS…..NO BACK RENT DUE AT THE TIME OF REPAIR COMPLETION …..PLEASE ANY INFO WILL HELP ME GREATLY EVEN IF IT’S ONLY A SUGGESTION ON WHERE TO LOOK FOR THE ANSWER ….THNX ROBIN IN TAHOE

    By ROBIN on Mar 29, 2008

  17. my creepy roommates want to put up hidden cameras to see who is not participating in the cleaning. but that means invading anyones privacy. possibly cameras in the bathroom. I wouldn’t be able to tell. the person putting up these cameras works for porn company’s. I’m completely against these cameras. Is there laws against this in California houses with rented rooms?

    By crystal on Apr 12, 2008

  18. Crystal, DON”T LET THEM DO IT! Everything about it sounds WRONG! They are uing the cleaning thing as an excuse. Remember…You will be in those bathrooms too! Watch your back girl.

    By Marie on Apr 30, 2008

  19. We moved out of an apartment a month ago. We thoroughly cleaned the apartment before we left. The manager even agreed that we did an excellent job & fully expected for us to receive our refundable deposit back in full. We lived in the apartment for 3 years & he noted that it was just normal wear & tear…no damages. The owner, however, took $300 out of our $500 refundable deposit for regular cleaning of the carpets & blinds. Is this what he did legal?

    By Gloria on May 1, 2008

  20. My girlfriend is looking to move out of her apartment in Laurel, MD, over the summer. She has lived there for 5 years. Her cats have clawed several areas of the carpet to destruction, and I suspect that most of the rest of the carpet has been ruined by pet stains. The damage is certainly beyond normal wear and tear. I don’t know whether the carpet was new when she moved in. I am finding confusing and conflicting information about whether she would have to pay for the cost of replacing the carpet when she moves out. Some sources say if it’s over three years old, it needs to be replaced anyway and the landlord can’t charge. Some say that apartment carpets last ten years and the landlord should prorate any replacement charges factoring in the carpet’s age. I read above a comment that suggests that if it’s beyond normal wear and tear, the tenant simply has to pay to replace it. Understanding that laws in MD may differ from elsewhere, can anyone clarify this for me? If she has to pay to replace the carpet beyond what is in her security and pet deposits, I don’t think she can afford to move out, hence my concern. I don’t want to wait for the inspection to find out.

    By Will on May 1, 2008

  21. i moved out of my apartment and cleaned it spotless. i live in rochester,ny. how long do i have to wait for my security deposit to be returned.

    By brenda on Jun 21, 2008

  22. Hi There,

    Wondering if someone could help me out with this. We just received our security deposit back and with it was a bill for a repair for 14 ropes on old windows which were repaired. The landlord is telling us that they were all in working order when we moved in so we must have caused damage to them. It was never explained to us when we did our walk through at the beginning. If I had known it was going to be an issue at the end of the lease I would have check every single window when we moved in. Many of them we didn’t open because he didn’t have screens on them, so I have no idea if they were broken. We didn’t intentionally break cut the ropes. I would think this would be considered normal maintenance costs of owning a place.

    By Heidi on Jul 17, 2008

  23. when we moved in the carpet had stains and smelled like dogs. it still does after a second shampooing and we are being charged a pet deposit.

    By sisc on Jul 29, 2008

  24. HELP!
    I live in Cincinnati, Ohio. The company that owns my apartment building and the building accross an alley from my side of the building have put a survallience camera on the roof of the buiolding that looks directly into my side of the building. The building the camera is mounted on is a warehouse. My building is an apartment building.

    Is there anyway I can either get out of my year lease to move or are there any laws which would force them to move their camera to another location to serve their purpose? Cincinnati is in Hamilton County?

    By John on Jul 31, 2008

  25. Before we moved into our duplex we walked through with the landlord and told him the obvious things that needed to be fixed. After moving in we discovered a lot of other things that needed to be repaired or replaced. One of the major things is the berber carpet. It is old, has holes, ripped and stained and we have had it cleaned three times since moving in on December 26, 2007. When we walk around barefoot or in our socks the bottoms of our feet are, no kidding, black. Especially my two-year old son’s who doesn’t like to keep any shoes or socks on. I’ve told the landlord about us paying to have it cleaned and that it really needs to be replaced but he is very lazy and doesn’t seem to care. So, after all of that, I have two questions. 1. Should he have to pay us back for cleaning the carpets? and 2. Should the carpet be replaced at the landlord’s expense? Please help.

    By Morgan on Aug 7, 2008

  26. Also, is this against any health codes???

    By Morgan on Aug 7, 2008

  27. I’m in California and I just moved out and paid to get the capets cleaned and paid $340 for a professional. They did a good job. Now the landlord saying its not good enought that I should of had the landlord taken care of it (after I done it) so I called the carpet cleaning company to go back out there and they did (for free). Now a month later I get my deposit back with almost $300.00 taken out of it for carpet cleaning. Is there anything I could do about this?

    By Stacey on Aug 18, 2008

  28. have a friend that is moving out of an apartment. she has a small chiwawah dog and paid a pet deposit. the dog maybe urinated in a few small areas and there is no smell. the apartments carpet cleaner told the complex that the carpet needed to be replaced. I have been in the carpet cleaning business for 18 years, and i offered to give her my opinion on the carpet condition(its about a year old). they are wanting to charge her about 1000.00 for carp. replacement. I know of no other cleaning company including myself who would say it needed replacing. does she have any rights to have a second or even third opinion . she doesnt know what to do because she is living in the same complex just a different apt.

    By kenny on Aug 27, 2008

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