Rental Lease Rules
When moving into a rental property, you should not only read your lease thoroughly, you should also be familiar with rental laws in general. Some provisions contained in a lease may violate the law. These are known as "unconscionable" provisions of a lease and do not have to be adhered to by the tenant, regardless of the lease's wording. Knowing your rights ensures that you will not fall victim to unscrupulous landlords. Laws may vary from state to state, but there are some basic things to look out for.
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Fair Housing Laws
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Fair housing laws refer to rental laws enacted at the federal level and enforced by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. These laws prevent discrimination in rental leases. The Fair Housing Act outlaws discrimination on the basis of race, religion, gender, disability, family status, color and national origin. This means that your lease, for example, cannot prevent you from free religious expression or evict you for having additional children.
Tenant Rights
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Tenants have rights in every state, even if these specific rights vary from one state to another. One thing that you are entitled to is some variant of "quiet enjoyment." This means that your landlord cannot interfere with your privacy or reasonable enjoyment of your property. You also have a right to safe and livable housing, meaning that your landlord is required to make repairs on the apartment to keep it livable -- such as maintaining plumbing and electricity in good, working order.
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Landlord Rights
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Your landlord will still have rights over his own property. Among these rights is entering the premises with notice and at a reasonable hour of the day. Your landlord also has the right to set terms and conditions of the lease, within certain reasonable boundaries. For example, your landlord has the right to say whether or not there can be pets in the building and how clean you must keep your apartment.
Renter Responsibilities
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You have responsibilities as a renter in addition to rights. For example, you are a custodian of your domicile. This means that you must take care of the apartment and not cause any undue damage or allow others to. Depending on what state you live in, your landlord may or may not be able to make deductions from your security deposit based on normal wear and tear. Every state allows landlords to make deductions based on excessive damage, however.
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