Minnesota Premises Liability Lawyers
The role of a landlord is a rewarding one. Owning rental property has provided many owners with a positive return on investment. Â There are many legal responsibilities that go along with owning rental property. Neglecting these responsibilities can land you in court. A costly lawsuit is avoidable though.
You need to understand and adhere to the landlord laws of your state. That goes beyond brushing up on fair housing once a year. It’s vital to understand the requirements of you after the tenant has signed the lease.
Safety:
Salt and sand driveways:
When the icy weather conditions hit you must salt and or sand driveways and sidewalks. Many landscaping companies offer snow plow and salting services in during the winter. Or you can do it yourself. You must keep sidewalks and driveways safe for residents. This means shoveling, plowing and salting.
A good rule of thumb is to keep a log of all plowing and salting. You want to log the date, time, and the exact activity that took place. You may not plow each day or salt each day, so you need to document what you did.
This documentation is to protect you from a lawsuit. What if a resident slipped on ice and tried to sue you? You need to prove that you made reasonable safety accommodations on your end.
A safe home:
Landlords are responsible for maintaining a habitable home for the resident. A safe home is a big part of that.
A home with broken windows or locks is not considered safe. Make sure all windows and doors have working locks on them. If they break you must fix them promptly.
Your tenant is entitled to security in their unit. Before a new tenant moves in change the locks. Do this even if your previous tenant moved out on good terms. You don’t want to be liable if an old tenant decides to pay a visit.
Habitable:
The rental home does not have to be perfect. But, there are habitability standards that landlords must keep.
Ensure the building is up to code:
This will vary due to your geographical location. If you are near a fault line your building codes will differ from those far from the fault line.
Regions that are within tornado alley will have different codes too. All properties must follow state and local building codes.
Weather protection:
Your rental needs to be protected from the elements. You don’t want leaky windows or the roof caving in from the weight of the snow.
Pests:
You must protect your home from pests, within reason. This is for your benefit and your tenants. Call in a professional to do routine pest control for termites and cockroaches. Depending on your lease bed bug treatments may be the responsibility of the tenant.
If you continue to receive complaints, do an inspection of the home. There may be a housekeeping issue that is causing problems.
Ensuring all utilities are functioning properly:
All heat, water, and electric utilities must be in working order. If something breaks it is the landlord’s responsibility to fix it immediately.
If you cover a portion of the utilities as part of the rental agreement you must keep those up to date. If you are delinquent on utility payments your tenants may reopen the accounts. They can deduct the cost from the rent. This only applies to utilities though.
The cold weather rules don’t apply to landlords evicting or non-renewing a tenant during the winter months.
Maintenance:
Prepare the rental for winter:
To avoid stress for you and your tenant you want to do routine maintenance to prepare for winter.
- Check your pipes: Make sure to protect hose bibs and detach hoses. Insulate exterior pipes with foam insulation. This protects them from the snow and freezing temperatures.
- Inspect the roof: Clean the gutters during your spring-cleaning maintenance. Have a professional roofer inspect the roof for cracks and loose shingles. Consider investing in roof rake. Depending on the weather conditions, you may need to rake the roof to get some snow weight off.
- HVAC: Most leases require tenants to replace the air filters every couple of months. But, you want to have the HVAC inspected to make sure everything is working properly for winter.
- Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors: Landlords must keep these in working order. This is especially important if the heat will be running frequently.
- The water heater: A burst water heater is expensive and preventable. Flush the water heater before the winter hits to prevent it from bursting.
Don’t neglect maintenance requests:
Address maintenance requests in a timely fashion. Requests that affect the habitability or safety of the home must be handled immediately.
If you neglect a maintenance request a tenant can hire a contractor to do the work. Tenants may deduct the costs from rent.
This is not ideal because this contractor may not be the best value. They may not do the best work either. You want to maintain control over which vendors work on your property.
Otherwise, you risk losing money. In addition, the tenant can withhold rent until maintenance requests are complete.
Excellent documentation:
As a landlord, it is imperative that you document all maintenance requests. You never know when a tenant may try to take you to court over a maintenance issue.
- Make sure residents submit requests in writing. Submissions via email or a maintenance request slips at the office work fine.
- Keep records of all preventative maintenance. Do this for the exterior of the property interior units if you own more than one rental.
Require tenants to buy renters insurance:
Many landlords require proof of renter’s insurance before they sign the lease. Accidents happen.
Even when you have diligently done all your preventable maintenance of the property a pipe can burst, or a roof can cave in. Renters insurance insures the tenant’s belongings should something catastrophic occur. It’s also a benefit to owners.
If move-out repairs exceed the deposit amount the landlord can go after the renter’s insurance for reimbursement.
Owning rental property is a lucrative investment. But, it is important to abide by the landlord laws. You want your investment to remain profitable. Having to go to court cuts into your earnings. Keeping the home well maintained and safe keeps you in the black.
Has an insurance adjuster taken you to court?
Let the professionals at Swor and Gatto represent you. Our team is experienced in dealing with insurance companies. We know how they think.
We began our careers representing insurance adjusters. Now, we represent you. Contact us today.