Cover image for Renters' rights : the basics
Renters' rights : the basics
Title:
Renters' rights : the basics
Author:
Portman, Janet author.
Personal Author:
Edition:
8th edition.
Publication Information:
Berkeley, California : Nolo, [2015]
Physical Description:
282 pages ; 23 cm
Language:
English
Contents:
1. Play the landlord's game: how to score a great apartment : Legal and illegal reasons for turning you down ; How to check out potential landlords ; Your credit report can make or break your application ; References are all-important ; Smart moves: how to find a good place ; How to find a roommate ; How to impress prospective landlords -- 2. Leases and rental agreements : How written leases and rental agreements differ ; Who should sign a lease or rental agreement ; Typical provisions in leases and rental agreements ; Negotiating with the landlord ; Common negotiation issues ; Signing a lease or rental agreement ; Get it in writing: a letter of understanding ; Using email for notice or a letter of understanding -- 3. Rent rules : Rent gouging: isn't there a law against it? ; The nitty-gritty on where and how to pay rent ; Mabel, isn't there a grace period? ; What to do, and not to do, if you can't pay rent on time ; Late rent fees ; Tenancy terminations for nonpayment of rent ; Rent increases ; The landlord's right to change other rent terms -- 4. Security deposits : Dollar limits on security deposits ; How landlords may increase deposits ; What's the money for? ; Last month's rent ; Nonrefundable deposits and fees ; Are you entitled to interest on your deposit? ; How your landlord's bankruptcy or property sale affects your deposit -- 5. Discrimination : Discrimination prohibited by federal laws ; Discrimination prohibited by state and local law ; How to fight back -- 6. Roommates : Renting a place with others ; When a roommate walks out ; Adding a new roommate ; Taking in a roomer ; Tenant rights to use airbnb and similar vacation rental services -- 7. Repairs and maintenance : Your right to a livable place ; Your repair and maintenance responsibilities ; Persuading your landlord to do major repairs ; Using heavy artillery for major repairs ; Laying the minor repair job on the landlord ; Getting the landlord to make minor repairs -- 8. Tenants' rights to privacy : Entry by the landlord ; Entry by others ; Limits on your guests ; How to get your landlord to back off -- 9. How tenancies change and end : Changing your tenancy without ending it ; How month-to-month tenancies end ; What happens when your lease runs out ; Breaking a lease and leaving early ; Domestic violence situations ; The landlord's bankruptcy ; Foreclosure -- 10. Getting your deposit back : How your landlord may use your deposit ; The mechanics of getting the deposit back ; Avoiding fights over deposits ; Suing to get the deposit back -- 11. Landlord retaliation : Where does the law protect you? ; What is retaliation? ; Responding to retaliation ; Proving that it's retaliation -- 12. Rent control : Property subject to rent control ; Limits on rent ; Evictions in rent control areas ; Interest payments on security deposits ; Special notice requirements ; Bypassing the rent control ordinance -- 13. Getting help with your dispute : How to negotiate a settlement ; Using a mediator ; Small claims court ; When and how to find a lawyer -- Appendixes. A. How to find landlord-tenant laws online : State laws ; Local ordinances ; Federal statutes and regulations -- B. State landlord-tenant laws : State landlord-tenant statutes ; State rent rules ; Notice required to change or terminate a month-to-month tenancy ; State security deposit rules ; State laws on rent withholding and repair-and-deduct remedies ; State laws in domestic violence situations ; State laws on landlord's access to rental property ; Landlord's duty to rerent ; State laws prohibiting landlord retaliation.
Added Author:
ISBN:
9781413320923
Format :
Book