Landlord And Tenant FAQ's | Criminal
Law FAQ's | Consumer
Law FAQ's | Other FAQ's
What should I do before I rent a place?
Make sure that:
- The place meets your needs;
- You can afford the rent;
- You clearly understand who will pay for electricity,
heat, water, and garbage
pick-up; and
- You inspect the place and note in writing any problems.
- Ask the landlord
to be there. Ask the landlord to sign your notes, or send
a copy of your notes later. Take pictures and have friends look at
any problems so you can later prove in court that the problem was there
before you moved into the unit.
- If you find out after you move in that a
building inspector told the landlord not to rent the place until repairs
were made, but the repairs were not made, contact a law office.
What is a lease?
Most people use the word "lease" to describe a written rental agreement
that is for a set period of time, such as a year, at a fixed rate of rent.
But some leases permit an increase of rent after a 30-day notice. Most
leases permit termination of the lease before the ending date in some situations.
The lease will state how the tenant and landlord can end the lease early.
If you have a long-term lease at a fixed rate, the landlord cannot raise
the rent during the fixed term. But, with this type of lease, you also
have to pay for the entire term if you move out early unless the landlord
rents to another tenant. Whenever a tenant terminates a lease early,
the landlord has an obligation to try to rent the unit to someone else; this
is known as the obligation to "mitigate damages."
What is the difference
between a fee and a security deposit?
A "fee" is a nonrefundable payment, usually for expenses that a
landlord expects, such as the cost of cleaning the unit after you move. The
landlord cannot charge a fee more than once, except a landlord can charge
fees each time that the tenant fails to do something required by the rental
agreement. For example, a tenant can be charged a late fee each time
the rent is paid late. These kinds of fees, like the late fee, must
be described in the rental agreement.
- ORS 90.100(13)
A "Security deposit" is any refundable payment that encourages
to tenant to live up to the rental agreement.
- ORS 90.100(35)
If the tenant follows rules stated in the rental agreement and does not
damage the rental unit beyond ordinary wear and tear, then the landlord
must refund the security deposit within 31 days after the rental agreement
ends.
- ORS 90.300
A landlord may charge both a fee and a security deposit. After the
rental agreement ends, the landlord must first use the fee that the tenant
paid to pay for any costs before the landlord can use the security deposit
to pay these costs.
- ORS 90.302(4)
EXAMPLE: When the tenant moved in, she paid a $100 cleaning fee and
a $200 security deposit. When the tenant moved out, it cost the landlord
$200 to clean the rental unit. To cover these costs, the landlord
must use $100 from the cleaning fee and $100 from the security deposit
that the tenant paid. The landlord can't use only the security deposit
to pay costs if the tenant also paid a fee, and the landlord must use the
fee first.
When I rent a place, can a landlord make me pay a deposit?
Yes. A landlord can make you pay a security deposit. (But if
you rent week-to-week, you cannot be charged this deposit (ORS 90.100(46)).) You
can try to work out the amount of these deposits with the landlord. Some
landlords will let you make several payments on the deposit instead of paying
it all at once.
Once you have moved in, the landlord cannot, without your
agreement, charge
a new deposit or increase the deposit you have already paid for the first
year after you move in. After the first year, a landlord can charge
or increase the deposit but must give you at least 3 months to pay it.
If
you paid a deposit, the landlord must return the deposit when you move out
as long as you haven't damaged the place beyond ordinary wear and tear and
have given the landlord the required notice, paid the rent, returned the
keys, and followed other rules stated in your rental agreement. When
you pay the deposit, ask for a receipt that shows you paid a "security
deposit." Check the receipt, rental advertisement, canceled check
and other writing you may have to see whether the deposit was clearly labeled
as a "security deposit" rather than a "fee." ORS
90.300
When you first rent a place, the landlord may also require you to pay
rent in advance, sometimes called a "last month's rent deposit" (ORS
90.100(22).
What
if my landlord does not return my refundable security deposit?
Within 31 days after you move and return your keys, the landlord must
either return all of your deposit or tell you in writing why all of it
is not being refunded. If the landlord does not return the right
amount of your money or does not give you a written explanation, you
may sue, asking for twice the amount wrongfully withheld. ORS 90.300
If
the landlord refunds only part of the deposit, you can cash the check and
still sue the landlord if you think you are owed more money. But
you should be ready to defend yourself against a possible counterclaim by
the landlord for property damages. If the landlord has written "full
settlement" or "accord and satisfaction" on the back of the
check, you should see a lawyer before you cash the check.
Can my landlord
raise my rent after I move in?
Unless you have a lease that fixes the amount of rent for a specific term,
rent may be increased with a 30 day written notice in a month-to-month
tenancy and a 7 day written notice in a week-to-week tenancy (ORS 90.220). If
you want to move rather than pay the new rent, you can give a notice (30
days - if you rent month-to-month; 10 days - if you rent week-to-week) to
end the tenancy and move when the new rent goes into effect (ORS 90.497).
What are my obligations as a tenant?
A tenant has the obligation to keep all areas of the rented/leased premises
under his/her control clean, sanitary, and free from all accumulations
of debris, filth, rubbish and garbage as well as possible. A tenant
may use the premises in a reasonable manner for the purposes for which
they were designed and intended. As a tenant, you should not remove
or tamper with any smoke detector – including removing batteries. You
should test the smoke detector at least once every 6 months and replace
batteries as needed. Always notify your landlord in writing if there
are any deficiencies with your apartment.
Can a landlord charge me late fees for late rent payments?
Yes, if the written rental agreement says that late fees can be charged. But
the landlord may not charge a late fee if you pay the rent by 12 midnight
on the fourth day of the rental period. (This is midnight of the fourth
day of the month if the rent is due on the 1st day of the month; a rental
agreement cannot make rent for a particular month due any earlier than the
first day of that month).
There are three different kinds of late fees. The rental agreement
must state the type and amount of late fee and when it can be charged. The
landlord can change the kind of late fee or the amount that is charged by
sending the tenant a 30-day notice in advance.
- Per rental period
late fee: a reasonable flat amount
charged one time for the month the rent is late. ("Reasonable" means
an amount that is within the range of fees charged by landlords in that
rental market.)
- Per day late fee: a daily fee that cannot be more
that 6% of the reasonable flat monthly late fee described in (1) above.
- A
five-day period late fee: a fee that is 5% of the
rent, charged once for each five-day period the rent is late.
The per day and every 5 day late fees do not continue to accrue after the
end of the month in a month-to-month tenancy. The landlord can charge
you simple interest though, if you don't pay your late fee at the time
that it is imposed.
A tenant who fails to pay a late fee cannot be evicted
on a nonpayment of rent notice. A tenant who receives a 72-hour or
144-hour notice for nonpayment of rent can keep from being evicted by paying
only the rent and not the late fee during the notice period. A landlord
cannot deduct the late fee from this rent payment and claim that rent is
owing. (Tenants who haven't paid late fees can be evicted on a 30-day notice,
even if all rent has been paid.
Does the landlord have to make repairs?
Yes. The landlord must keep your place and the common areas in good
repair at all times. This means that the unit must not substantially lack the following:
- Effective
waterproofing and weather protection;
- A proper and functioning plumbing
system
- A water supply, under the control of the tenant, that is capable
of producing hot and cold running water, furnished to appropriate fixtures,
connected to a proper sewage system, and, to the extent that landlord can
control this, maintained so as to be in good working order and to provide
safe drinking water
- Adequate heating facilities
- Electrical lighting and wiring
- Smoke detectors installed and working when
you move in (but tenants must test the detectors every 6 months, replace
batteries when needed, and give the landlord written notice if the detectors
are broken);
- Safety from fire hazards;
- Appliances and facilities (air conditioning,
ventilating) in working order if they are provided by the landlord;
- Working
keys, locks, and window latches;
- No garbage, rodents, or vermin in your place or common areas around
the building when you move in or throughout the tenancy;
- Garbage containers
and garbage service, unless you agree otherwise in writing or unless there
is a local ordinance that doesn't require this;
- Adequate plumbing, heating,
and electrical equipment kept in good working order;
- Walls, floors, ceilings,
stairways, and railings in good repair;
- The place must be clean and in
good repair when you move in; and
- The areas under the control of the landlord
must be safe for normal and expected use.
The landlord and tenant can agree in writing that the tenant will fix certain
things if the agreement is not an attempt by the landlord to get away from
the duty to repair. The written agreement must state the amount of
the payment for repair and it must be a fair amount. ORS 90.320
What can I do if my landlord will not repair my place?
Ask your landlord to make repairs. If this does not work, write a letter
to your landlord asking for repairs. Keep a copy of the letter.
If this does not work, call a law office to ask for advice on what to do
next, such as calling building inspectors, health inspectors, fire inspectors
or neighborhood mediation. In an emergency, like a broken pipe or no
heat, call a law office right away.
You can sue a landlord for a court
order to force repairs. If you
have given the landlord notice of the need for repair and if the problem was
not caused by you or someone else (besides the landlord), you may sue the landlord
for damages to compensate you for reduced rental value, destroyed property,
attorney fees and court costs. You should have a lawyer in order to
file this kind of case.
In small claims court you can sue the landlord
for money. You cannot get an order for repairs in small claims court. When
you sue the landlord for money, be sure to ask for all the money that you
think you should get. You
may sue for money because the landlord failed to make repairs, or because
your landlord damaged or destroyed your clothing or furniture. You
may sue for money because your home was worth less each month because of
the need for repairs. For example, if you could not use two rooms in
a four-room apartment because of a bad leak in the roof, you might say that
there was a 50% reduced rental value. (Because you could use half the
apartment, you could argue that you should only pay half the rent during
that time.) You may also sue for lost work time, medical expenses,
higher heat bills, and other expenses caused by the landlord's failure to
make repairs. See Question 14; see Time Limit Warning at the
beginning of this booklet section.
What can I do if my landlord fails to provide
an essential service??
An essential service means heat, plumbing, hot and cold running water, gas,
electricity, light fixtures, locks for exterior doors, latches for windows,
and any cooking appliance or refrigerator supplied or required to be supplied
by the landlord. An essential service also includes any other service
that the landlord is required to provide because of habitability requirements
or because of the rental agreement, where failing to do so creates a serious
threat to the tenant’s health, safety, or property, or makes the rental
unfit to live in (ORS 90.100(10)).
If the landlord fails to provide an "essential
service,” and you
have provided the landlord with a written notice saying both that the landlord
has failed to supply an essential service and that you may take certain actions
as a result of this, and you have provided the landlord with reasonable access
and time to fix the problem, then you have several options:
- You can get reasonable
amounts of the essential service during the time that the landlord is failing
to supply the service, and deduct the cost from the rent; (YOU SHOULD
NOT WITHHOLD RENT UNLESS ADVISED TO DO SO BY A LAW OFFICE!)
- You can get
compensation for the damage caused by the failure to provide an essential
service, based on how much less the rental unit was worth at the time of
the landlord’s violation
- If the failure to supply an essential service
makes your rental unit unsafe or unfit to live in, you are not obligated
to pay rent for the time period in which the landlord was failing to supply
this service. You
may also seek compensation from the landlord for the fair cost of comparable
housing
- If the landlord’s failure to supply the essential service
poses an “imminent
and serious threat” to your health, safety, or property, then
you can give the landlord a written notice that says that you are moving
out in 48 hours unless the problem is fixed in that time
- You
may fix the problem yourself, and if you have kept receipts and given proper
notice to the landlord (which may also need to be 48 hours or 72 hours
in advance), you may be able to demand specific amounts of compensation.
- You
can't use this law for certain specific problems such as lead-based paint,
radon, asbestos, or the future risk of flooding or earthquakes. ORS 90.365
Also, it is illegal for a landlord to intentionally diminish an essential
service to your rental unit, to seriously attempt to do so, or to seriously
threaten unlawfully to do so by causing an interruption of an essential
service. If the landlord does this, you have a right to terminate
your rental agreement. Regardless of whether or not you terminate
your rental agreement, you also have a right to get a court order requiring
the landlord to restore the essential service(s) and you have a right to
sue for two months rent or twice the amount of the actual damages caused
by the shut off of the essential service, whichever is greater. If
you terminate the rental agreement, the landlord is required to give you
back all prepaid rent and security deposits. ORS 90.375
Does my landlord have a right to enter the rented space?
Yes, at reasonable times and with reasonable frequency. But the landlord
must have a reasonable purpose, such as to inspect the rental unit or to
supply necessary or agreed upon services, and must give you a 24 hour verbal
or written notice before entering, with a few exceptions. A landlord does
not need to give a 24 hour verbal notice to enter your dwelling or your
yard if the landlord is:
- Posting a legally permissible or required notice
on your door (the landlord may enter only your yard for this reason, not
your home)
- Doing yard work that the written rental agreement requires
the landlord to do (the landlord may only enter your yard for this reason,
not your home)
- Responding to an emergency at any time, which includes a
repair problem that may cause serious damage to the premises if not fixed
immediately (the landlord must notify the tenant that the entry was made
within 24 hours after the entry); or
Entering with the tenant’s permission, in the case of a specific
entry
- Responding to a tenant’s written request for repairs and either
entering during reasonable times or, if the tenant has specified allowable
and reasonable times for entry in their written request, entering within
those specified times. However, the landlord must initiate the repairs
within 7 days of the tenant’s written request in order to enter without
giving notice, and may continue to enter without giving notice in order
to complete those repairs, as long as the landlord is making a reasonable
effort to complete the repairs in a timely manner
- Showing the property
to a prospective buyer at reasonable times, but only if both the landlord
and tenant have signed a written agreement to allow this that is separate
from the rental agreement and that went into effect while the landlord
was actively trying to sell the property.
- The landlord can also enter your
property in cases involving a court order, a requirement from a government
agency, or your abandonment of the property.
- You have the right to deny
entry to the landlord for good reasons; you must tell the landlord the
reasons before the time the landlord intends to enter. Tenants
can be evicted for unreasonably denying entry.
- If a landlord enters the
property without following these rules, a tenant can sue and ask for damages
caused by the entry or one month's rent (one week's rent for weekly renters),
whichever is more. ORS 90.322
What if my landlord does not
return my refundable security deposit?
Within 31 days after you move and return your keys, the landlord must either
return all of your deposit or tell you in writing why all of it is not
being refunded. If the landlord does not return the right amount of
your money or does not give you a written explanation, you may sue, asking
for twice the amount wrongfully withheld. ORS 90.300
If the landlord refunds only part of the deposit, you can cash
the check and still sue the landlord if you think you are owed more money. But
you should be ready to defend yourself against a possible counterclaim by
the landlord for property damages. Click here for
information about small claims court; see Time
Limit Warning at the beginning of this booklet section. If the
landlord has written "full settlement" or "accord and satisfaction" on
the back of the check, you should see a lawyer before you cash the check.
Read this
section for information on what to do to improve your chances of
getting your deposit back when you move out.
Sometimes a landlord sells
a building that is being rented out. Both
tenants and new landlords must follow the terms of the original rental agreement. The
new landlord must return any deposits when the tenants move, even if the new
landlord did not get the deposit money from the old landlord.
General Tips
Before You Move In:
- Get all agreements in writing
- Read your lease agreement and make sure you
understand it
- Ask for and keep copies of all paperwork
- Do a walk-through and take pictures
and detailed notes of the premises paying special attention to any damaged
areas
When You Move Out:
- Give a 30-day notice to vacate in writing
and include a forwarding address so your landlord can send your refund
or an accounting for your security deposit
- Clean the premises and take all
your belongings with you
- Do a walk-through
and take pictures and detailed notes of the premises paying special attention
to any damaged areas
Information disseminated in this website does not constitute
legal advice and does not create an attorney/client relationship. This
page is for information purposes only. For legal advice, contact an attorney
licensed in your state.
