Landlord Tenancy Act - 3 Areas Of The Act Private Landlords Must Comply With

The landlord tenancy act is the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (URLTA) which is a document that defines the numerous rights and responsibilities of private landlords and tenants. The landlord tenancy act only applies to residential properties. Other laws govern the letting of commercial properties.

In article Two of the landlord tenancy act, there are several things that private landlords must comply with other than dealing with tenants. While this is by no means all of what is put forth by the URLTA, here are three things that private landlords must comply with.

One of the stipulations regarding the landlord tenancy act has to do with security deposits. A landlord cannot charge a security deposit that is more than one month's rent. This means that if the rent is $550 a month, all security deposits, including any pet deposits cannot be more than $550.

Section B states that when tenancy is terminated, any security deposit can be applied to accrued rent or any damages, but any damages have to be itemized, with a written receipt. Any remainder of the security deposit must be returned within 14 days of the date of termination of the tenancy.

Although the URLTA is the base for all state laws that apply to private landlords, each state has it's own laws and requirements, so you need to check the relevant law for the state in which your property is located.

Part of the landlord tenancy act has to do with the landlord's responsibilities for maintaining the rental property itself. The first thing is that the private landlord has to make sure that the property being let complies with all the housing and building codes that are applicable for their area that affect the safety and health of the tenant.

Private landlords are required to to keep the residence in a habitable and fit condition by making any and all necessary repairs. If a building owned by the private landlord has multiple apartments then the private landlord must make sure that any common areas, hallways, lobby, elevator or stairwell are maintained in a safe and clean condition.

The landlord is responsible for maintaining in good order, plumbing, electrical, heating and air conditioning, and anything else supplied by them. This also includes providing water supplies, and maintaining hot water, and any other things not supplied by the tenants.

The exception to this part of the landlord tenancy act is that the tenant may take on part of the private landlord's responsibilities if it is in writing in the rental agreement, entered into in good faith and where the heating and or hot water supply is fully controlled by the tenant. The tenant would have their own agreement with the utility company.

In the landlord tenancy act it says that the private landlord, upon receipt of payment from the tenant, has to deliver the unit to the tenant in compliance with whatever is written in the rental agreement.

This means that a landlord cannot deny the tenant from occupying the residence when the rent is paid and the rental agreement signed. Failure to do so may result in the landlord having to forfeit the rent, any security deposits, as well as any other expenses incurred by the tenant while waiting for the unit to become available.

While this may seem to be a strict set of rules and regulations, the URLTA is set up to protect not just tenants but landlords too. Each state has its own detailed information and special rules and regulations for these acts.

While this may seem very complicated, the landlord tenancy act has to be very detailed to make sure that all the different aspects of the landlord - tenant interactions are covered. A committee holds meetings on a regular basis to assess any necessary changes and update the URLTA.

A good private landlord complies with all of these rules and regulations anyway, but tenants need the protection of the landlord tenancy act in the cases where private landlords may not be doing what they're supposed to.

The end result is that private landlords need to know which laws they should be in compliance with and what that compliance involves.