Basic Landlord's Obligations

Basic Landlord’s Obligations

As a Landlord, they have roles and responsibilities to do. It is not just about collecting rents of the tenant. Being aware of your basic obligation will help you avoid issues with tenants.

In this article, we will evaluate the basic landlord's possible responsibilities that you should be aware of. There are basic responsibilities that a landlord adheres to and to ensure that your rental property is worth living, safe and clean for your tenants.

• Security Deposit
• Disclosure of Owner
• Delivering Possession of the Unit
• Maintenance
• Liability

Security Deposit is a sum of money that a tenant agreed to pay to the landlord before moving into the rental property. It is usually required to protect landlords from possible damage and if ever rent will not be paid. The security deposit amount that landlord required from the tenant is usually about one or two months of rent. It would be great that the landlord provides a written receipt and a statement that explains the state of your apartment when you take the security deposit.

Disclosure of the owner is the obligation of the landlord to disclose to the tenants some information about the owner of the property. Whoever signs the lease agreement with the tenant whether he is the landlord or property manager is the one responsible.  It is very important that landlords and property managers are aware and follow whatever the state, federal and local laws required. Many states require landlords to inform tenants about the policies, facts, and rules about the property. There are some states that do not require any disclosure. Make sure that you check with the local ordinance if there is any disclosure required in your area.

Delivering possession of the unit is one of the basic obligations of landlord wherein the landlord must give the legal right to the tenant to possess the property on the move-in date indicated on the lease agreement.

Maintenance is one of what landlord’s obligations. In most states, the landlord is required to make sure that the rental property is in a habitable condition upon tenant move-in date. A landlord must make repairs and conduct maintenance to ensure that their rental property is suitable to live in. When a landlord fails to do so after receiving the maintenance request from the tenant, there could be a possible consequence that a landlord may face.

Liability is one of the landlord’s obligations to keep their rental property safe. Most landlords are aware that they are responsible for the safety of their tenants and guests. You could be liable for any damage and injuries due to the unsafe condition of the property.  

To get more ideas and help about rental & property management, landlord law, repair & maintenance, security deposit, rental agreement and etc. you may check the website of Landlord.com where you can get and learn lots of important information about property management.

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