Q: Can a landlord require me to purchase a whole year of renters insurnance mid-lease, when original lease didn't require?
My landlord is trying to make me sign an addendum to agree to get renter's insurance, for a full year, and my lease started in August, with no mention that renters is required, it strictly states that "renter's insurance is not mandatory, but we do encourage you to obtain it to cover your personal property", with nothing mandating we get coverage, but now, 4 months after my lease has starts, I'm being asked to sign this addendum to agree to this change. Is it legal for them to add this a mid-lease provision? If not, do you know what law I'm able to look at, to get better understanding of this.
A:
If the lease did not originally required it, the next section you have to look at are amendments and notice. Is there a section in your lease that allows the landlord to amend the lease with notice. If not, than I don't see how he can do it. However, you may want to take the lease to an attorney for a review of the document to ensure there isn't a section that allows the landlord to do it.
Nevertheless, one way to quash the argument immediately is to require the landlord to show you in the lease where he can amend the lease midway through. Usually, landlords will back down because there isn't a section that allows it unless it is mutually agreeable.
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