Q: Fixed term lease with increase served less than 90 days
Fixed term lease with increase severed less than 90 days, landlord also refuses to do any maintenance going on 2 years now. We have rotting wood on the deck to reach the backyard and rotting falling apart fence. The landlord refuses to fix it, but continues to increase our rent yearly. Can I fight this increase if served less than 90 days notice?
A: Yes, any rent increase requires at least 90 days advanced written notice, lawfully served. If you want to delay the increase as long as possible, don't tell the landlord that he's in violation until after the increase is supposed to go into effect. If he wants to evict because of it, you will likely prevail in court if you oppose it, recovering your court costs and attorney's fees. You may also be entitled to force repairs if you give proper maintenance requests and notice to the landlord or be entitled to a reduced rent until repairs are made. All in all, however, you may want to review everything with a local landlord-tenant attorney before relying on just general legal principles. Good luck.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
