Get free answers to your Landlord - Tenant legal questions from lawyers in your area.
I have a registered ESA. My son won't let me bring my ESA into the house for fear of being evicted. Can he be evicted because of my ESA being in the house with me?
answered on May 19, 2020
Likely no since both service animals and emotional support animals are legally defined to not be "pets" but rather working animals, not subject to normal "pet" rules, with service animals having even more protection/rights than ESA's. Rather than wait to be... View More 
answered on May 18, 2020
No, that is the very point of a 24 hr notice - you have 24 hours to get out or be subject to the landlord filing an eviction against you in court. Whether the 24 hr notice is valid is a totally different question and likely can only be determined by a landlord-tenant attorney reviewing the notice... View More
My daughter applied for an apartment. They landlord responded to her by saying, "I pass." is that legal? What recourse does she have, if any?
answered on May 18, 2020
If the landlord requires an applicant, a potential tenant, to pay an applicant screening charge and the application is denied or if an applicant makes a written request following the landlord's denial of the application, the landlord is required to promptly provide them with a written... View More
My daughters boyfriend has been here for almost 2 years. We never asked for money. We want him out, but he won't leave. He is dissruptive, rude, and disrespectful. They drink, argue, and smoke pot in the house every day, even though we ask them not to. The cops have been called several... View More
answered on May 15, 2020
It all depends whether there is any sort of a landlord-tenant relationship between you. If so, you will need to comply with the landlord-tenant laws and requirements before being able to go to court to evict him. If not, you will need to file a suit in court seeking to eject him. While eviction... View More
This woman has said that the other woman's boyfriend keeps stopping by while only the teenage girl is home. It's making her extremely uncomfortable. Can I write something up that forbids him from entering the house until an adult is home? I live in Oregon.
answered on May 14, 2020
The boyfriend has no right to be there without the direct invitation and/or permission of the adult girlfriend. IF he comes by, the teenager should simply refuse to let him enter and/or tell him to leave. If he does not, have her call the police. Beyond this, it should be an issue between the... View More
answered on May 14, 2020
Likely not but it may depend, at least in part, upon the details and your situation. IF you share the same dwelling with other tenants or the landlord themselves, then perhaps yes though to be enforceable it likely has to be a policy in writing and part of your lease or otherwise properly... View More
The lease would go from 5/31/2020 to 6/1/2021. I am nervous to sign because of all the economic uncertainty.
answered on May 13, 2020
You are never required to sign any document, let alone a year long lease. However, if you elect not to, you may subject to whatever termination procedures are listed in your current lease. Different leases handle the topic differently - some just expire on the termination date, you are expected... View More
My rent was raised 4 months ago
answered on May 12, 2020
If you are on a month-to-month tenancy, then yes, new owner can raise rent with at least 90 days prior written notice as long as they don't raise it more than a total of 9.9% over what it was 12 months ago.
My housemates and I have been living in our house in the city of Portland for over 2 1/2 years. Or landlords have not given us the no cause eviction notice yet, but they are planning on moving into the house and They have told us to expect the notice soon. Can they start the process of no cause... View More
answered on May 11, 2020
Currently it is not lawful to serve a 90 day no cause termination of tenancy notice and is not scheduled to become lawful until after June 29. If, however, you get one before then and your goal is to stay as long as possible, I recommend staying silent about it being unlawful to serve and simply... View More
We have a month to month agreement with a couple and just learned that they are divorcing. Can we remove one tenant from the lease and ask the other tenant to move? We feel it's becoming a situation that may cause harm to the property. Can we give a 24 hour or 30 day notice to vacate?
answered on May 7, 2020
No, you cannot arbitrarily intervene in your tenant's divorce! You can let one or both of them out of the lease IF they request it and both agree. One can even move out regardless of the other tenant's desires thereby breaching the lease (presumably) and thus allowing you to deal with... View More
I have lived in the same rental home for going on 6 years now in the state of Oregon.
Recently I was notified that the property owner “landlord” is selling the home in which I rent.
My landlord has had relators and photographers come into the home while taking no precautions... View More
answered on May 6, 2020
A landlord has to provide at least 24 hrs notice of intent to enter, be it to show to prospective buyers or any other non true emergency reason. The tenant is free to simply say no. If the landlord enters anyway, the tenant may be entitled to recover a month's rent in damages and/or a court... View More
My apartment lease converted to month-to-month about 6 months ago. 3 months ago my landlord sent out a notice that rents would be raised by 9% unless I renewed my lease for another 12 months.
I had planned to find a new place, but then COVID hit so I decided to stick it out and continue... View More
answered on May 6, 2020
While as always, the exact details are critical but most likely is that not lawful, you may well be entitled to recover damages from the landlord for trying. The only way for you to truly know is to gather all your documents and take them to a local landlord-tenant attorney for a focused review and... View More
answered on May 5, 2020
Certainly - the moratorium is on forcibly evicting a tenant for failing to pay rent during the pandemic; to date there has been no forgiveness of rent. It is, after all, one of the main purposes of having a security deposit. Just be sure to provide a written accounting for how much you are... View More
Can the landlord use my security deposit for normal wear and tear? There was no damage to the walls or blinds.
answered on May 5, 2020
Cleaning and painting - touch up or otherwise - are not considered normal wear and tear and yes, a landlord can charge you for them and withhold payment from a security deposit refund so long as the charges are reasonable for the work done.
I’m a fairly new landlord and recently rented out my ADU, for 3months, that is located behind my home to a traveling nurse and her boyfriend. They moved out Friday, 05/01/20. When I went over to do a check out everything was fine except for two things. The oven was filthy, not in the same... View More
answered on May 4, 2020
Damages found after signing the document likely can still be charged for. In the end, it does not matter what condition something is in before they move out, only after they have vacated and restored possession to you. But if things are in the same condition after they are out that they were when... View More
answered on May 4, 2020
It all depends - how long has the tenant been there? Over a year? If so, you can only refuse to renew the lease for a statutorily permitted reason - see ORS 90.427(5). If less than a year, you can refuse to renew the lease with the proper advanced written notice. It is unclear right now where... View More
My tenant and I signed a lease on Jan 1 2020 month to month tendency. Feb 1 2020 he couldn’t pay rent so we are doing a week to week tendency now. He has paid weekly until week 3/13-3/20. I hadn’t written any notice to quit or pay until this week 4/17-4/24 when he missed another payment. I... View More
answered on May 4, 2020
Oregon has become increasingly tenant-friendly and anti-landlord so if you are a new landlord you truly need to fully educate yourself about all the rules and regs regarding being a landlord. Most violations by landlords are unintentional and cost the landlord damages in terms of multiples of... View More
Do you guys also give equine boarding facility advice?
answered on May 1, 2020
To qualify for deferral of paying residential rent, the tenant is supposed to have applied and provided proof to the landlord before the 1st of the month that their ability to pay rent is currently compromised due to covid-19. Good luck in getting a Judge to enforce that and it won't really... View More
Lived in home for three years, never late in rent and experiencing serious harassment, bombarded with harsh texts and emails because I am expressing my distaste for having company during the stay home order.
Despite my reservations, the first open house was scheduled for April 4 after me... View More
answered on Apr 28, 2020
First and foremost, you need to understand that just because a landlord gives you a 24 hr notice that they intend to enter for any reason, you DO NOT have to allow it. Simply tell the landlord no. It is intended to be a mutually negotiated process - the landlord proposes a date/time to enter and... View More
I do not have a written lease, only verbal. I told my friend/landlord about a guy I was seeing. Shortly thereafter my landlord showed up unwarranted and stayed in a garden shed, told me I lost his trust, made hideous sexual references, threatened to kick me out. A few tough weeks followed, I’d... View More
answered on Apr 28, 2020
The exact details here make all the difference - which is why it is ALWAYS a good idea to only rent pursuant to a written lease. One main issue for you is likely to be what exactly it is that you rented. A written rental agreement specifies that. Here, IF the landlord can make an... View More
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