Landlord – Tenant

Tenants who have disputes with landlords may contact the Delaware County Office of Consumer Affairs at 610-891-4865 to attempt to resolve the complaint with the landlord without going to court. Tenants may also seek legal advice from a lawyer referred through the Bar Association’s Lawyers Referral Service at 610-566-6625 or www.delcobar.org, and low income tenants may contact Legal Aid of Southeastern Pennsylvania at 610-874-8421 (Delaware County Division) or 1-877-429-5994. If an eviction action is filed against you, seek advice immediately. Court rules require that these cases be heard quickly. If you fail to appear in court, it is likely that judgment will be entered against you and the court will award possession of the apartment to the landlord, with the result that the tenant will be evicted. Therefore it is extremely important that you appear in court. Inability to pay rent is no defense, but if you can prove that conditions in the premises are so bad that the place is not habitable, you may be entitled to at least a partial abatement of the amount of rent owed. Legal advice is critical in presenting this kind of defense.

Repairs are sometimes an issue for tenants. If the landlord has agreed to make repairs before the tenant takes possession, the tenant should obtain the landlord’s agreement in writing. If repairs are needed during the tenancy, the tenant should notify the landlord in writing and keep a copy of the notification. If the repairs are not made in a timely manner, the tenant may wish to contact the Delaware County Office of Consumer Affairs or seek legal advice as detailed above.

The relationship between a landlord and tenant is governed by the written lease, principles of contract law, statutes and rules of court. The laws are technical and arcane. Therefore, a landlord (that is, anyone who leases all or part of a home or apartment to another person) should try to have an attorney on retainer in case any problems arise. Disputes about rent and property damage are normally handled in one of Delaware County’s District Justice (or “small claims”) Courts. You can file for damages on a simple form and district court staff can advise you about the procedure. You can also file for eviction on a simple form. It is important to remember that in eviction cases, you must first notify the tenant that you intend to seek possession prior to filing in district court. The notice to evict a tenant must be in writing and served personally on the tenant. Failure to give notice will prevent you from obtaining possession. Ten days notice is required in eviction cases involving rent, whereas cases involving breach of lease and staying beyond the lease term require 15 days. This notice requirement can be modified by the lease if the lease is clear on this point.

Both tenants and landlords should be concerned if any tenants are noisy, harass others or engage in criminal activity. Tenants should call the police, document all suspect activity, and notify the landlord. Any tenant has the right to quiet enjoyment of the premises. In order to raise this defense in Court, the use of the premises must be substantially decreased by the landlord or other tenant’s interference. Under the law, tenants entitled to be free from harassment and noise, and your landlord should help you resolve these problems and seek to evict the offensive tenant for breach of lease if the problems do not cease.

Some seniors might seek boarders to help pay for the expense of a single family home or apartment or obtain help with maintenance of a property. You should always contact an attorney before inviting someone to live in your house to advise you about the proposed arrangement and to help draw up a written lease. Also, you should check the person’s background and references to ensure your safety.

Subsidized housing may be publicly or privately owned. A tenant in a federally subsidized apartment may be evicted for the same reasons as a tenant in any other type of rental unit. There are some differences in evicting a tenant from subsidized housing. Some of these differences involve the length of time and procedures in the eviction notice. If there is a question concerning some of these procedures, a qualified attorney should be consulted.

Last, be aware that security deposits must be kept in special accounts and must be returned within thirty days of surrender of premises or termination of the lease. Failure to return the security deposit (minus damage deductions) within thirty days may subject the landlord to double damages and prevent him or her from recovering for damage done to the premises by the tenant. Contact your attorney to ensure that you comply with this important requirement or you may find yourself in court with your former tenant, and you may be ordered to pay twice the amount of the security deposit you originally collected.

Damage deductions from security deposits are allowed only for damages above normal wear and tear which occurred during the tenancy. A new tenant, immediately upon taking possession, should inspect the apartment for existing damages and needed repairs. The tenant should prepare a written list of existing damages and repairs for the landlord and keep a copy for himself or herself. This will help at the end of the tenancy to determine what damages were already there and what damage may have been done by the tenant.

Before vacating the premises, the tenant and landlord should walk through the property to assess any damages. In order to be entitled to return of the security deposit, the tenant must provide the landlord with a forwarding address and return all keys to the premises. A tenant who does not hear from the landlord within thirty days of vacating or the end of the tenancy may contact the Delaware County Office of Consumer Affairs for help, or file a Complaint in District Justice Court, or seek legal advice through the Delaware County Bar Association’s Lawyer Referral Service or from Legal Aid.