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What's New?
What's New?
Megan's Law
Non-Refundable Security Deposits
Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Rules
Discrimination Against Those in Protected Categories
Racial Discrimination
Rental Application
Recycled Appliances
Maintenance Costs for "That Old Rental House"
MEGAN'S LAW
Megan's Law enables the public to have ready access to state
records listing the whereabouts of registered sex offenders.
As of July 1, 1999, California Civil Code Section 2079.10a requires
that California rental property owners must include the following
notice in their rental agreements:
Notice: The California Department of Justice, sheriff's departments,
police departments serving jurisdictions of 200,000 or more and
many other local law enforcement authorities maintain for public
access a data base of the locations of persons required to register
pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 290.4
of the Penal Code. The data base is updated on a quarterly basis
and a source of information about the presence of these individuals
in any neighborhood. The Department of Justice also maintains
a Sex Offender Identification Line through which inquiries about
individuals may be made. This is a "900" telephone
service. Callers must have specific information about individuals
they are checking. Information regarding neighborhoods is not
available through the "900" telephone service.
NON-REFUNDABLE SECURITY DEPOSITS
A California court has again ruled that California landlords
must refund any monies required prior to move-in other than the
$30 they may charge as a non-refundable screening fee under Civil
Code Section 1950.6. Whether a deposit is labeled as non-refundable
or as a fee or as a higher first month's rent, it is still a
refundable deposit and must be returned when the tenant moves
out unless it is used for payment of some itemized charge such
as actual damages, cleaning, or past-due rent. Kraus v. Trinity
Management, 57 Cal.App.4th 709, 67 Cal.Rptr.2d 210.
Also, California landlords are forbidden to charge both a sum
of money for breaking a lease prematurely and the payment
of the actual rent lost until the dwelling is re-rented.
LEAD-BASED PAINT DISCLOSURE RULES
A long, long time in coming, our government's lead-based paint
disclosure rules have finally arrived, and we landlords with
buildings built prior to 1978 must comply.
To comply, we must give our applicants and residents the government-produced
pamphlet entitled Protect Your Family from Lead in Your Home
(single copies are available from the National Lead Information
Center by calling 1-800-424-LEAD or 1-800-LEAD-FYI, or you may
copy the form as it appears in the back of the eighth edition
of the Landlording book, or you may download a copy from
the National Lead Information
Center's Web Site); a disclosure form (you'll find one in
the back of the eighth edition of the Landlording book);
and any available reports describing the lead-based paint hazards
on the property.
Remember! You must comply only if your buildings were built prior
to 1978.
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST THOSE IN
PROTECTED CATEGORIES
Be careful that you don't discriminate against anybody, an applicant
or a tenant, who happens to be in one of the "protected"
categories. These protected categories are race, color, religion,
sex, national origin, age, physical handicap, marital status,
sexual orientation, source of income, personal appearance, political
affiliation, place of residence, place of business, matriculation,
and family responsibilities. Smoking and pet ownership are not
protected categories.
Be especially careful that you don't discriminate against children.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has
taken on discrimation against children as a "cause"
and will support anybody who brings them child discrimination
complaints with so much energy that you may be inclined to settle
for $10,000 or $20,000 just to get them out of your life if you're
ever accused. The person who makes an accusation automatically
receives free counsel, whereas you as the accused are going to
have to pay for it. Don't get yourself into trouble with HUD.
Don't discriminate.
Be aware, too, that testers may visit you to determine whether
you or a manager working for you is discrimating. Alert those
who work for you that they must not discriminate against anybody
on the basis of any protected category. Tell them that they should
treat everybody alike.
If you have any rules governing your multi-family units, check
them carefully to make sure that they don't discriminate against
children. For example, you may not have certain swimming pool
hours for children and others for adults. You should be treating
children as if they were "little adults."
As for occupancy limits, consider both HUD's guideline
of two people per bedroom plus one and the limits of your
local fire department. Check with your fire department to determine
how many square feet they recommend per person, and stay within
those limits. Some bedrooms are mighty small and should not be
used for two people, regardless of what HUD says. Some are mighty
big and can accommodate two or three or four people safely and
comfortably.
Use good judgment in these matters, and you'll stay out of trouble.
RACIAL DISCRIMINATION
Good tenants come in all colors. Look for the best tenants you
can find regardless of their color. You want tenants who meet
your standards, and that's all.
Landlords have come a long way toward eliminating racial discrimination
over the past thirty years, but be aware that such discrimination
still exists. Generally this discrimination exists on a more
subtle level than in the past.
Be aware that certain seemingly innocent things you do or say
as a landlord may be interpreted as discriminatory regardless
of your intentions. Stay out of trouble by treating everybody
the same way.
Give everybody the same encouragement to rent from you. Show
everybody the same units. Tell them that the same units are available
for rent at the same prices. If you're giving move-in incentives,
make them available to everybody, not just the white stockbroker
and his wife who drive up in their spotless BMW. If you give
business cards to those who inquire about a vacancy when you
have none and you encourage them to call back, make sure that
you give that same encouragement to everybody.
Good business sense in the landlording business is renting to
those people who qualify to rent from you, period!
RENTAL APPLICATION
As a result of 1) changes in the way we live, 2) an email from
a landlord who is worried about the identity-theft potential
in a rental application, and 3) a phone call from a landlord
in New York state who is being taken to task for using a rental
application which asks for the applicant's date of birth and
the relationship of every person who will be living with the
applicant, the rental application on this website has been revised.
Check it out.
It's different in many respects from the one in the current Landlording
book. This revised application asks for the applicant's cell
phone number rather than the work phone number. It asks for an
email address. It does not ask for date of birth. It does not
ask for the relationship or age of other persons who will be
living with the applicant. It does not ask for the applicant's
occupation. It does ask for the last four digits only of banking
and credit account numbers.
Use this revised application from now on!
RECYCLED APPLIANCES
We landlords don't need to buy new appliances so we can show
them off to our relatives, friends, and neighbors. We do need
to buy decent appliances which are reliable, reasonably good
looking, reasonably up-to-date, and reasonably priced.
If you don't buy new appliances, you can spend a lot of time
shopping for used ones--responding to classified ads, negotiating
with sellers, and moving the used appliances from place to place.
Now there's an alternative. A company called ENCORE, with stores
located around the country, sells reconditioned appliances complete
with warranties and delivery for a fraction of the cost of new.
Call 800-722-9340 for the location of a store near you.
(Please note that the foregoing is NOT an ad for ENCORE and that
I have not myself bought any appliances from them. I chanced
upon them at a rental property owners' tradeshow. I would appreciate
feedback from anyone who has had any experiences with them, good
or bad.)
MAINTENANCE COSTS FOR "THAT
OLD RENTAL HOUSE"
The other day a friend asked me whether I knew how much he could
expect to pay annually to maintain a ten-year-old, 1200-square-foot
rental house located in northern California. Never having owned
or analyzed such a rental, I didn't have a clue.
My friend asked around and then put together some numbers of
his own. Here's what he came up with.
Roof--$125--1500 square feet, including gutters and down spouts;
$2,500/20 years;
Painting--$625--interior and exterior;
Landscaping--$150--planting, pruning, and hauling included;
Sewer Cleaning--$50;
Plumbing--$100--includes replacing and repairing faucets, toilet,
etc.;
Electrical Switches and Fixtures--$75;
Water Heater and Furnace--$75--includes cleaning and replacing;
Water Damage--$150--interior and exterior;
Carpets--$160--100 yards @$8; life expectancy, 5 years;
Linoleum--$50;
Appliances--$100--refrigerator, stove, dishwasher, disposal,
etc.
Draperies--$75;
Garbage Pickup--$264;
Service Requests and Transportation--$250;
Cleaning--$50;
Fencing, Windows, and Locks--$150;
Miscellaneous--$150.
TOTAL ANNUAL COSTS--$2,599, or $2.17 per square foot per year.
He also calculated that the maintenance costs for a rental house
more than fifteen years old would be approximately 15% higher,
and the costs to maintain a rental house less than five years
old would be 15% lower.
Do his figures resemble yours?