Today’s topic: What is an Arrest?

An arrest is a type of detention. When you have been arrested, you are not free to leave the scene. There are other types of detentions for shorter periods that are not considered arrests. For example you can be held for questioning for a short time if a police officer or other person believes you may be involved in a crime. Shop owners can also detain you for a reasonable amount of time if they suspect you of stealing. A person who is arrested or detained is only required to show identification and answer basic questions about their identity and address.

• Understand the fee structure: It goes without saying that you should consider the cost of the service in relation to the services offered.  Often managment companies charge 10% or more of the rental income on your properties.  You can also expect additional fees for the initial rental and maintenance costs.  Review the contract to ensure that you are not surprised by the cost of services.
• Review the rental companies proposed lease and termination notices: Ultimately, you are responsible if your manager is using outdated leases and termination notices.  Problems with these forms can cause you to lose precious time and money if your eviction proceeding is delayed or dismissed because of inadequate forms.
• Review their fair housing policies: All property managers should know that there are federal anti-discrimination laws that apply in housing rentals.  If a potential manager cannot answer your questions about the laws or openly makes discriminatory statements in your presence, you may want to think twice.
• Take a look at other properties the potential manager is currently handling.  Do they look well kept?  Is the yard maintained?  If the other properties in the manager’s portfolio look run down, you may want to look elsewhere. 
• How does the manager talk about the tenants? If a potential manager sees the tenants as the enemy, you may have future problems.  In my experience, when people have healthy relationships with the landlord or property manager, they tend to cooperate and pay the rent.  When the relationship breaks down or the tenant feels disrespected, it becomes harder to collect. 
• What are the manager’s policies with regard to scheduled maintenance and inspections?  It is a good practice to have quarterly walk throughs of your property to ensure that they are maintained.  While you are there, you can see the properties yourself and talk to your tenants if there are things that need repairing.  This is also a way to verify that the mainenance you were charged for was done in a satisfactory manner.

Under existing law, the provider of certain goods and services may require a landlord to pay the delinquent bill of a tenant for goods and services provided to the tenant of the landlord. This bill would prohibit the provider of goods and services from requiring a landlord or property owner to pay the delinquent bill of a tenant for goods or services provided to the tenant if the account for the service is in the name of the tenant.

A BILL
TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACTRelating to certain goods and services provided a tenant; to prohibit the provider of goods or services from requiring a landlord or property owner to pay the delinquent bill of a tenant for goods or services provided to the tenant if the account for the service is in the name of the tenant.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:

Section 1. The provider of goods or services may not require a landlord or property owner to pay the delinquent bill of a tenant for goods or services provided to the tenant of the landlord if the account for the goods or services is in the name of the tenant. In addition, the provider of goods or services shall not have a lien on the property for any goods or services provided in the name of the tenant.

Section 2. This act shall become effective on the first day of the third month following its passage and approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.

1. Know how much notice you must give the tenant. Some notice periods, like notice of termination after expiration of the lease, can often be found in your lease.  Others are found in the Code of Alabama.  For example, in a residential lease you must give a seven day notice for non-payment of rent but any other breach of the lease requires a 14 day notice.  If there is no breach of the lease, the notice could be as little as 30 days or more depending on the wording of your lease.
2. Make sure your notice spells out the reason for the termination and the address of the property. The notice should explain exactly what default must be cured, so that the tenant has an opportunity to fix the problem.  In the event that the tenant is unable to fix the problem, the judge will also need to know that the notice was served on the right person, at the right address.  If the addresses do not match, you may have to submit an affidavit to the Court explaining which version of the address is correct.
3. Give the notice the right way. In Alabama, typically a landlord must give notice by handing the tenant the notice personally or posting the notice on the door and mailing another copy to the tenant.  Certified mail alone will probably not be enough to give proper notice.
4. Make sure you keep a copy of the notice and any certified mail receipts. It is common for tenants to deny receiving notice. Make sure you can prove that you followed the law.
   
5. Wait until the entire notice period expires before taking any action. If you do not give the tenant the entire notice period, there is a good chance your eviction will fail.  Be patient, or you may have to start over at the beginning.

Today’s Topic: Abandonment by The Tenant

Sometimes tenants for one reason or another need to be away from the property for extended periods of time. Sometimes the tenant may be traveling. Other tenants simply decide to leave the unit permanently before the lease is up. Whatever the reason for these extended absences, the landlord will probably want to be informed. Unfortunately, tenants often do not tell the landlord that they will be leaving.

Abandonment can put the landlord in a tough position because it is often hard to determine whether the tenant has left the premises for good. One way to avoid any question about whether the property has been abandoned is by including a clause in the lease that requires the tenant to give notice of absences from the property that will extend beyond 14 days.

The new landlord tenant act provides the landlord some recourse if the tenant leaves the property for more than two weeks without giving notice. First, the landlord can take legal action against the tenant for damages caused by the tenants failure to give notice of an extended absence. Second, the landlord may go into the unit if it is necessary while the tenant is gone. Third, the landlord may consider the lease terminated and re-let the unit to another tenant. Finally, if the landlord finds that the tenant has left personal items behind in the unit, there is no duty to store or safeguard the tenant’s possessions. As such, the landlord can throw the items away or liquidate them as desired.

§ 35-9A-423. Remedies for absence, nonuse and abandonment.

(a) If a rental agreement requires the tenant to give notice to the landlord of an anticipated extended absence in excess of 14 days pursuant to Section 35-9A-304 and the tenant willfully fails to do so, the landlord may recover actual damages from the tenant.

(b) During any absence of a tenant in excess of 14 days, the landlord may enter the dwelling unit at times reasonably necessary.

(c) If a tenant abandons the dwelling unit, the landlord shall make reasonable efforts to rent it at a fair rental. But such duty shall not take priority over the landlord’s right to first rent other vacant units. If the landlord rents the dwelling unit for a term beginning before the expiration of the rental agreement, it terminates as of the date of the new tenancy. If the landlord fails to use reasonable efforts to rent the dwelling unit at a fair rental or if the landlord accepts the abandonment as a surrender, the rental agreement is deemed to be terminated by the landlord as of the date the landlord has notice of the abandonment. If the tenancy is from month-to-month or week-to-week, the term of the rental agreement for this purpose is deemed to be a month or a week, as the case may be.

(d) If a tenant leaves property in the unit more than 14 days after termination pursuant to this chapter, the landlord has no duty to store or protect the tenant’s property in the unit and may dispose of it without obligation.

Today’s Topic: Exercising your right to terminate

Unfortunately some tenants do not fulfill their duties under their leases. When that happens, the landlord is faced with a decision about whether or not they will terminate the lease because of a particular violation or allow the tenant to continue in the lease despite the breach. Sometimes there is a monetary reason to allow the breach, other times, the landlord may feel sorry for the tenant. Whatever the situation, Landlords who are aware of a breach should consider whether that breach is minor enough that they are willing to fore go termination completely. As a result landlords who become aware of a breach must act to promptly enforce their rights or risk losing the ability to pursue their remedies in the future. Failing to reserve the right to preserve rent before accepting rent can give a tenant a defense of waiver of the right to terminate during a subsequent unlawful detainer proceeding.

So what is a landlord to do? Make sure that you inform your tenants in writing of the breach before you accept the rent and state that by accepting rent you are in no way implying that they have completely met their responsibilities under the lease. The letter should also indicate that the breach must be remedied by the tenant or they will face termination and possible eviction.

§ 35-9A-424. Waiver of landlord’s right to terminate.

Acceptance of rent with knowledge of a default by the tenant or acceptance of performance by the tenant that varies from the terms of the rental agreement constitutes a waiver of the landlord’s right to terminate the rental agreement for that breach, unless otherwise agreed after the breach has occurred.