With the media coverage recently about the apparently haunted rental that caused the tenants to go screaming into the night, landlords are beginning to wonder exactly what they are responsible for disclosing to their tenants. We gave you some tips on how to avoid getting into these situations in the first place. On the legal end, there are specific guidelines that apply to disclosure when residential homes are put up for sale; but do they apply to rentals as well?
The short answer is “yes”. We’ll assume that you’re reading this because you’d like more information on many of these details – so here are some of the basics:
You are required to tell tenants if someone died in the property, or if there was drug activity in the home. Typically, the minimum requirements for proper disclosure are as follows:
- You must disclose these things to tenants before any lease is signed or commitment is made. It is essential that the tenants enter into a formal contract with all of the required information.
- Typically, it is necessary that you disclose any deaths that took place in the property, or any drug activity that has occurred in the last 3 years. This is a minimum, as some states require you to disclose history to tenants that goes back even farther.
- The specific details must be disclosed to a tenant. Depending on state laws, this may include things like the cause of death. After all these details may have a bearing upon a tenant’s desire to live in your home. You cannot legally mislead anyone either, so if they ask for any more details that you haven’t divulged, you need to be completely honest about the history. Although the case outlined by the media sounds like a bit of a stretch, you never know if you might find yourself on the hook for letting a tenant out of their lease, or have to provide monetary compensation if they are a haunting victim that wasn’t aware of a previously grizzly death.
Landlords, you might be hesitant to reveal the history of your property to tenants if something controversial has happened. But remember: Some people appreciate a great story!
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