Over the years of managing property, tenants tend to be surprised when they learn they have violated terms and conditions in their lease – and never even knew!
These are just a few things you as a tenant might do – that you might not be able to:
Letting someone stay in the home until they find their own place. Many leases require you to notify the landlord if you have anyone living in the home other than those listed on the lease.
Starting a home based business. It sounds harmless, but home based business present liability issues for landlords, homeowners, not to mention the neighborhood you live in may not allow it.
Signing up for dish TV or cable - and mounting it to any part of the house – or drilling holes in walls to run cable lines. These companies won’t tell you that you need permission to do this – and they won’t tell you about any HOA restrictions on where they can or can’t mount the dish. Advice? Ask first!
A friend visits and stays a while – with their new pet. Believe it or not, if your lease says no pets – it means, no pets.
You’re going to be out of town for a few weeks and you are having your friend house or pet sit while you are gone. It’s the same as #1!
Supporting your local political candidate – you place a sign in your window or lawn. It’s common that leases have clauses that prohibit or restrict this – always best to check and ask.
You bought a new car! No problem – but - this is especially important if you have assigned parking – you have to let the landlord know the make, model and plate number of your new car.
You want to buy a waterbed??!! Really? Ok – but make sure your landlord is OK with it. Many landlords don’t allow waterbeds for several reasons and your lease may already have a “no waterbed” provision.
This is the real tricky “who would have thought one” – hanging a family photo, putting up track lighting, installing a new fridge (especially one that has an ice maker and needs a water line), painting a wall, etc., and not getting approval ahead of time. All leases have alteration and modification clauses – some more general than others. If in doubt, just ask!
Comments(52)