Part V. Tenant Obligations
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521-51 - Tenant to Maintain Dwelling Unit
521-52 - Tenant to Use Properly
521-53 - Access
521-54 - Tenant to Use and Occupy
521-55 - Tenant's Responsibility to Inform Landlord
521-56 - Disposition of Tenant's Abandoned Possessions
| §521-51 Tenant to maintain dwelling unit. | ||||||||||
| Each tenant shall at all times during the tenancy: | ||||||||||
| (1) | Comply with all applicable building and housing laws materially affecting health and safety; | |||||||||
| (2) | Keep that part of the premises which the tenant occupies and uses as clean and safe as the conditions of the premises permit; | |||||||||
| (3) | Dispose from the tenant's dwelling unit all rubbish, garbage, and other organic or flammable waste in a clean and safe manner; | |||||||||
| (4) | Keep all plumbing fixtures in the dwelling unit or used by the tenant as clean as their condition permits; | |||||||||
| (5) | Properly use and operate all electrical and plumbing fixtures and appliances in the dwelling unit or used by the tenant; | |||||||||
| (6) | Not permit any person on the premises with the tenant's permission to wilfully destroy, deface, damage, impair, or remove any part of the premises which include the dwelling unit or the facilities, equipment, or appurtenances thereto, nor oneself do any such thing; | |||||||||
| (7) | Keep the dwelling unit and all facilities, appliances, furniture, and furnishings supplied therein by the landlord in fit condition, reasonable wear and tear excepted; and | |||||||||
| (8) | Comply with all obligations, restrictions, rules, and the like which are in accordance with section 521-52 and which the landlord can demonstrate are reasonably necessary for the preservation of the property and protection of the persons of the landlord, other tenants, or any other person. [L 1972, c 132, pt of §1; gen ch 1985; am L 1989, c 143, §2] | |||||||||
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Case Notes | ||||||||||
| §521-52 Tenant to use properly. | ||||||||||
| (a) | The tenant shall comply with all obligations or restrictions, whether denominated by the landlord as rules, or otherwise, concerning the tenant's use, occupancy, and maintenance of the tenant's dwelling unit, appurtenances thereto, and the premises of which the dwelling unit is a part, if: | |||||||||
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| (b) | No such obligation or restriction shall be enforceable against the tenant unless: | |||||||||
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| (c) | In a rental agreement for a single family residence, a landlord shall not prohibit a tenant from erecting, maintaining, or displaying an otherwise legal sign or outdoor advertising device that urges voters to vote for or against any person or issue; provided that reasonable restrictions are permissible for purposes of complying with applicable building and housing laws affecting health and safety. | |||||||||
| (d) | If the dwelling unit is an apartment in a condominium property regime the tenant shall comply with the bylaws of the association of apartment owners and if the dwelling unit is an apartment in a cooperative housing corporation the tenant shall comply with the bylaws of the corporation. [L 1972, c 132, pt of §1; gen ch 1985; am L 1988, c 65 §2] | |||||||||
| [§521-53] Access. | ||||||||||
| (a) | The tenant shall not unreasonably withhold the tenant's consent to the landlord to enter into the dwelling unit in order to inspect the premises; make necessary or agreed repairs, decorations, alterations, or improvements; supply services as agreed; or exhibit the dwelling unit to prospective purchasers, mortgagees, or tenants. | |||||||||
| (b) | The landlord shall not abuse this right of access nor use it to harass the tenant. Except in case of emergency or where impracticable to do so, the landlord shall give the tenant at least two days notice of the landlord's intent to enter and shall enter only during reasonable hours. | |||||||||
| (c) | The landlord shall have no other right of entry, except by court order, unless the tenant appears to have abandoned the premises, or as permitted by section 521-70(b). [L 1972, c 132, pt of §1; gen ch 1985] | |||||||||
| [§521-54] Tenant to use and occupy. | ||||||||||
| The landlord may require, in the rental agreement, that the tenant must notify the landlord of any anticipated extended absence from the dwelling unit no later than the first day of such absence. [L 1972, c 132, pt of §1] | ||||||||||
| [§521-55] Tenant's responsibility to inform landlord. | ||||||||||
| Any defective condition of the premises which comes to the tenant's attention, which the tenant has reason to believe is unknown to the landlord, and which the tenant has reason to believe is the duty of the landlord or of another tenant to repair, shall be reported by the tenant to the landlord as soon as practicable. [L 1972, c 132, pt of §1; gen ch 1985] | ||||||||||
| §521-56 Disposition of tenant's abandoned possessions. | ||||||||||
| (a) | When the tenant, within the meaning of section 521-70(d) or section 521-44(d), has wrongfully quit the premises, or when the tenant has quit the premises pursuant to a notice to quit or upon the natural expiration of the term, and has abandoned personalty which the landlord, in good faith, determines to be of value, in or around the premises, the landlord may sell such personalty, in a commercially reasonable manner, store such personalty at the tenant's expense, or donate such personalty to a charitable organization. Before selling or donating such personalty, the landlord shall make reasonable efforts to apprise the tenant of the identity and location of, and the landlord's intent to sell or donate such personalty by mailing notice to the tenant's forwarding address, or to an address designated by the tenant for the purpose of notification or if neither of these is available, to the tenant's previous known address. Following such notice, the landlord may sell the personalty after advertising the sale in a daily paper of general circulation within the circuit in which the premises is located for at least three consecutive days, or the landlord may donate the personalty to a charitable organization; provided that such sale or donation shall not take place until fifteen days after notice is mailed, after which the tenant is deemed to have received notice. | |||||||||
| (b) | The proceeds of the sale of personalty under subsection (a) shall, after deduction of accrued rent and costs of storage and sale, including the cost of advertising, be held in trust for the tenant for thirty days, after which time the proceeds shall be forfeited to the landlord. | |||||||||
| (c) | When the tenant has quit the premises any personalty in or around the premises left unsold after conformance to subsection (a) or otherwise left abandoned by the tenant and determined by the landlord to be of no value may be disposed of at the landlord's discretion without liability to the landlord. [L 1974, c 180, §6; am L 1981, c 154, §1] | |||||||||
Page last modified
11-06-2007 12:47 PM