Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California
Can landlord unilaterally change terms of lease?
My landlord recently came up w/ new policies which were not in orig. lease. E.g., changing the date that he can charge late fee of $50 for rent not received. Formerly it was 5th of month, now it's 3rd. Also, he changed front door key and made tenants sign form saying that if a tenant gives a key to any non-tenant it is grounds for Eviction. This sounds extreme. He claims that he's guaranteeing our safety, so (non-tenant) ex-boyfriends of tenants can--name removed--come back onto property and do damage to anyone's car, property, etc. Yet I can think of times when I've been working out of town and need to mail my apt. key to a friend to go and get some important item from my mailbox or apt. and send it to me. Can he rightfully Evict me for this?
Further, our apt. mgr. is negligent, lazy, rude, and bullying, and has alienated just about everyone in the complex. Lately he's claimed that simple wear & tear fix-its that need to be done will be charged to the tenants, who he claims ''broke'' them. Do we have any recourse to ask for his removal, either with landlord or an outside authority? Thanks.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Can landlord unilaterally change terms of lease?
You use the term "lease", so I do not know if the original term of the lease is up yet (in other words if it was a lease for one year and the year is up, or what); assuming it is a month to month lease, or if the original term of the lease is over, then all the landlord need do to change the terms of the agreement is to give you 30 days notice, because that is the extent of your right to occupy the premises. Again, assuming that this is a month to month tenancy, your remedy if you do not like or want to abide by the changed terms, is to move because you have no obligation to stay beyond a month. Likewise, if you do not like the manager or he is lazy, you do not need to stay there and can move. With respect to repair items, the law has always been that if a tenant causes the damage--regardless of what it is--he is responsible for repair of that damage. On the other hand, if the stove stops working because it is old, or the roofs leaks, etc., and the tenant did not cause it, it is the landlord's responsibility to repair it.
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