Real Estate Law & Regulations Flashcards

A landlord includes a lease clause waiving the tenant's right to a jury trial in any dispute. In most U.S. jurisdictions, such a clause is:

Answer: Generally unenforceable as against public policy in residential leases

Courts in most jurisdictions strike down jury trial waiver clauses in residential leases as unconscionable or against public policy.

Under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), a property manager receiving federal housing assistance must:

Answer: Allow victims of domestic violence to terminate their lease without penalty

VAWA protects victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking from eviction and allows them to terminate leases early without penalty in federally assisted housing.

What is 'rent control' and which level of government typically establishes it?

Answer: Local ordinances that limit how much and how often landlords can raise rents

Rent control is established by local municipalities (cities and counties), not federal law, and limits rent increases to protect tenants from rapid cost escalation.

A property manager in a state that has adopted the URLTA fails to return a security deposit within the statutory deadline. What is the likely legal consequence?

Answer: The landlord may forfeit the right to deductions and owe the tenant double or treble damages

Most states with URLTA-based statutes impose penalties of double or treble damages on landlords who wrongfully withhold security deposits beyond the statutory deadline.

Which of the following situations would most likely constitute illegal retaliation by a landlord?

Answer: Serving a notice to vacate within 60 days after a tenant files a housing code complaint

Serving a termination notice shortly after a tenant exercises a legal right, such as filing a housing complaint, is classic retaliatory conduct prohibited by most state laws.

The concept of 'joint and several liability' in a lease with multiple tenants means:

Answer: Any one tenant can be held responsible for the entire rent obligation

Under joint and several liability, each co-tenant is individually liable for the full rent amount, allowing the landlord to pursue any one tenant for the entire obligation.

A property manager advertises a unit as 'perfect for young professionals' in a city where familial status is protected. This advertisement may be problematic because:

Answer: It targets a demographic in a way that could deter families with children from applying

Phrases that suggest a preference for or against a particular group, such as 'young professionals,' can constitute discriminatory advertising that discourages families from applying.