Property Law Flashcards

A landlord's failure to maintain the premises in a habitable condition, causing the tenant to vacate, is known as:

Answer: Constructive eviction

Constructive eviction occurs when the landlord's breach of the duty to maintain renders the premises uninhabitable, legally justifying the tenant's abandonment.

A periodic tenancy from month-to-month is properly terminated by giving notice equal to:

Answer: One full rental period (one month)

At common law, a month-to-month periodic tenancy requires notice equal to the length of one period — one month — to terminate.

When a tenant transfers her entire remaining lease term to a third party, the transfer is called a(n):

Answer: Assignment

An assignment transfers the tenant's entire remaining interest; a sublease retains some portion of the leasehold in the original tenant.

Under the implied warranty of habitability, which of the following conditions would most likely constitute a breach?

Answer: Non-functioning heating system in winter

A non-functioning heating system in winter deprives the tenant of an essential service, breaching the landlord's implied warranty of habitability.

A tenant installs a commercial display case bolted to the floor of a rented retail space. At lease end, this item is likely classified as a:

Answer: Trade fixture the tenant may remove

Trade fixtures — items installed by a commercial tenant for business purposes — remain the tenant's personal property and may be removed before the lease expires.

A residential tenant holds over after a fixed-term lease expires and the landlord accepts a rent payment. The tenancy most likely converts to a:

Answer: Month-to-month periodic tenancy

When a landlord accepts rent from a holdover tenant, the majority rule converts the tenancy into a periodic tenancy measured by the rent payment interval.

Under Georgia's landlord-tenant statute, a landlord who wrongfully withholds a security deposit beyond the required return period may be liable for:

Answer: Three times the amount wrongfully withheld plus attorney's fees

Georgia O.C.G.A. § 44-7-35 subjects a landlord who willfully fails to return a security deposit to treble damages and attorney's fees.