Landlord and Tenant Law Flashcards
7 cards from real Real Estate Investing practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Landlord and Tenant Law flashcards as text
A property is sold while tenants are living under a fixed-term lease. What happens to the lease?
Answer: The new owner takes the property subject to the existing lease
Under the 'sale does not break lease' doctrine, a fixed-term lease survives a property sale and binds the new owner.
What is the legal concept of 'joint and several liability' in the context of co-tenants on a lease?
Answer: Each co-tenant can be held fully responsible for the entire rent obligation
Joint and several liability means the landlord can pursue any one co-tenant for the full amount of rent owed, regardless of internal agreements among tenants.
A city with rent control passes an ordinance capping annual rent increases at 3%. A landlord's mortgage costs increase by 8%. The landlord can legally:
Answer: Petition for a hardship exemption if costs exceed the cap
Most rent control ordinances include a hardship petition process allowing landlords to seek additional increases when operating costs significantly exceed the standard cap.
Under the federal SCRA (Servicemembers Civil Relief Act), a military tenant who receives deployment orders can:
Answer: Terminate a lease with 30 days' written notice and a copy of deployment orders
The SCRA allows active-duty servicemembers to terminate a lease by providing written notice and a copy of military orders for deployment of 90+ days.
Which of the following best describes a 'holdover tenant'?
Answer: A tenant who remains in possession after the lease expires
A holdover tenant continues to occupy a property after the lease term ends without the landlord's express consent to renew.
A landlord fails to return a security deposit within the statutory deadline and provides no itemized deduction list. Under most state laws, the landlord may be liable for:
Answer: Double or triple the deposit as a penalty
Most states penalize landlords who wrongfully withhold security deposits by requiring payment of double or triple the deposit amount as a deterrent.
What is the key difference between a 'notice to quit' and a 'notice to cure or quit'?
Answer: A notice to quit terminates for non-payment; a cure notice is for lease violations
A notice to cure or quit gives the tenant an opportunity to remedy a lease violation, while a straight notice to quit (often for non-payment) simply demands the tenant vacate.