Quiet enjoyment is a right of all tenants. This right must be respected by all landlords which simply mean they cannot disturb them without prior notice. Just because you are a landlord doesn’t give you the freedom to go inside the home of your tenant any time you so desire. There must be a good reason why you wish to pay a visit to the home of your tenants. As a landlord, it is necessary for you to know what constitutes a good reason to pay a visit to your tenant.
Do not think for a moment that you are the lord of the property just because you own it. You have given the right to your tenants and during the term of the lease that they have signed, they are the owners of the homes they are living inside. During this period, your right to freely enter the property gets curtailed. This is like a lender not being allowed to visit the home that it has mortgaged. A tenant does not like his landlord barging in every now and then without a valid reason. However, there are times when a landlord can disturb the right to quiet enjoyment.
Maintenance and repairs
As a landlord, you are responsible for the repairs as well as routine maintenance of your rental property. You can also pay a visit to hoes of your tenants during scheduled inspections. These are the times when a landlord can disturb his tenants. However, he must inform the tenants in advance before knocking at his doors. In fact, most landlords insert clauses that state the reasons when they can enter the properties with the consent of their tenants. Examples should be used in the lease agreement to clarify the times when landlord will have the right to enter his property.
Even when all the reasons for the visit of the landlord have been mentioned in the lease agreement, it is necessary for him to give a notice in advance. Generally, a notice given a week or two in advance is considered enough for reasons like routine inspection and maintenance. However, a notice of a few hours is enough for showings to prospective tenants.
Is it possible to barge in without any notice?
Now you know that you need to inform the tenant in advance even if you have a valid reason to go inside the premises of a tenant. But there are also times when you can enter the home of your tenant without giving any notice. These pertain to emergencies when your visit is necessary to protect your property from destruction. It could be damage to the roof, leaking gas, or short circuit in your property. Some tenants may not like your visit, but it is necessary in the interest of your property and also for saving precious lives.
In the end, it would be right to admit the right to privacy of your tenants. Being the landlord does not give you the right to barge into the rental property occupied by your tenants just because you want to do it. You cannot go and disturb your tenants even when failing to pay his rent on time. Your tenant can create legal trouble for you if you go inside the home of your tenant and start quarreling with him for non-payment of rent.
You must follow the rules when you need to disturb your tenants. Make sure you have mentioned the reasons to visit the property in the form of clauses in the lease agreement. Also, do not forget to give prior notice to your tenants whenever you need to visit the property occupied by your tenants.
If you’d like to talk more about property management, or you need help with Everest Property Management, please contact us at Everest Realty.
As a top producing Realtor and Property Manager; Terry specializes in sales, extensive construction homes, rentals, REO’s, short sales, and all aspects of Real Estate. After graduating the University of Michigan with a master in MBA, Terry continued his endeavor and now has over 15+ years of experience in the Real Estate world. If there is anything that has to do with Real Estate and sales, you can always be sure of Terry to provide important, specialized knowledge.
