Tenant's Duties

Question 1

Tenant’s Primary Duties

Answer 1

1) duty to repair
2) duty to pay rent

Question 2

Tenant’s Duty to Repair When Lease Silent

Answer 2

• obligation to maintain premises
• must not commit waste

Question 3

Tenant’s Duty to Repair - Obligation to Maintain Premises

Answer 3

• essentially means tenant has to do routine repairs (as opposed to a repair occasioned by ordinary wear and tear, which tenant doesn’t need to take care of)
• need to maintain the property in a reasonable state of repair, but there’s an exception for ordinary wear and tear

Question 4

Tenant’s Duty of Repair - Waste

Answer 4

• cannot damage the leased premises -> NO WASTE WHATSOEVER ALLOWED
• voluntary waste - tenant’s overt conduct damages the premises
• permissive waste - tenant fails to take reasonable steps to protect the premises from damage from the elements
  -> if duty to maintain the premises is ever shifted to landlord, T has duty to report deficiencies promptly
• ameliorative waste - T alters property in a way that increases value
  -> T liable for cost of restoring to original state
  -> modern exception - T is a long-term T + changes reflect those in neighborhood

Question 5

T Duty to Repair When Express Covenant in Lease

Answer 5

• common law - meant you were responsible for any loss to the property
• modern - T may terminate when premises are destroyed w/o T’s fault

Question 6

Duty to Pay Rent - Tenant Breaches + Is In Possession of Premises

Answer 6

• landlord can evict through courts or continue relationship + sue for rent due
• landlord can move to evict under state’s unlawful detainer statute -> still entitled to rent until T vacate
• landlord must not engage in self-help, such as changing locks, removing possessions, etc (flatly outlawed + punishable civilly + criminally)

Question 7

Duty to Pay Rent - Tenant Breaches But Is Out Of Possession

Answer 7

SIR

S - Surrender - landlord could choose to treat T’s abandonment as implicit offer of surrender, which L accepts -> ends lease
-> surrender when T shows by words or conduct that she wants to give up lease
I - Ignore abandonment (do nothing) + hold T responsible for unpaid rent until natural end of lease, as if T still there (ONLY AVAILABLE IN MINORITY OF STATES)
R - Relet premises on wrongdoer-tenant’s behalf + hold wrongdoer-tenant liable for any deficiency (under majority rule, L must at least try to relet in order to mitigate)

Question 8

Rent Deposits

Answer 8

• most states restrict to one month’s rent
• also require L’s to pay interest on security deposits, + allow statutory or punitive damages for landlord’s improper refusal to return security deposit
  -> L permitted to retain only for damages actually suffered to premises as result of T’s wrongdoing

Question 9

Condemnation of Leaseholds

Answer 9

• if entire leasehold is taken by eminent domain, T’s liability for rent is extinguished (both leasehold + reversion merge in condemnor + there’s no longer a leasehold estate)
  -> lessee is entitled to condemnation
• BUT if taking temporary or partial, T not discharged from rent ob but is entitled to compensation for the taking

Question 10

Use of Premises for Illegal Purpose

Answer 10

• T has duty to not use premises for illegal purposes
• if T does so, L may terminate lease or obtain damages + injunctive relief