Waiver of Duties and Remedies Flashcards
What LL duty or T’s remedy can’t be waived?
92.006
(a)A landlord’s duty or a tenant’s remedy concerning:
security deposits,
security devices,
the landlord’s disclosure of ownership and management, or
utility cutoffs
… may not be waived.
The landlord’s duty of inspection and repair of smoke alarms may be waived only by written agreement.
Tenant’s right to Jury trail cannot be waived.
(c) A landlord’s duties and the tenant’s remedies … , which covers conditions “materially affecting the physical health or safety of the ordinary tenant”, may not be waived except as provided in Subsections (d), (e), and (f) of this section.
(d) A landlord and a tenant may agree for the tenant to repair or remedy, at the landlord’s expense, any condition covered by Subchapter B.
(e) A landlord and a tenant may agree for the tenant to repair or remedy, at the tenant’s expense, any condition covered by Subchapter B if all of 4 conditions are met.
What can be enlarged?
(b)A landlord’s duties and the tenant’s remedies concerning:
security devices,
the landlord’s disclosure of ownership and management, or
smoke alarms
may be enlarged only by specific written agreement.
What are the 4 conditions that need to be met for LL and T to agree for T to repair or remedy at tenant’s expense?
(1) at the beginning of the lease term the landlord owns only one rental dwelling;
(2) at the beginning of the lease term the dwelling is free from any condition which would materially affect the physical health or safety of an ordinary tenant;
(3) at the beginning of the lease term the landlord has no reason to believe that any condition described… is likely to occur or recur during the tenant’s lease term or during a renewal or extension;
(4)(A) the lease is in writing;
(B)the agreement for repairs by the tenant is either underlined or printed in boldface in the lease or in a separate written addendum;
(C)the agreement is specific and clear; and
(D)the agreement is made knowingly, voluntarily, and for consideration.
(f)A landlord and tenant may agree that, except for those conditions caused by the negligence of the landlord, the tenant has the duty to pay for repair of the following conditions that may occur during the lease term or a renewal or extension:
(1) damage from wastewater stoppages caused by foreign or improper objects in lines that exclusively serve the tenant’s dwelling;
(2) damage to doors, windows, or screens; and
(3) damage from windows or doors left open.
This subsection shall not affect the landlord’s duty to repair or remedy, at the landlord’s expense, wastewater stoppages or backups caused by deterioration, breakage, roots, ground conditions, faulty construction, or malfunctioning equipment.
(g)A tenant’s right to vacate a dwelling and avoid liability under Section 92.016 or 92.017 may not be waived by a tenant or a landlord, except as provided by those sections.
Sec.92.351.APPLICATIONDEFINITIONS.
(1)”Application deposit” means a sum of money that is given to the landlord in connection with a rental application and that is refundable to the applicant if the applicant is rejected as a tenant.
(1-a)”Application fee” means a nonrefundable sum of money that is given to the landlord to offset the costs of screening an applicant for acceptance as a tenant.
(3) “Co-applicant” means a person who makes an application for rental of a dwelling with other applicants and who plans to live in the dwelling with other applicants.
(6) “Required date” means the required date for any acceptance of the applicant under Section 92.352.
Sec. 92.3515.NOTICE OF ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.
At the time an applicant is provided with a rental application, the landlord shall make available to the applicant printed notice of the landlord’s tenant selection criteria and the grounds for which the rental application may be denied, including the applicant’s:
(1) criminal history; (2) previous rental history; (3) current income; (4) credit history; or (5) failure to provide accurate or complete information on the application form.
(b)If the landlord makes the notice available under Subsection (a), the applicant shall sign an acknowledgment indicating the notice was made available.
If the acknowledgment is not signed, there is a rebuttable presumption that the notice was not made available to the applicant.
Acknowledgement
(d)The acknowledgment may be part of the rental application if the notice is underlined or in bold print.
What happens if LL rejects applicant and didn’t make notice available?
(e) If the landlord rejects an applicant and the landlord has not made the notice required by Subsection (a) available, the landlord shall return the application fee and any application deposit.
(f) If an applicant requests a landlord to mail a refund of the applicant’s application fee to the applicant, the landlord shall mail the refund check to the applicant at the address furnished by the applicant.
Sec.92.352.REJECTION OF APPLICANT.
The applicant is deemed rejected by the landlord if the landlord does not give notice of acceptance of the applicant on or before the 7th day after the:
(1)date the applicant submits a completed rental application to the landlord on an application form furnished by the landlord;
or
(2)date the landlord accepts an application deposit if the landlord does not furnish the applicant an application form.
(b)A landlord’s rejection of one co-applicant shall be deemed as a rejection of all co-applicants.
Sec.92.353.PROCEDURES FOR NOTICE OR REFUND.
Except as provided in Subsection (b), a landlord is presumed to have given notice of an applicant’s acceptance or rejection if the notice is by:
(1)telephone to the applicant, co-applicant, or a person living with the applicant or co-applicant on or before the required date; or
(2)United States mail, addressed to the applicant and postmarked on or before the required date.
(b) If a rental applicant requests that any acceptance of the applicant or any refund of the applicant’s application deposit be mailed to the applicant, the landlord must mail the refund check to the applicant at the address furnished by the applicant.
(c) If the date of required notice of acceptance or required refund of an application deposit is a Saturday, Sunday, or state or federal holiday, the required date shall be extended to the end of the next day following the Saturday, Sunday, or holiday.
Sec. 92.354.LIABILITY OF LANDLORD.
A landlord who in bad faith fails to refund an application fee or deposit is liable for:
an amount equal to the sum of $100,
three times the amount wrongfully retained, and
the applicant’s reasonable attorney’s fees.
Sec. 92.355.WAIVER.
A provision of a rental application that purports to waive a right or exempt a party from a liability or duty under this subchapter is void.
TPC 92.024 - Lease
A landlord is required to provide a copy of the lease.
TPC 92.025
A cause of action does not accrue against a landlord soley for leasing to a tenant convicted, arrested, or placed on deferred adjudication.
