When can prospective tenants tour our home?
Q: We recently renewed our lease for another year. The property manager wants to tourmy house with potential newtenants. Our lease does not end for ninemonths. This seems off, especially during theCOVID-19 pandemic. What is our recourse?— Jordan
A: This does seem odd, but there may be a valid reason to start now. In tropical areas popular with “snowbirds,” it is necessary to find next year’s tenantwell in advance since most potential tenants leave for coolerweather in the spring.
As with most landlord and tenant questions, the first step is to review your lease carefully. Many leases will contain a clause dealing with showing the property to prospective tenants.
Most leases I have seen limit showings to the last two months of the term, but yours may be different. You will be bound by what you agreed to. If your lease is silent on the issue, the propertymanager must give you notice of the visit at least 12 hours in advance, and the showing must occur a reasonable time.
Youwill need to cooperate with this, but the managerwill need to consider your needs when scheduling.
Your landlordmay access your home when necessary but may not abuse this right or use it to harass you.
The key to this is that both the landlord and the tenant need to act reasonably. But determining what is reasonable can change depending on condition. Whatwas reasonable before COVID-19may not be now.
While the pandemic persists, your landlord should limit access and take precautions when a visit is necessary. If you are at greater risk, it would be reasonable to restrict access severely.
It might be a good idea for the property manager to create a video tour instead of bringing casual prospects to the house. You can require everyone towear a mask and observe the recommended precautions.
Board-certified real estate lawyer Gary Singerwrites about industry legal matters and the housing market. To ask him a question, email him at gary@garysingerlaw.com, or go to SunSentinel.com/askpro.