If it’s in lease, tenantmust take care of property
Q:I amin a quandary about maintenance of rental property, particularlywhen it’s a house. I spoke with an attorney for interpretation only ( the attorney does not representme) about the lease agreement as far as maintaining the property outside while a tenant lives in a house. The attorney responded if the lawn and other outside requirements are indicated in the lease to be the tenant’s responsibility, then it is the tenant’s responsibility to maintain; provided however, the lawn and other outside areas need to be maintained and the tenants received the property in good condition.
The lease further states failure to maintain the property and costs to make maintenance repairs is an expense that can be deducted from the tenant’s deposit. Is thatwhere lack of maintenance comes into play? Neglecting a property is expensive to repair. Inmy mind, that is not normalwear and tear. Is that out of line? We agree with you in that it is not out of line provided the attorney’s conditions apply as to the lease agreement.
However, we also suggest you notify the tenant in writing that, based uponwhat is contained in your lease,
A:you are going to deduct any costs you incur from the tenant’s deposit if not paid for by the tenant on or before ( here you should insert a date thatwould allowadequate time). Furthermore, you should include in yourcommunication that said tenant’s lease can be terminated for failure to maintain the property. If you have a good suggestion for correcting the problem, you should offer it to the tenant. The tenant might be happy to comply if he or she knows aworkable solution. You might offer an affordable lawn- maintenance solution. The newpresident of our homeowners association has spent our tight budget of around $ 45,000 very sloppily. She spent approximately $ 4,000 ona lawyer tofixourby- laws to conform to newstate laws. He told me he did not rework them, just added stuff. In addition, we had issues with him because the lawyerwould not talk to us. He would deal only with the president. Now she is going back to do more stuff. The others on the board are her friendswho feel empowered nowbecause of the newlaws. Is a civil case the only thing one can do? Can she be charged for not doing her fiduciary duties? Can you say anything hopeful?
Q:A:Yes, a civil case is most likely your only option. If you are correct regarding half of the allegations in your email, you should hire an attorney— different from the one you have now— experienced and knowledgeable regarding homeowners associationmatters. It appears theHOA’s board of directors is acting irresponsibly in contravention to numerous provisions of the HOA’sCovenants, Conditions, and Restrictions or CC& Rs ( including without limitation the by- laws). You need to getwith other homeowners and discuss a plan of action. Hire the attorneywho will be representing the homeownerswho will call the special meeting.
Then, call a special meeting and remove her. Then change attorneys ( e. g. get rid of the attorney allowing the newpresident to violate the CC& Rs). RE: Ask George& Chuck article, SundayAug. 26, Houston Chronicle, concerning furnishing buyer’s inspection
Q:A:We can see you have strong opinions concerning thismatter because of the lengthy email you sent. And, we believewemust agree to disagree.
We have stated numerous times when one is in doubt, one should disclose. It could be detrimental to a seller should something on an inspection report thatwas “hidden” from a buyer become a problem downthe road. It is a failure to disclosewhen the newbuyer later discovers that fact. Putting one’s head in the sand is not a good idea.
However, if the buyer refuses to give it, that is a different issue. It is the buyer’s report. We just finished up a third refinance. Something occurred this time that hadn’t happened with the previous two.
Wewere charged interest twice for the same two calendar days. We paid 17 days of interest on the
Q:original note and 16 days of interest on the newnote for the month of July. We closed on July 10 andwere supposed to be funded July 16. Funds for the cash- out had not shown up in our checking account by July 17, so I contacted the lender. The lender in turn contacted the title company, who in turn claimed they had incomplete paperwork. At the closing, the title officer had carefully reviewed all of the documents at the end of our signing marathon to make sure everythingwas proper, and I know the document the title companywas complaining about had indeed been signed by us.
Was it proper for us to be charged for 33 days of interest in the month of July? No, itwas not proper.
Communicate with your lender and the title company personnel again and let them knowyou expect a good explanation or correction, even though the title company was most likely following the closing instructions from the lenders’ attorneys.
You can notify the Texas Department of Insurance ( www. tdi. texas. gov) and the Texas Department of Savings andMortgage Lending ( www. sml. texas. gov) and register your complaints.
A:To send us a question visitwww. AskGeorge. net and select the “Ask A Question” button. Our answers to questions do not contain legal advice. If you wish to obtain legal advice, you should consult your own attorney. George Stephens is the broker of Stephens Properties. Charles J. Jacobus, J. D. is Board Certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in Residential and Commercial Real Estate Law.