Landlord/Tenant Law
Landlord Obligations
Leased property is not warrantied to be safe or suitable for occupation, so long as there is no fraud, false representations, or knowing concealment of defects.
Landlord is obligated to maintain common areas in a reasonably safe condition in order to avoid liability for injury to tenant or guest. Landlord is liable only for injury incurred in actual leased premises resulting from latent defects which are known to the landlord at the time of leasing, but are concealed from the tenant. Landlords have the same responsibility to exercise due care with regard to common areas over which they retain control as ordinary landowners would have. Landlord, however, is not the insurer of safety for the premises. Landlord has no duty to inspect for latent defects. Landlord, in the absence of a covenant to repair, is liable only for latent defects which he knows of at the time the lease is made and which he conceals from tenant. When a landlord voluntarily makes repairs, he is liable for negligence in making those repairs provided there is no agreement to the contrary. The duties and liabilities of a landlord to wife, children and other members of the tenant`s family or household are the same as those between landlord and tenant. When rent is not paid, landlord must demand payment before reentering the premises and evicting tenants. If landlord puts a lien on tenant`s personal property, he must enforce the lien according to the procedure in the statute. Before reentering leased property a landlord must give written notice and provide an opportunity for the tenant to cure any default.