Help w/AK landlord/tenant laws (Kenai, Soldotna: rental, eviction, appliances)

[onsitemgs]

Hopefully someone here can help.

my wife and I are onsite supervisors of a complex in Kenai. The owner of the complex also owns a house in Soldotna that she has been renting out.

Here's the problem.

The tenants there moved in 13 months ago. Originally this was only to be a short term rental (one month) which stretched out to 13 months. W/it only being short term owner never got a rental contract or security deposit and these people have 2 dogs (owner was aware of this).

Owner has been paying all utilities. ALL!!! on top of the lawn care

These people have given her notice that they will be moving out. Owner asked wife and I to drop a cleaning checkout list that we give tenants at the complex to them and I also included to pick up the dog poop.

We received a call from the tenants pissed off that they got this checkout list. They signed no contract so they will only do a light surface cleaning and refused a walkthrough w/them before leaving. They want no one in the house for walkthrough until they move out. They also are refusing to give her a forwarding address but the tenant's wife works for the Borough so should've be hard to track them down.

They have been paying monthly rents but w/no signed contract we are trying to find out if the landlord has any rights for us to give 24 hour notice to do walkthrough? I've found some info that we can only go in in an emergency (which this is not) if the tenants refuse. Each state has different laws so I only tried to find something for AK law but to no avail.

Does anyone know where I can find this info or know of the info where the landlord can go into her own house for a walkthrough before they moveout?

This is a absolutely charming house and the wife and I would've rented it had we known about it before we took on this job ;-) and it would be a shame if this husband and wife tenants did any damage especially considering it is fully furnished w/almost all new furniture and also had brand new flooring put in right before they moved in.

Help????

[JD2AK&ME]

Hi,
I'm not experienced in AK landlord laws. (We just moved up from the lower 48) We have in the past, however, been landlords. There was a New York landlords assoc. that was very helpful to us back then. I did a search and came across a Landlords assoc. for AK. I can't vouch for then but I thought I would send along a link in case they could be an information resource for you.

The Landlord Protection Agency &reg ~ Free Rental Forms, Credit Reports, Landlord Tenant Law, Lease Agreement, Rental Agreement, Eviction notice, Rental Application, landlord q&a forum, landlord advice, For Rent Ads

Go to the home page and the is a link to tenant/landlord laws.
Hope this helps.
Diane

[Whitescale]

This is not legal advice. I am not licensed to practice law in the State of Alaska. Local regulations may vary.

This is something to consider:

Alaska Stat. § 34.03.140 (2009)
Sec. 34.03.140. Access

(a) The tenant may not unreasonably withhold consent to the landlord to enter into the dwelling unit in order to inspect the premises, make necessary or agreed repairs, decorations, alterations, or improvements, supply necessary or agreed services, remove personal property belonging to the landlord that is not covered by a written rental agreement, or exhibit the dwelling unit to prospective or actual purchasers, mortgagees, tenants, workers, or contractors.

(b) The landlord may enter the dwelling unit without the consent of the tenant in the case of emergency.

(c) A landlord may not abuse the right of access or use it to harass the tenant. Except in case of emergency or if it is impracticable to do so, the landlord shall give the tenant at least 24 hours notice of intention to enter and may enter only at reasonable times and with the tenant's consent.

(d) The landlord does not have a right of access to the dwelling unit

(1) except

(A) as permitted by this section;

(B) by court order; or

(C) as permitted by AS 34.03.230(b); or

(2) unless the tenant has abandoned or surrendered the premises.


Reading that at its face, if you give them 24-hour notice that you are inspecting the premises, you may enter at a reaosnable time. I'm not getting into the rest of it given the lack of info and apparently a lease agreement.

Take a camera. If you see damage or other issues that the owner wouldn't want to get saddled with, it's time to talk to a lawyer.

[stiffnecked]

Even though no lease agreement exists that does not relieve the tenant from keeping the property in good repair. I'd give them a 24 hour notice to inspect and I'd do it NOW! Serve them the notice Monday morning and go over and inspect it no later than Wednesday. The tenant does not have to be there after you give them the 24 notice. Take a camera.

[Floyd_Davidson]

Originally Posted by stiffnecked

Even though no lease agreement exists that does not relieve the tenant from keeping the property in good repair. I'd give them a 24 hour notice to inspect and I'd do it NOW! Serve them the notice Monday morning and go over and inspect it no later than Wednesday. The tenant does not have to be there after you give them the 24 notice. Take a camera.

Read the law, quoted in the article previous to yours, very carefully. It clearly says what you are advising is illegal on its face.

It says the landlord must give at least 24 hours notice of intent. But it also says the tenant must consent prior to entry! While it says that the tenant cannot "unreasonably withhold" consent, there is no definition of what is or not unreasonable... though it would appear upon reading the statutes that "I don't feel like it today" is not necessarily unreasonable on any given day (every day for a month, perhaps... but that would be up to a judge to decide, not the landlord).

Note the "by court order", which is probably the only legal way to get access as long as the tenant is paying the rent, is living there, and is refusing access on a daily basis.

BTW, I question that it is the tenant's responsibility to keep the property in good repair too. That is the landlord's responsibility. If the washing machine breaks and the tenant reports it to the landlord, the landlord must have it repaired. But if the tenant never reports it... there simply is not a problem. (Absent a lease/rental agreement stating otherwise.)

[Whitescale]

Originally Posted by Floyd_Davidson

Read the law, quoted in the article previous to yours, very carefully. It clearly says what you are advising is illegal on its face.

It says the landlord must give at least 24 hours notice of intent. But it also says the tenant must consent prior to entry! While it says that the tenant cannot "unreasonably withhold" consent, there is no definition of what is or not unreasonable... though it would appear upon reading the statutes that "I don't feel like it today" is not necessarily unreasonable on any given day (every day for a month, perhaps... but that would be up to a judge to decide, not the landlord).

Note the "by court order", which is probably the only legal way to get access as long as the tenant is paying the rent, is living there, and is refusing access on a daily basis.

BTW, I question that it is the tenant's responsibility to keep the property in good repair too. That is the landlord's responsibility. If the washing machine breaks and the tenant reports it to the landlord, the landlord must have it repaired. But if the tenant never reports it... there simply is not a problem. (Absent a lease/rental agreement stating otherwise.)

The above disclaimer applies.

The landlord must give notice of intent. The tenant cannot withhold consent absent a reasonable basis. The absence of a lease agreement, when the tenant is likely only legally occupying the premises through some variation of contract-in-law past performance, should not serve as a reasonable basis. Moreover, given the tenant's unwillingness to clean, unwillingness to provide a forwarding address, and the minute impact a walkthrough will have on the premises and the tenant's enjoyment thereof, I would personally wager (for the little that's worth) that "I don't want you to" is not reasonable. I am not advising you, but it's worth considering playing hardball with these people now.

That being said, you must next consider the ramifications of a court finding that the tenant's withholding of consent was unreasonable. Bluntly, what damages will the tenant be able to assert based on you politely and with notice, entering the premises. For that one, you need a lawyer, I'm not touching it.

You might try serving them with notice and a copy of the statute above. If they continue to fight it, I'd wager they're hiding something that they don't wish to be held responsible for. Whatever the case, start documenting your actions at this point, and go with a witness.

As for a tenant's responsibilities:

Alaska Stat. § 34.03.120 (2009)
Sec. 34.03.120. Tenant obligations

(a) The tenant

(1) shall keep that part of the premises occupied and used by the tenant as clean and safe as the condition of the premises permit;

(2) shall dispose all ashes, rubbish, garbage, and other waste from the dwelling unit in a clean and safe manner;

(3) shall keep all plumbing fixtures in the dwelling unit or used by the tenant as clean as their condition permits;

(4) shall use in a reasonable manner all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air-conditioning, kitchen, and other facilities and appliances including elevators in the premises;

(5) may not deliberately or negligently destroy, deface, damage, impair, or remove a part of the premises or knowingly permit any person to do so;

(6) may not unreasonably disturb, or permit others on the premises with the tenant's consent to unreasonably disturb, a neighbor's peaceful enjoyment of the premises;

(7) shall maintain smoke detection devices and carbon monoxide detection devices as required under AS 29.35.125;

(8) may not, except in an emergency when the landlord cannot be contacted after reasonable effort to do so, change the locks on doors of the premises without first securing the written agreement of the landlord and, immediately after changing the locks, providing the landlord a set of keys to all doors for which locks have been changed; in an emergency, the tenant may change the locks and shall, within five days, provide the landlord a set of keys to all doors for which locks have been changed and written notice of the change; and

(9) may not unreasonably engage in conduct, or permit others on the premises to engage in conduct, that results in the imposition of a fee under a municipal ordinance adopted under AS 29.35.135

(b) The tenant may not knowingly engage at the premises in prostitution, an illegal activity involving a place of prostitution, an illegal activity involving alcoholic beverages, an illegal activity involving gambling or promoting gambling, an illegal activity involving a controlled substance, or an illegal activity involving an imitation controlled substance, or knowingly permit others in the premises to engage in one or more of those activities at the rental premises.

[blueflames50]

read between the lines....Landlord...from your post you are not the "Landlord" you are the superintendent or manager.....terminology such as this make are technicalities that make a big difference in some states.

[Nephler]

Here's a link to Alaska Landlord and Tenant Act.
This has all the info you need.

http://www.commerce.state.ak.us/occ/pub/landlord.pdf

[Whitescale]

Originally Posted by blueflames50

read between the lines....Landlord...from your post you are not the "Landlord" you are the superintendent or manager.....terminology such as this make are technicalities that make a big difference in some states.

Landlord is likely the property owner or his agent.

[Floyd_Davidson]

Originally Posted by Whitescale

Bluntly, what damages will the tenant be able to assert based on you politely and with notice, entering the premises. For that one, you need a lawyer, I'm not touching it.

No lawyer is going to touch that either... only a judge will. The point was, do not enter without either tenant consent or a court order. How reasonable the tenant is or is not is not up to either the landlord or his lawyer to determine.