Landlord put house on market 5 months before our move out date- please advise (lease agreement, tenant)

[LilTMD]

Greetings, I am a first time poster here. I apologize for the long post.

My husband and I are currently renting a single family home. When our year lease ran out in March, we notified our landlord that we are building a house and that our expected completion date was September 1st but that this was somewhat dependent on how quickly the builder was able to complete the project. We inquired as to whether we should sign another lease, or if it would be better to go month-to-month and play it by ear, given the uncertainty of the completion date. He assured us that it would be fine to go month-to-month, and that we could stay until our house was completed. It was, as some call it, a "gentleman's agreement", although in hindsight, I feel rather foolish for not having insisted on a second 5 month rental agreement at the time.

I should mention that my husband and I are both high earning professionals who have always paid our rent on time by electronic payment and the rent more than covers our landlord's mortgage. Not to mention we pay our landlord an additional 200/month during the summer months to do the yardwork (which is way more than the going rate in our area). We take excellent care of the place and have a weekly professional cleaning service. We frequently take care of maintenance/small issues that arise ourselves rather than bothering him with them (and believe me, there are a LOT of issues with this house).

Last week, he notified us that he was putting the house on the market, and that the real estate agent would be coming by to view the home the next day. We were informed that they would be putting up a sign and a lock box (which they just did three days ago), and the house was listed in the MLS. This means we were given only a week's notice that the place was going on the market.

One thing I should mention is that I am 35 weeks pregnant, and it is a very high risk twin pregnancy. I have been placed on bedrest due to preterm labor and I have been instructed to only get up to go to the bathroom, and to make myself a quick meal. I was expressly forbidden from doing laundry, dishes, cooking big meals, or anything beyond very very light activity. I am not allowed to go into work of course, so I have been attempting to do at least half days from my couch.

I did speak with our landlord and the listing agent about my situation, and told them that although we would try to accommodate them, I will be unable to leave during showings, and that we would need at least 24 hours notice prior to showing because I cannot simply jump up and straighten the place up on a moment's notice. Not to mention I might be in the middle of a work project. I also told him that after the twins were born, this was going to be even more difficult. We were given verbal assurance that this shouldn't be a problem, that I could remain in the house if I needed to, and we could refuse to show at any time.

In just the couple of days the place has been on the market, we have received several telephone calls requesting to show the place with only a half hour or 20 minutes notice. The people I have spoken to have been somewhat pushy, and I have politely but firmly told them that we need at least 24 hours notice. I get the impression that these agents think this is somehow unreasonable of me.

Here are my big questions/concerns:

1) In our original lease agreement, it specifically stated that if the landlord wanted to show the property, we were to be given at least 24 hour's notice. Is this assumed to hold true now that we are month-to-month and have not signed any additional lease?

2) I am concerned about the fact that they have placed a lockbox on the home. This means that if I am in the shower or sleeping upstairs, people may just let themselves in. Furthermore, the doorbell doesn't work properly (we told the LL, but he hasn't fixed it yet), so there is a good chance that I will not hear it and they will assume no one is home. I am unsure if we really have the right to refuse the lockbox, but I feel it is a big infringement on our privacy. When we sold a home previously, we FREQUENTLY had real estate agents just let themselves in without an appointment when we weren't home (we would just be surprised to find two or three cards on the kitchen counter). Would it be reasonable to put a sign on the door explicitly stating that an appointment is required, and that we request 24 hour's notice?

3)Is it also reasonable to request showings only during certain times of the day? I don't care if they want to show on a Saturday or Sunday as long as they give us advance notice, but I think a showing at 8pm would be a bit much. Also, can we request no open houses (for now, anyway)? Given my condition, I think there is no way we could accommodate that without putting my babies at risk.

4) Even though we were verbally told that we could refuse a showing, would they technically be allowed to force us to show the place as long as they have given us 24 hours? I am not worried about this right at the moment, but I am thinking that there may be a two or three week period of time when I am recovering from my C-section and have two newborns when it would be next to impossible to allow the house to be shown, even with notice.

5) Is asking us to put up with this disruptive situation for almost five months reasonable on his part? I realize that legally he can do it (it's HIS house), but really, it seems like ticking off a pair of reliable tenants who allow him to pay his mortgage (and even make some profit) for the remote possibility of him selling doesn't seem like a great idea. Sure, we can be cooperative and let them show the house, but I don't think we are obligated to keep our mouths shut about all the structural issues with the house, the water damage to the ceiling and drywall that he just painted over rather than fixing, etc. Doesn't he realize that we have no incentive to help him sell the place, and in fact have an incentive to slow down the sale so that we won't get booted out before September?

6) I know he says we can stay until September, but lets get real. If he does sell the house right away there is no way he would tell the buyer that they have to wait until we are gone. We are month-to-month so I am sure we probably have no legal leg to stand on. But is there any way (besides sabotaging the sale) to ensure that we don't have to do a double move? I don't want to get passive aggressive, but....he has put us in an extremely awkward position and it may be truly impossible for us to move only days after having our babies if he sells it in the next week or two. (He won't sell it though....it's wayyy overpriced).

This whole exercise just seems like a waste of his time, and ours. It's causing us a lot of stress at an already stressful time. I should mention that we have not been offered any sort of incentive such as a decrease in rent to put up with this for the last five months we will be here (unless we get kicked out earlier).

Thanks in advance for your replies.

[LilTMD]

Forgot to mention- this is in Nebraska

[volk2k]

I understand that this is inconvenient for you... but I would not anger your landlord.

You are on a month-to-month lease... One "negative" word about his place to potential buyers and you are out in 30 days.

You have to understand that the Landlord is running a business... It sounds like he is trying to be accomodating... but at the end of the day if he goes a few months with an empty house (after you leave) he will probably be losing money. He is just being proactive.

He may be telling realtors that they need 24 hour notice... but potential clients tell their Realtors to call... and they will ask just to make sure.

On the positive side, your landlord could just kick you out right now so he could have an easier time selling the property without having to be at YOUR convenience.... so I don't think he is being unreasonable.

[Faworki1947]

stick to your guns .. 24 hour notice .. day time only showing unless its on weekends... on day of just before time of showing call befor walking in please and thank you to the realiters..
put a sign on the door that says .. Please knock before using key Tenant is at home today and above all do not let the realtor get pushy with demands ..

[sware2cod]

Require 24 hr notice.

Put a note on the front door that says doorbell does not work and someone is inside and DO NOT ENTER unless you have already given 24 hours notice. You can give your tel# on that sign so they can call you instead of walking inside.

Use a barrel bolt or hook/eye on the inside of the door so if they use the key to enter and push, the door still will not open.

When the babies are born, you can close off their bedroom and place a large flourescent poster on the bedroom door and say "NO ENTRY TO THIS ROOM - SICK PERSON INSIDE". Modify wording as needed, maybe say SLEEPING PERSON INSIDE, etc. Then you go inside the room with the babies for the showings that already gave 24 hr notice. Don't bother to notify the landlord about this, just do this for the showings.

If someone really loves the home and wants to see that room, they will make future appts for such. People often put cats into rooms and close them off for showings, so it is not abnormal.

Check your state laws about reasonable times where you are expected to allow entry. Often it daytime hours and this usually ends by 8pm. It depends on the state. Google to get the answer.

Typical real estate showings are within these times 99% of the time anyway. Also note that new listings get lots of showings. 2 weeks after the new listing hit MLS, showings will significantly drop off, especially since it is overpriced.

I have been in your position before as far as renting a place while a home was being built and the rental home when up For Sale. It is awful and then you have the twins and pregnancy. Blessings to you. In my case the landlord priced it too high and it didn't sell until after we moved when they lowered the price.

Because the home is overpriced, I doubt it sells until they drop the price. This will buy you a few months. They probably know it is high priced and landlord will likely drop price closer to when you plan to move because then he will get serious about selling due to not wanting a vacancy. He is greedy with his pricing now due to the Sept move-out.

Once a contract is written, it is often 45-60 days before closing. So if a contract is signed afer mid June, there is a good chance you move just once.

[StilltheSame]

I would be FURIOUS if I were you. I think they have overstepped and are being quite inconsiderate. Good advice here thus far - if you have a prepaid legal service as part of either of your benefits it may be worth giving them a call. Or often an employer's EAP program goes beyond health to cursory legal services. It would be worth at a minimum sending a very strong written message - the landlord's disposition would be the least of my concerns as they have not been very thoughtful to you thus far - the more you take - the more they will mistake it for weakness.

[manderly6]

I think you have to tread a fine line with this. Since the LL can ask you to be out in 30 days you need to figure out how much you are going to push back. I would certainly stick to the 24 hour notice. That is very reasonable. As well as not having showings after 8PM.

The other thing I was thinking was putting up a chain lock. I don't know if that is "legal" or not. Obviously it would only be used when you are in the house.

[NY Annie]

I absolutely would put a chain lock or one of those side bolts on the door asap. You could ask the LL to only allow showings on the day of the week you have your cleaning service or to make an accommodation rent-wise to permit you to have someone in to tidy the place every other day - at his expense as well as making an adjustment in the rent for the inconvenience you will be put through.

You might also consider consulting an attorney. I'm not so sure that you have to permit frequent intrusions and there might be circumstances, such as yours, which are exceptions under the law even if you would be required to show it normally.

My best wishes for healthy newborns. Try to find ways to not stress extra over this.

[LilTMD]

Originally Posted by volk2k

I understand that this is inconvenient for you... but I would not anger your landlord.

You are on a month-to-month lease... One "negative" word about his place to potential buyers and you are out in 30 days.

You have to understand that the Landlord is running a business... It sounds like he is trying to be accomodating... but at the end of the day if he goes a few months with an empty house (after you leave) he will probably be losing money. He is just being proactive.

He may be telling realtors that they need 24 hour notice... but potential clients tell their Realtors to call... and they will ask just to make sure.

On the positive side, your landlord could just kick you out right now so he could have an easier time selling the property without having to be at YOUR convenience.... so I don't think he is being unreasonable.

Thank you for your comments. I do sort of see your point in some regards, but I am not fully following your logic. If it is so much easier to sell the house while there are not tenants present, then why not wait until we are gone in September? If he were to kick us out now, it seems to me that he would be putting himself in the very situation he is trying to avoid (i.e. having the home empty for several months with no money to cover his mortgage). I don't understand what that would gain him other than animosity from us. Wouldn't it make the most sense to have tenants present for a few more months to guarantee he covers his mortgage, help him gain more equity in the house, and therefore cut his losses somewhat when he sells? He will be selling it for a loss, regardless. He bought at the top of the market, and admitted to us that he is going to have a hard time coming up with the money to sell it.

Also, our landlord isn't really running a business, per se. He is one of the "accidental landlords" who couldn't sell his home after he bought another house. He has never been a landlord before, and when we moved in, I had to have my father (who is a lawyer) help him with the lease, because he had just pulled a generic lease off the internet which had several clauses that didn't apply to NE state laws. So I am not fully convinced this guy really knows what he is doing anyway.

By the way, none of what we are asking for is simply because we don't want to be inconvenienced. That sort of minimizes our situation. We have a serious medical issue which could compromise the health and lives of our unborn children. Having to get up repeatedly during the day to answer the door or because someone comes barging in unannounced could very well put me into preterm labor again, and our children could wind up with serious health issues (or worse, dead) as a result. And after my C-section, I will be recovering for a minimum of two weeks, possibly longer than that. I think it would be unconscionable to demand that someone move when they are recovering from major abdominal surgery AND have two newborns to care for, especially when there is little to gain financially from doing so. And yet, that could very well be the situation.

[STT Resident]

Originally Posted by LilTMD

We have a serious medical issue which could compromise the health and lives of our unborn children. Having to get up repeatedly during the day to answer the door or because someone comes barging in unannounced could very well put me into preterm labor again, and our children could wind up with serious health issues (or worse, dead) as a result. And after my C-section, I will be recovering for a minimum of two weeks, possibly longer than that. I think it would be unconscionable to demand that someone move when they are recovering from major abdominal surgery AND have two newborns to care for, especially when there is little to gain financially from doing so. And yet, that could very well be the situation.

Given this, I think you should give a 30 day notice and arrange to move sooner rather than later. If the stress of dealing with this issue is going to cause the demise of your twin fetuses then obviously removing the immediate stress factor is paramount. Maybe you could move in with family members temporarily if you can't find something more suitable as a temporary measure before your house is ready to move into.