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hello i am new to this forum. i just started renting this home in st albans and i signed the lease last week. there were no rules in the lease that said any of the following but my landlord is already threathening to kick me out because of this.
1- he said he didnt know i smoked and he was dissapointed. (i dont smoke in the house)
2- i was drinking a beer while working in the garage and he told me that he didnt allow alcohol on this property
3- my buddy helped me move almost all night so he crashed on the couch, he said he didnt want anyone staying over
now im pretty young, in the army full time and i drink, and smoke. and im always bored so my buddies will come over and play poker or video games and now hes saying i cant do any of that. but none of this is in the lease
We've been landlords before (not in WV however) and it seemed we had almost no rights at all when it came to what the tenant could and couldn't do...short of burning the place down, or repeated destructive behaviour. Even non-payment had to go on for months and months before we could do anything.
I'd ask a lawyer or citizens-advice place, if you have one.
And stay polite and nice to your landlord through it all, for your own sake--good luck!
Are you renting the whole place oppose to a room? I am not a professional but you should be able to have company over and drink if you want to. Geez, will he want to screen your girlfriends as well ? You may want to post this on the real estate professional forum and they may be better equipped to answer.
I Am Not A Lawyer, and as Lily says, you might have to get the opinion of a real one.
For what it's worth: A lease is basically a contract. If it's not in the contract, any "rules" aren't enforceable. But you better go through it, line by line, to make sure it says what you think it says.
Local governments can make laws governing rentals, but I've never heard of one that, for example, forbids you being hospitable and having friends stay over night.
Unless your lease says you can't do those things specifically or if it says he can evict you for any reason at his own discretion then legally, he has no right to limit you from doing those things as long as you are not doing damage to the property. Here's a link to renters rights put out by the Huntington Human Relations Commission but it looks like the rules apply to the whole state. Hope this helps.
Tim http://www.wvago.gov/pdf/Tenants_rights.pdf
Tim, you're link heaven.
Another great one--thanks for sharing it.
We've been talking about this ourselves, the possibility of buying two houses instead of one, and renting out the second for an income. (DH is a great handyman, but we're not yet familiar with WV laws regarding landlords and tenants, and that leaves me a bit nervous about deciding too quickly...)
1st of all be nice and polite like LillyLaLa says, but be firm stand up for your rights.
This may sound weird coming from me because we are landlords in WV. Our lease is very tight and specific with regard to the areas you mention:
Smoking: our tenants may smoke outside the house. If at the end of the lease I have to make repairs due to smoking in the house (I can tell) or burns I will keep most if not all of the rather steep security deposit I charge. I have a chunk of my tenants $$$$ and I am sure they want it back.
Alcohol consumption on the property, even though I do not partake, can I/should I impose that on my tenants? I think not. If the police are called repeatedly (spelled out in lease) for public drinking and disorderly conduct, I will put you out and keep the deposit.
Overnight guests, your landlord needs to be reasonable here! You should be able to have overnight guests. I have this spelled out in the lease for a specific period of time, (2 weeks) if my tenant needs to have someone stay for a longer period they must put the request in writing, explain why they need to have an exception and I reserve the right to increase the rent and possibly require additional security deposit.
YOU are active duty Army, take the lease to your JAG office for review, something you should have done to start with, but go now. The legal services at the JAG are free to you, one of your benefits USE them!!!
My DH is retired Army and I put our lease together using some of the policies we had to follow when living in base housing. We lived with these polices for 20+ years and did just fine, so when we decided to become landlords, I said why reinvent use what I know.
Try not to engage your landlord until you receive advice from the JAG office, and do not let him know you are going to see the JAG. Find out what your rights are and then stand up for them.
Keep us posted, you can send me a private email if you like. I do not know you but your have 2 things going for you, 1, you are part of my Army family, and 2 your are in WV!!
If your lease is for a period of time, say on year to year basis...do what you want...
If its on a month to month basis...better pack your bags...he will pull the rug out from under your feet.
You could win this in court...pursuit of happiness....as long as it was legal. His objection would be that you were creating a nusiance.
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? You may want to post this on the real estate professional forum and they may be better equipped to answer.
