Leases are legal contracts that outline the terms for the rental of a property by one party to another. The lessee or tenant agrees to rent property from the lessor or property owner for a specific amount of time. However, sometimes lease disputes arise over issues that may or may not be covered by the contract. This article takes a look at what you need to know about these disputes.
What Are Common Issues Involved in Lease Disputes?
Even if the contract is explicit, in certain situations disputes will arise. Some of the most common issues that are subject to disagreement by one party or the other include:
- Repairs – Sometimes there’s a disagreement over who is responsible for repairs. If you’re the tenant, you may feel the property owner should make repairs when something breaks. However, the property owner might interpret the lease differently and expect you to take care of any issues that arise while you’re occupying the rental property.
- Terms – The tenant and the property owner might be at odds over the number of people that are allowed to occupy the property. Frequently, this is implied and is not always part of the lease agreement. However, some cities and counties have zoning ordinances that prohibit multiple families from occupying a single-family home.
- Deposits – The return of the security deposit is often one of the disagreements between the property owner and the tenant. You may feel that you’ve fulfilled all the obligations of the lease, but