Can a Landlord Charge For Yard Work?
As a renter, you have the right to live in a clean and well-maintained property. The landlord must thus ensure that the rented property is in a habitable condition and offer both maintenance and repairs. But,
While this may depend on the terms and conditions spelled out in the lease agreement, some and include the cost in the rent paid by the tenant. In some cases, maintaining a yard may be left to the tenant, but this again depends on whether or not the condition was included in the lease agreement. As a renter, you may want to know more about renters' rights and determine when and where to file a complaint against your landlord if your rights are violated.
Determining who should carry the responsibility of ensuring that a yard is well maintained can be complex, especially if the terms are not written on the lease agreement. However, DoNotPay can help you know your responsibilities as well as those of your landlord. In addition, DoNotPay can guide you on when and how to write a letter to your landlord about repairs.
What Are My Rights as A Tenant?
As a tenant, you are legally protected from unlawful charges and inhabitable living conditions. Therefore, you have the right to live in a place that meets basic standards such as health and safety standards. The rented unit must also meet the expected structural standards.
According to most landlord-tenant laws, you have the right to:
- Access to clean running water
- A fair application fee
- Live a private life
- Raise any issue concerning the rented property
- Be informed of any changes in the management of the rented property
- Be notified before any pest control measures are applied, such as the application of pesticides in the rented unit
- Issued with an eviction notice, if required to vacate the rented property
- Be notified of any intention to increase rent or increase or decrease in any service fee
- Live in a decent and safe place
In addition, the law gives you the right to withhold rent, either in full or a certain amount. This may be the case if the landlord ignores their repairs responsibilities or fails to meet other maintenance responsibilities such as fixing a broken heater or repairing a leaky roof. You can withhold rent until the issue has been resolved.
However, before you withhold any amount, you must notify the landlord and also comply with state laws. You must also consider the extent of damage as well as the amount of time the landlord can take to fix the problem.
Can A Landlord Charge For Yard Work?
While it is the responsibility of a landlord to maintain a habitable environment, the landlord may delegate the role of yard maintenance to the tenant. In such cases, a tenant may be paid by the landlord for yard maintenance either as a fee or as a rent discount. For instance, if the rental unit rests on a large piece of land or there are specific plants that the landlord wants the tenant to take care of, the landlord may pay the tenant to maintain the yard.
However, a landlord can leave the yard maintenance responsibility to the tenant if the tenant has exclusive use of the yard. It is important to check with your state laws to determine when and if a landlord should charge for yard maintenance.
How to Dispute Unlawful Yard Maintenance Charges by Yourself
If you feel that your landlord has unlawfully charged you for yard maintenance, you may consider disputing the case. However, before disputing, you need to go through the lease agreement and check if yard maintenance costs have been factored in. To dispute unlawful yard maintenance charges, here is what you need to do:
| Lease Agreement | Enquire if any utility bill such as water bills incurred during the yard maintenance should be paid by the tenant or the landlord. |
| Type of Lawn Agreement | For self-service lawn care services, the tenant is fully responsible for maintaining the yard. For a full-service lawn care agreement, the landlord is responsible for maintaining the yard. On the other hand, a La-Carte agreement splits the responsibility between the landlord and the tenant. |
| Talk to the Landlord | Talk first to your landlord to see if you can solve the matter between yourself. |
| Landlord Insists on Unfair Charges | you can file a lawsuit and let the court make the final ruling |
Next Steps for Disputing Unlawful Yard Charges if You Can't Do it Yourself
If the landlord remains adamant and wants you to pay for yard maintenance against the lease agreement, you may seek the help of a third party such as DoNotPay. With an automated platform, you get a quicker, more reliable, and more convenient way to resolve your issue. DoNotPay can also help you when you need to know how long a landlord can take to return the security deposit if you move out.
With DoNotPay, you will not have to go through a frustrating and tedious process since someone else will do all the work on your behalf.
Solve Unlawful Yard Charges with the Help of DoNotPay
DoNotPay offers you a perfect solution for all your problems. You only need to submit your case and the rest of the work will be done for you. This makes the entire process fast and super easy. If you can't resolve the issue and need to move out, DoNotPay can also help you how to get your deposit back from the landlord.
DoNotPay is here to guide you through it and file your disputes on your behalf. Our Landlord Protection product can help you:
- Get back your security deposits
- Learn about your state's eviction laws and what protections apply in your case
- Resolve disputes regarding repairs with your landlord
- Resolve disputes with roommates by filing demand letters or going through small claims court
- Break your lease early
How To Break A Lease In Using DoNotPay:
If you want to break a lease but don't know where to start, DoNotPay has you covered in 4 easy steps:
- Search for and open the Landlord Protection product on DoNotPay.
- Select which issue applies to you.
- Answer a simple set of questions so our chatbot can collect the necessary information to create your demand letter.
- Choose whether you want DoNotPay to send the demand letter to your landlord or roommate on your behalf. If you already tried sending a demand letter and it didn't work, we can help you start the small claims court process.
And that's it! You should hear back from your landlord directly once your demands are sent.
Why Use DoNotPay to Learn if Your Landlord Can Charge For Yard Work
Yard work has to be maintained to ensure that not only does your home remain habitable but also provides comfort to your family. Yard work can cause extra stress if it is to be taken from your account. DoNotPay is the best app to contest these extra charges because we are:
- Fast- You don’t have to spend too much time researching solutions to your problem.
- Easy- All you need is to accomplish the four steps and DoNotPay takes care of the rest.
- Successful- With the formal demand letter your landlord is sure to realize the error of their way and will respond accordingly to your condition.
DoNotPay Works across All Companies/Entities/Groups with the Click of a Button
DoNotPay offers an array of services across many different entities. For instance
- DoNotPay can help you break your lease in Kentucky the same way it could for California.
- DoNotPay can help you kick out a roommate in any state or even sue your landlord for deposit
- DoNotPay can also help you if a landlord threatens to evict you and also when a landlord threatens to kick you out without a notice
If you need a faster, more reliable, and more successful way to resolve unlawful yard maintenance charges, DoNotPay is your perfect solution. To learn more about yard maintenance charges, today!