A well-drafted lease or rental agreement can be critical to your success in the property rental business. What goes into the agreement determines whether you profit or fail as a landlord. Leaving out important items lets tenants take advantage of you, and not including California and Federal law requirements subjects you to fines and penalties….
Code of Civil Procedure §1161 was designed by the California Legislature to provide an inexpensive and expeditious procedure for a landlord to regain rental property unlawfully in the tenant’s possession. The salutary purpose of this law has been increasingly frustrated by delay tactics employed by tenants who want to contest the proceeding and stay in…
What Is A Retaliatory Eviction? Retaliatory eviction arises when the eviction is intended to punish the tenant because the tenant committed a legal act. It is illegal for a landlord to retaliate against a tenant California tenant who has exercised a legal right, including: • complaining to the landlord about unsafe or illegal living conditions…
A will is a document that directs what happens to your property when you die. The validity of a will is determined when it is executed, according to the laws of the state where you reside at the time it was made. In general, a will must be written, signed by the testator, and witnessed…
Landlords in Arizona are allowed to file an Eviction Action under the Rules of Procedure for Eviction Actions (also known as RPEA). Below are the individual steps of the eviction process in Arizona. STEP ONE: NOTICE IS POSTED Landlords in Arizona initiate the eviction process by providing notice to the tenant of the reason for…
Small Claims Court is geared towards the average citizen, letting everyday people resolve their disputes quickly and inexpensively. Almost any dispute can be taken to Small Claims Court, provided the amount of money requested falls within the maximum allowed by California law. Landlord-tenant disputes to collect unpaid rental payments are one of the more common…
What Is A Constructive Eviction? In California, there is an implied warranty of habitability requiring the landlord to provide rental property conditions fit for the occupation of human beings. The rental property in question must comply with or exceed California health and building code standards that materially affect a tenant’s health and safety. Constructive eviction…
After filing for divorce in California, the law requires that you serve your spouse with the divorce petition to give him or her an opportunity to be heard and participate in the case. In many situations, both spouses have agreed to the divorce and delivering the paperwork is not an issue. But what happens when…
How do you go about evicting someone who is not on the lease and has moved into the rental unit before the unlawful detainer lawsuit is filed? The landlord can include them as defendants in the eviction action, even if the landlord doesn’t know who they are. This is accomplished serving the occupants with a…
One of the most significant issues in any divorce is the court-ordered division of property between the parties. Here is a brief overview of some of the major issues implicated by the analysis of who gets what in a California divorce proceeding. Community vs. Separate Property Under California law, when a couple is married the…