Legal Q & A
Q. I understand that if a building contains more than 16 units, there must be a resident manager. I have given some responsibilities to an on-site maintenance person, but I do not call him a resident manager. Does this situation comply with the law?
A. The California Administrative Code requires that a building containing 16 or more units on a parcel must have a person living on site who is responsible for representing the owner of the property. The person does not, however, have to be a "Resident Manager."
Q. One of our residents was in an automobile accident and is temporarily unemployed. She told me the attorney representing her in the claim would give me a lien on collected funds for he past-due rent. I have never heard of this type of lien before. What is it, and should I agree?
A. An attorney can create a lien on any monies recovered on the client’s behalf. This must be done in writing from the attorney who is representing her and can be enforced by a court of law. You should also consider that it could be a long time before the case is final, and there is always a chance your resident would not prevail and would recover nothing.
Q. I served one of our delinquent residents a three-day notice to pay rent or quit. Also due were three months of past late charges, which I added to the notice. My neighbor, who is a professional manager, told me that I could not include the late charges in the notice, so I plan on telling the judge just to ignore the late charges and give me back possession. Will the judge still give me possession?
A. Probably not. California law does not allow any charges other than rent to appear in a three-day notice to pay rent or quit. The defect is fatal to the notice, and if it is invalid, you would not be entitled to possession under that particular notice.
Q. A former resident has requested a copy of his rental file. I asked why he wanted it, but he refused to give me a reason. I plan to give him a copy, but do I have the right to refuse? Can I charge him for this service?
A. The rental records on the residents are the property of the owner and/or the management company. You therefore do not have to give the resident a copy, and you should charge for the copy if you so desire. Keep in mind, however, that the file would be subject to a subpoena if a court action was filed and it was deemed relevant to the case.
Q. I managed a large apartment community in Orange County. Our policy is not to accept cash for rent. One of our delinquent residents attempted to pay in cash after being served with a three-day notice to pay rent or quit, and we refuse to accept it. It looks like we are going to court, and I am nervous about refusing the cash payment. Should I be concerned?
A. Many judges will claim that the eviction procedure created by the California's state legislature pre-empts any conflicting provision in the lease agreement. The court may interpret the offer of cash as legal tender of the delinquent rent and, if offered during the three-day period, it would constitute compliance. To avoid this issue, another three-day notice may be served, and this time you may decide to accept a timely cash payment.
Q. Can I keep a security deposit if the tenant moves out and does not give me a written 90-day notice?
A. You can deduct from the security deposit unpaid rent from the time of the move-out until the 30-days are up, or until the premises are relet, whichever happens first, provided you use the due diligence to relet the premises.