questions & answers

Question: My landlord has been retaliating on me because I filed a complaint with the city for them failing to remedy a bed bug issue. Now they are refusing to make repairs, harassing me at all hours of the day and night and threatening to evict me with unjustified causes. Additionally, my lease is up in 3 months and they are planning on showing my unit for the next THREE months which is excessive and highly invasive. What can I do to prevent all of this?

Answer:

This article provides an overview of the Arizona Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (http://www.azhousing.gov/ShowPage.aspx?ID=484&CID=11)  and the references cited are to the applicable portion of the Arizona Revised Statutes. This information is provided for apartment and home rentals.
A Landlord cannot do certain things under the Act:
Under Arizona law (A.R.S. § 33-1381) a landlord may not retaliate against a tenant for exerting their legal rights meaning that a landlord cannot evict or harass a tenant for complaining to a governmental agency. Landlords who try to go after tenants may be stopped and sued; however this path may be a time and money consuming endeavor depending on the circumstances of their case.
If the landlord does act in violation of this section of the law, the tenant is entitled to the remedies provided under Arizona law (A.R.S. § 33-1367) which states that if the landlord unlawfully removes or excludes the tenant from the premises or willfully diminishes services to the tenant by interrupting or causing the interruption of electric, gas, water or other essential service to the tenant, the tenant may recover possession or terminate the rental agreement and, in either case, recover an amount not more than two months' periodic rent or twice the actual damages sustained by him, whichever is greater. If the rental agreement is terminated the landlord shall return all security recoverable under A.R.S. § 33-1321.

For legal advice on how the law applies to a specific situation or to discuss your case in more detail:  consult an attorney practicing in that field (http://www.azlawhelp.org/articles_info.cfm?sc=35&mc=5&articleid=129)