questions & answers

Question: My mother-in-law lives in some apts. in Oro Valley. The new management wants to rwpkace the carpet in her apt and told her they want her to move her furniture out and find a place to store it until they aee finished. Isn't it the responsibility of the management to cover the expenses and labor for this?

Answer: Unless the rental agreement between the tenant and the landlord expressly says otherwise, which is incredibly unlikely, then, yes, any costs associated with major repairs undertaken by the landlord during the term of the tenancy should be covered by the landlord. However, it is impossible to say exactly how a tenant should proceed in the situation you have described without knowing the length of the rental agreement, because if the lease is month-to-month then the landlord always has the option of providing the tenant with 30 days notice then replacing the carpet once the tenant moves out. If the carpets will need to be replaced during the term of a longer lease, then the tenant may wish to send a letter to the landlord reminding the landlord that it is not the tenant’s responsibility to pay the landlord’s own expenses.