questions & answers

Question: We have submitted a notice to move out at the end of next month and already have signed a lease for a new house. The landlord wanta to put the house on the market beginning next month. My question is, with this Covid 19 crisis I don't feel comfortable with people coming in and out of my house meanwhile I am still living here, especially since I am a nurse and have to go to work and be around elderly people. Is there any safety measures in place for me? Whether it be future tenants wearing a mask before entering or the landlord having to wait till we move out to show the house?

Answer: The only way in which the Arizona Residential Landlord and Tenant Act addresses this general situation is by stating that the landlord must provide the tenant with a minimum of two days’ advance notice and enter only at reasonable times (A.R.S. 33-1343(D)) and that the tenant cannot “unreasonably withhold consent” by refusing to allow the landlord access (A.R.S. 33-1343(A)). The Act does not contemplate a pandemic situation. Given the current situation, landlords and tenants whose units need to be leased will have to come up with arrangements that work for all concerned. In recent weeks, many (if not most) residential leasing operations have moved entirely online, so that may be an option.