questions & answers

Question: Is it the responsibility of the Property Management company or the tenet to bring a building up to code if the building was leased already not in code? My property management company rented me a commercial facility that was no where near up to code, five years ago. The company is now trying to force me to bring the building up to code(needs electrical, new roof, etc.) none of that was up to code when I rented it. It’s been five years of the building not being up to code, now that I’m in my last 4 months of my lease they’re pulling this. Just need advice.

Answer: As a general rule, the responsibilities of the landlord and the tenant in a commercial leasing context depend on what the code compliance clause in the rental agreement says. You may wish to ask a commercial property lawyer to review your rental agreement as well as your landlord’s specific demands. You may find the State Bar of Arizona’s online Find-A-Lawyer service here: https://azbar.legalserviceslink.com.