Tristan’s Landlord-Tenant Law Blog
Beware of Clauses Requiring More than 28-Days’ Notice to Terminate Month-to-Month Tenancies
By Atty. Gary D. KochClauses requiring tenants to provide 60-Day Notice to terminate a month-to-month tenancy are popular – we see them a lot in rental agreements. Recently, though, we have seen the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection take issue with such clauses in rental agreements in month-to-month tenancies that require the tenant to give anything more than a 28-Day Notice to terminate the tenancy.These DATCP challenges ...
Governor Walker Signed 2013 Wisconsin Act 76 (SB 179) Into Law Today
2013 Wisconsin Act 76 (SB 179) was signed into law today, December 12, 2013, by Governor Scott Walker in his office at the Capital building.Many people attended the signing, including myself. It was the first law signing that I have ever attended and was very intersting. I was able to get a ...
Governor Walker To Sign Wisconsin's New Landlord-Tenant Law Next Week
I have recently learned that Governor Scott Walker will be signing Senate Bill 179 into law next week Thursday, December 12, 2013 at 8 AM in the Governor's Conference Room in Madison.Senate Bill 179 will be signed along with a group of other bills starting at 8 AM that morning.Those of us involved in the drafting of this bill are happy to see all of the hard work come to ...
SB 179 ("Landlord-Tenant Bill") Is On It's Way To Governor Walker To Be Signed Into Law
At about 6:40 pm on October 16, 2013, SB 179 (commonly referred to as the Landlord-Tenant Bill) was concurred by the state Senate after a minor amendment was made in the state Assembly earlier. The bill passed 18-15 despite attempts to delay the bill via a motion to non-concur. The bill now goes to the Governor who has 30 days to "call" for the bill and sign it.If you would like to ...
Attorney General States That A Tenant Can Be Required To Pay For Carpet Cleaning Upon Vacating
It is not often that I get to report good news for landlords, so when the opportunity arises I am especially happy to do so. Today is one of those times. Earlier today the Wisconsin Attorney General issued a formal legal opinion that states that it is legal for a residential landlord in Wisconsin to require an outgoing tenant to pay to have the carpet in the unit professionally cleaned ...
So Let's Talk About . . . Companion/Comfort Animals In Rental Properties
I have been promising that I would blog about this topic for months (could it possibly be over a year even) and the time has finally come. So let's talk about companion/comfort animals in rental properties.Background:I will use the terms comfort animals and companion animals interchangeably throughout this post.So we are all on the “same page" a companion animal is an animal ...
New Landlord Omnibus Law: Odds and Ends
There has been a lot of discussion about the new Landlord Tenant law in Wisconisn (2011 Wisconsin Act 143) since it became law on March 31, 2012. Some people's views seem similar to mine while others have interpreted the law completely differently than I do. Here is a link to one law firm's summary that in my opinion is completely off base, but then again they are Minnesota lawyers ...
2011 Wisconsin Act 143 (Landlord Omnibus Law) Also Applies To Commercial Landlord-Tenant Law
While this blog primarily focuses on residential landlord-tenant law, on occasion I also touch on issues applicable to commercial landlord-tenant law. This is one such instance.Commercial landlord-tenant is more straightforward than residential in my opinion because commercial tenancies are less regulated than residential. Typically what a commercial landlord and tenant agreed to and placed into their lease agreement is what governs. The Wisconsin Administrative Code's ATCP 134 does not ...
Landlord's Omnibus Bill Signed Into Law - Read It Now
Governor Walker did sign the Landlord's Omnibus Bill into law.I appreciate the effort of everyone that called the Governor's office asking him to veto the bill due to its deficiencies.Here is a link to the new law. Much easier to read than having to go back and forth between the orginal bill, the Substitute bill and the two amendments.The two main concerns that I have with the law and which caused ...
Landlord's Omnibus Bill -- with Amendments -- To Be Signed Into Law Today
One of the biggest pieces of pro-Landlord legislation in quite some time was passed by the Wisconsin Senate and adopted by the Assembly recently and will be signed into law by Governor Walker today. Unfortunately some of the pro-Landlord provisions were amended, diluted, or removed.I am certainly not denouncing this new law. Many aspects of it will be very helpful to landlords. I just wish that more time had been allowed -- ...
You Will Not Want To Miss AASEW's Fourth Annual Landlord Boot Camp on Saturday Feb. 25th
Landlording can be pretty complex, with a seemingly never ending myriad of paperwork, rules, landlord-tenant laws and simple mistakes that can cost you thousands of dollars.The Apartment Association of Southeastern Wisconsin's Fourth Annual “Landlord Boot Camp” can help you navigate these treacherous waters and teach you how to run your properties with greater profit and less hassles.I have given similar landlord-tenant law seminars to fellow attorneys, landlords, and property manager ...
New Bills Would Limit Tenant's Attorney's Fees When Suing Landlords
There are two new proposed laws that if passed would limit the amount of attorney’s fees that could be awarded to a tenant that has sued his/her landlord for violation of ATCP 134 to 3 times the amount of compensatory damages in Wisconsin. The proposed legislation (Special Session Assembly Bill 12 & Special Session Senate Bill 12) was introduced by the committee on Senate Organization and the ...
Update on Landlord Pre-Emption Bill
It has been awhile since I updated everyone on the pro-landlord legislation that is being addressed in Madison. Senate Bill 107 (SB 107) -- referred to as the Landlord Pre-Emption Bill -- has been passed by the Wisconsin Senate and is currently being reviewed by the House this term (AB 155).You may recall that SB 107 prohibits any municipality from enacting any ordinance that limits a ...
Three Wisconsin Landlords Charged with Violating Fair Housing Laws
Three Wisconsin landlords have recently been charged with violating Fair Housing laws by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).First, in late July, HUD announced that it charged a husband and wife who own a rental property in Brown County with violating the Fair Housing Act for allegedly creatingdifferent rental requirements for a single mother and her son. The charge also alleges that the landlords’ lease agreement ...
Landlords Should Periodically Inspect Their Rental Property . . . or Risk $98,465 In Damage
Last night I read an article about a Virginia landlord that had $98,465 in damage to one of his rental units. Apparently his tenant was a compulsive hoarder and every room in the home was full from floor to ceiling with trash, soiled clothing, old newspaper, rotten food, and other deberis and excrement. It cost the landlord over $98,000 to get the unit back into rentable condition. The landlord's ...
Imagine If Every Tenant Received A Free Lawyer In Eviction Actions . . . It Could Become A Reality
If Legal Action of Wisconsin, Inc, 274 lawyers, 7 judges and 2 court commissioners,have it their way, all indigent persons that are involved in civil lawsuits involving issues of "basic human needs" will be given a free lawyer.According to a recent Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article and ABA Journal article the Wisconsin Supreme Court has been petitioned and asked to require that all indigent persons involved in civil lawsuits that involve issues impacting ...