Tristan’s Landlord-Tenant Law Blog
Landlords Lose Lawsuit
On Wednesday, September 22, 2010, Judge Timothy Witkowiak denied three landlords' motion for summary judgment against the City of Milwaukee and granted the City's cross motion for summary judgment against the landlords, with regard to constitutionality of the city's new RRI ordinance. This ruling effectively ended the lawsuit.The lawsuit dealt with the City's new Residential Rental Inspection (RRI) program/ordinance that went into effect on January 1, 2010. The RRI ordinance requires ...
Hearing on Landlords Lawsuit vs. City To Be Held This Wednesday, September 22nd
The hearing on both the Landlords' and the City's cross motions for Summary Judgment will be held this Wednesday, September 22nd, at 10 am. The hearing will take place before Judge Timothy Witkowiak at the Milwaukee County Courthouse.This hearing could be the final hearing on this lawsuit (barring any appeals) which involves three Landlords suing the City and asking the Court to declare the Residential Rental Inspection (RRI) program unconstitutional ...
AASEW Landlord Tradeshow - This Wednesday - Sept. 22nd
Annual Landlord Tradeshow! Bring 2 non perishable food items that we will donate to the Hunger Task Force for free admission, free seminars, free entrance to the exhibit hall, a chance to win some great raffle prizes and free appetizers September 22nd, 2010Serb Hall, 5101 W. Oklahoma Avenue, Milwaukee Seminars 12:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. (doors will open at 11:40 p.m. for first ...
The Topic of CCAP Restriction Is Back!
As the followers of my blog well know, many of my posts have centered on State. Rep. Marlin Schneider's attempts to restrict CCAP access to the public. Restriction of CCAP will greatly affect landlords as CCAP is one of the best avenues to conduct background checks on prospective tenants. Here is a link to my prior posts on this topic.Well, Rep. Schneider and his Special Commottee On Review of ...
What Is The Effect On The Eviction Process If A Tenant Files Bankruptcy?
I have had a number of people ask me over the last several months to address what effect a tenant filing bankruptcy has on the eviction of that tenant. I have been delaying writing that blog post and I apologize for that. Bankruptcy is a tricky area of the law, and I am by no means an expert in bankruptcy law, but I will attempt to provide you with a general summary ...
Do Not Miss the 11th Annual AASEW Tradeshow on Sept. 22, 2010
Do you know what you can legally deduct from a tenant's security deposit? Looking for ways to improve your cash flow? Need a few sales tips to fill your vacancies? Are you in Compliance with State and Federal Fair Housing Laws? You will get the answers and more at the Apartment Association of Southeastern Wisconsin (AASEW) Annual Landlord Tradeshow! Free seminars.Free entrance to ...
Fair Housing Update: Review of 2010 Fair Housing Trends Report
A large segment of my work involves advising landlords and property managers about fair housing laws and counseling them what they can and cannot do in the rental industry with regard to the federal and state fair housing laws and discrimination in general. As such, I recently took the time to read the National Fair Housing Alliance's (NFHA) 2010 Fair Housing Trends Report which was published May 26, 2010. To provide you ...
Audits In Milwaukee by HUD Regarding Compliance with Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Laws
A fellow board member on the Apartment Association of SE Wisconsin forwarded the email below to me and other landlord-tenant attorneys and others in the industry. It concerns the recent audits of landlords and management companies in the city of Miwlaukee with regard to complying with the federal lead-based paint disclosure laws. I spoke with a potential client yesterday who was also ...
EXECUTION OF WRIT: Part 2 - The Details
Last week I provided some basic information about what is involved in the execution of a writ of restitution (eviction) and how the process works. With this week's post I wanted to provide everyone with some additional -- more detailed -- information about the execution process. I attempted to group these tidbits of info by category. Much of the information below is specific to Milwaukee County and the Milwaukee County ...
EXECUTION OF WRIT: Part 1 - The Basics
I have noticed a trend in the last several months of more and more tenants refusing to leave a landlord's rental property even after the landlord has obtained a judgment of eviction against the tenant and been issued a Writ of Restitution ("writ"). As a result of this trend more and more landlords are being forced to go through the process of having the writ executed. The execution of the writ ...
FREE Seminar on Evictions - Saturday, August 14th
I will be presenting a free seminar on the topic of evictions for the City of Milwaukee's Landlord Training Program on Saturday, August 14th. I am presenting this seminar on behalf of the Apartment Association of Southeastern Wisconsin (AASEW). The Seminar will run from 9 am - 12 noon and will be held at Alverno College's Wehr Theater which is located at 3441 S. 39th Street. I was informed that there ...
With All of This Flood Damage Lately . . . Let's Talk About Untenantability
With all of the flood damage from the July 22, 2010 storms throughout SE Wisconsin, I have been receiving lots of questions asking what will cause a rental unit to become "untenantable" and if that happens what are a landlord's duties and a tenant's rights."Untenantable" basically means that a property is not fit for an occupant, is not in proper repair, and/or is not liveable. A rental property can become untenantable as a ...
What Is This Mitigation of Damages Requirement That I Keep Hearing About?
Whether a tenant breaches his or her lease and is evicted, leaves after receiving the 5 day or 14 day notice, or skips out in the middle of the night with months remaining on the lease, a landlord has the responsibility to make reasonable efforts to mitigate the tenant's damage under Wisconsin law.Put quite simply - a landlord cannot just sit back and do nothing and expect to collect rent from the ...
Don't Miss Next AASEW Town Hall Meeting on Monday, July 19th
Have a question about landlord tenant law? Property management? Real estate investing/short sales? Then come to the AASEW General Membership meeting on Monday, July 19th, 7:00 p.m. at the Best Western Hotel, 1005 South Moorland Road in Brookfield. Attorney and AASEW President, Tristan Pettit, AASEW Director and Portfolio Director at StuartCo, Susan Ipsarides, and owner of Plan B Homebuyers & Tailwind Funding, Brian Meidam, will all be on hand to answer your questions and give ...
Wisconsin Supreme Court Rules Against Landlord in Maryland Arms Case and Chooses To Avoid Answering The Bigger Question
The Wisconsin Supreme Court filed its opinion in this very important case on July 7, 2010. While the majority opinion ruled against the landlord it did not go so far as to say that a landlord and tenant could not allocate liability for damage (when neither party was negligent in causing the damage) in their rental agreement. If you would like to review the specific facts of the case and the ...
BED BUGS: Everything That You Wanted To Know . . . and More
If you have not heard -- bed bugs are making a comeback. Bed bugs are wreaking havoc on hotels, apartment complexes, and anywhere else where people congregate. I have even been told that 75% of all of the hotels in Las Vegas are infested with bed bugs - I don't know if that is true or not - but with the influx of people entering and exiting that city daily, it would ...
Compiling a List of "Bad" Tenants - a/k/a "Blacklisting" - Can Cause A Landlord A World of Hurt
Every so often it is suggested that landlords begin compiling a list of bad tenants to share with one another. This topic often arises after a landlord has been "burned" by a bad tenant that skipped out on a lease owing rent, caused severe damage to the landlord's rental property, or any number of other breaches of their rental agreement. It is argued that such a list could prevent other ...
New Law Limits Landlords From Pursuing A Deceased Tenant's Estate
Governor Doyle recently signed into law 2009 WI Act 323 which creates a new section to Chapter 704 of the Wisconsin Statutes regarding Landlord-Tenant Law.The new section 704.165, Wis. Stats., is entitled "Termination of Tenancy at Death of Tenant"Below is a summary of the new law:1. If a residential tenant dies and had a term lease, his/her tenancy will be terminated 60 days after the landlord learns of the ...
Latest EPA Proposed Changes to "Renovate Right" Rules -- Deadline to Provide Feedback July 6th
ALERT! The latest EPA proposal will require dust sampling and lab testing clearance on many small jobs. The EPA estimates $160 per room in testing cost. In WI testing can only be done by state certified risk assessors and the cost is about $240 per room. So a repair to a damaged door jamb could cost ten times as much as it does today, and many times more than that if ...
AASEW's New "Mentor's Corner" to Debut on June 21st
At the next membership meeting of the Apartment Association of Southeastern Wisconsin (AASEW), to be held on June 21, 2010, the AASEW will be debuting its new "Mentor's Corner" for all AASEW members.The "Mentor's Corner" will be held at 6:30 pm prior to the general meeting. The "Corner" will be staffed by one or more "seasoned" landlords who will be ready to answer your non-legal questions about any aspect ...