Know Your Rights as a Tenant

Hi Christy,

Thank you for your comment.  I’m sorry to hear of your problem.  Please contact your local tenants’ rights council for further legal discussion.

The landlord of the rental property is trying to charge me for a full paint job for normal wear and tear and carpet cleaning for normal wear and tear and other fees for normal wear and tear, when I left the place thoroughly clean and no major damage.  They gave me some discounts, but still want me to pay for full paint and carpet cleaning, when I had no pet there, and the carpets were vacuumed and left clean.  They have no documentation proving that the one carpet they claim has stains and when I left it, there were no stains.  They said my walls are dirty.  I have a video of all my walls in the main part of the house and they are clean. I only lived in that house for a year.  They also are trying to charge me 30 bucks for the toilet seat replacement and they were gonna replace them anyway because I kept having to make maintenance requests to get them adjusted.  They said it was stained.  It was cheap particle board material and any cleaner I put on there to clean would take the paint off.  They are sending me outrageous charges and I left the house spotless and damage free other than normal nail holes and the door to the bathroom had a little damage.  I paid for my utilities and rent in full.  They are still trying to charge me 500 plus bucks for numerous items that are not abnormal wear and tear.  I lived in that house for a year, and they are saying there are black stains on the carpet.  There are no stains on the carpet, and they have yet to show me proof of this.

Hello Beth,

Thank you for your question.  I’m sorry to hear of your problem.  It may be wise to contact your local tenants’ rights council for further legal discussion.

I have a landlord that has raised the rent $150 due to expenses incurred when the fence was repaired that was old and broken down before I moved in, also at the same time the AC unit was replaced which she texted me that it had not been replaced since 2005 that was before I moved in. My question is, can my Texas landlord raise the rent to compensate for repairs to the property that was already damaged before I moved in?

Hi Chenelle,

Thank you for your comment.

Is this fee listed in your lease? Generally, a tenant would be bound by the terms of the lease agreement once it is signed. It may be wise to contact your local tenants’ rights council for further legal discussion.

The realtor handling the property is reside at and pay rent for requires all renters to pay $35 extra a month for a maintenance packet on case of needing repairs instead of the realtor having to pay for or get repairs done.Is this legal,I thought the landlord was responsible for repairs at their expense not mine,I may not ever need repairs but have to pay $35 extra every month.

Hello Laura,

In Texas, you are not legally required to have renters insurance. However, your landlord is permitted to require it as part of your Texas rental application. There are several reasons for this, including minimizing their liability and ensuring the safety of those who rent or visit their properties. For more information, please contact your local tenants’ rights counsel.

If apartment complex requires Tenant liability and I get my own policy with State Farm Insurance, can they force me to pay for their liability coverage also.

Cole Park Apartments at 6804 Henneman Way McKinney Tx 75070 is stating this.

Hello Mike,

Thank you for your comment.  I’m sorry to hear of your problem.  It may be wise to contact your local tenants’ rights council for further legal discussion.

My landlord is trying to make me pay my half of the rent when my friend and I who is a disabled vet had an agreement that he pay the rent in full and I do the work to the house and take care of his meals and such but the landlord is interfering with our personal life and trying to control our financial situation here between us and telling him don’t pay my half just his and trying to make me leave saying I’m taking advantage of him and I’m not he is my best friend and it was him who made the decision to pay the rent in full as long xas I’m there to help him she has been harassing me and last month he paid it in full but she insisted I pay my half when I did my friend said he had already paid the rent in full and when I asked about it she said nothing and kept my money and is asking for my half again this month or for me to leave she has no authority to tell us who pays what as long as the rent is paid am I correct ....please help

Hello Ashli,

Have you discussed the problem with them yet, be sure to approach them first without taking any further action. If you have spoken with them, you might contact your local tenants’ rights council to see what rights you do have.

Is it legal for my landlord to force me to move to another unit after a major surgery. My daughter is 4 and runs ND jumps alot we are upstairs and I’m due to have my 2nd child in 2 days can she force us out after having a c section.

Hello Scwyana,

Is your landlord infringing on your rights as a tenant? Well, if you haven’t discussed the problem with them yet, be sure to approach them first without taking any further action. If you spoken with them several times about the issue and they still haven’t taken action, then you can take legal action. Consult a lawyer that specializes in real estate and housing. Contact your local tenants’ rights council or if you’re a student at a large university, your institution may offer free or discounted legal services to students.

I have a person posing as a landlord without a lease used a Pct to do an eviction without going to court or any legal documents of being a landlord.  Please help

Hello Rene,

As long as you are paying, landlords must generally stay out of a property as long as tenants are paying rent. The only exceptions are in the case of an emergency, a repair, or a house showing for potential tenants in the future. Most states require a landlord to give 24-hour notice before entering the unit, but that, too, can vary by city. Some areas have no set minimum for advance notice.

This month Apartment manager request to come in to do inspection on air unit change filter and check thermostat now less than 30 days they want to come in again. To inspect all rooms is this allowed. If so what do they need to inspect. An as a tenant do I have rights to complaint if they want repair the light at my front door and not fix the gate for security.

Hello Emily,
Well, if you haven’t discussed the problem with them yet, be sure to approach them first without taking any further action. If you spoken with them, you might contact your local tenants’ rights council about it.  If you’re a student at a large university, your institution may offer free or discounted legal services to students.

Hello La Shunda,
Thank you for writing in.  I’m sorry to hear of your trouble. 
Please contact your local tenants’ rights council to further discuss the legalities.

Hi
I live in a apartment complex and management is making every resident pay 80.00 a month for cable service and 20.00 a month for package service. I have my own cable and do not want to get the cable they offer and do not want my packages delivered by the service we have to pay 20.00 a month for. Can they force you to pay for extras you do not use? The package service was 10.00 a month and just went up to 20.00 so management is profiting 10.00 a month from each resident.

I need to report my landlord and I need to know my rights as a tenant. I been in my home for 16 years the property was bought by some more people. When we met the owners, it was an elderly Indian man and his father who brought the property.  The elderly man was really old he had a lot of health problems like he couldn’t hear. He was a great man we have a small dog in the home he didn’t have a problem with our dog, so he didn’t charge us. We have been with them for about 4 years now.  The older man health started to fail. So, we met him and his daughter she began to deal with us and the issues of the home. So now we are dealing with his daughter or so they say it’s his daughter it’s been so many people to deal with. The fence in the back yard fell completely apart we informed her about the fence that she never repaired but still asking for money. Thats been about 4 months now I have photos.  This is where the problem comes in the home has flooded the entire house was ruined far as the hardwood floors and the carpet. We informed her of the problem she filed an insurance claim had people come in and remove the hardwood floors an and put all my furniture in the garage and there is still mold from the wet carpet that they never removed. The people came in and tore up the entire floors except for the carpet. All of a sudden, the workers stopped coming and she started sending text messages. Talking about signing a new lease and the rent is going up from $1600 to $1850 and how she doesn’t like pets and there will be a pet deposit of $600. It been a month and the floors are still not fixed. She sent emails to sign a new lease if we don’t, she will evict us, but she hasn’t fixed these floors and there is still mold growing in this house.  But mind you we still haven’t heard from the owner. She will not have the owner contact us our lease is up, and I am not signing no lease with this house looking like this. I have pictures and text messages .I need answers please.