Question:  I was told that the maximum amount a landlord may charge for an NSF check is $20, unless our bank charges us more. Is this true?

Answer: On occasion, I hear this, too.  However, I have never been able to locate any law that limits the amount a landlord can charge for a NSF check.  There is a provision in the Pennsylvania Crimes Code that sets a maximum charge for bad checks (at $25, I believe).  While the Crimes Code does not apply in the case where you are merely assessing the charge to your tenant, some District Judges apply the limit in the Crimes Code to landlord charges.  At a minimum, you should be able to charge your tenant the amount that your bank charges you.

Question:  I have co-signed for my son and his girl friend which has a 3 yr. old. They have not paid 1 months rent yet. They are both in rehab and the child is with the mothers parents. I told him we were giving the 30 day notice (this is a month to month lease) and that they could move into our home until the apartment bldg we are purchasing was ready to move in. Thay came to us for help to detox and I talked them into going into rehab they gave me the keys to the apartment. What are my legal rights all the furniture is mine they only have their clothing and the childs toys. Can I remove my belongings and what do I do if they say they are going back to the apartment.

Answer: Your rights as a co-signer are somewhat limited.  While, as a co-signer, you are obligated, among other things, to pay the rent if your son does not, you have few or no rights to the apartment.  The landlord is not obligated to provide you access to the apartment, and you have no right to terminate the lease on behalf of the tenant.  Only the tenant can terminate the lease.  If the lease has a month-to-month term, you should notify the landlord in writing that you are no longer willing to be a co-signer at the end of the current term.  Depending on what the lease says, this may be effective to terminate your financial obligations under the lease.  However, many leases provide that a co-signer's obligation lasts, even from renewal to renewal, until the lease is finally terminated.  Your notification to the landlord that you no longer wish to be a co-signer may result in the landlord terminating the lease.  In that case, your obligations will cease at that point as well (but not for any rent that has already accrued).  If this does not happen and your son re-enters the apartment, your continuing obligation will depend on what the lease says about your guaranty.  Getting your belongings is another matter.  If the landlord will give you access to the apartment, you are certainly free to remove your belongings from it (subject, of course, to whatever agreement you may have with your son regarding his use of your belongings).  However, many landlords will not provide access to anyone other than the tenant.  If this is the case, a letter signed by your son directing the landlord to allow you access should suffice.  Or, your son can simply give you a key to the apartment, and you can then enter to remove your belongings (again, subject to whatever agreement you may have with your son regarding his use of your belongings. 
 

Answer: Once the tenant has relinquished possession of (abandoned) the property, it is usually improper to file the Landlord/Tenant complaint form.  The L/T complaint form presupposes that possession is still in the tenant.  Where possession has been turned back to the landlord, the Civil Action rules apply, and the landlord must use the Civil complaint form.  If the landlord is not sure whether the tenant has relinquished possession of the property (for example, when the tenant has left belongings in the property), then it would be appropriate to use the L/T complaint form.  It is important to remember that the mere vacating by a tenant may not mean that the tenant has relinquished possession back to the landlord (i.e., abandoned the property).  In order to establish the relinquishment/abandonment, a landlord must be able to prove that the tenant intended to relinquish/abandon not only possession of the property, but all of the rights he has under the lease.  In many cases this may be difficult to prove.  In these cases, it might be proper to use the L/T complaint form.

Answer: The mortgage company is not liable to the owner for the lot rent because there is no contractual obligation for the mortgage company to pay. Furthermore, a foreclosure may not constitute a sale, as prohibited in your rules. If the abandoned mobile home remains on the property for more than a reasonable period of time, you might have a claim against the mortgage company for the rental value of the lot on the theory that due to the bank's unreasonable delay, you were unable to re-rent the lot. Keep in mind, too, that as the landlord, you have certain rights to remove the mobile home in the event of a default. While this may cause you to incur expenses that you are not ultimately able to recover from the defaulting tenant, it at least frees up the lot for re-rental. Depending on the terms of your lease and the circumstances of the tenant's vacating, you also may be entitled to hold the tenant liable for the lost lot rent until the mobile home is removed. 

Answer: There do not appear to be any provisions in the state or federal fair housing statutes that prohibit a landlord from requiring that both parents co-sign or guarantee the lease. The only protected class that even comes close to this inquiry is familial status. However, the protections of the familial status class is intended to prevent discrimination against families who wish to rent apartments. Hence, not only does it appear to be proper to require both parents' guarantees, it makes good business sense. That is, if only one parent is required to guarantee the lease and the tenant defaults, the parent's assets are exempt from execution to the extent that they are owned jointly with his/her spouse.

Answer: Under certain circumstances, federal and state wiretap laws prohibit the audio recording of others without their permission. However, there is nothing improper about videotaping someone without their knowledge or consent. So long as the recording by your tenant does not include any audio, it does not appear that your resident has violated any laws.

Answer: I do not know what the renewal term is in this case.  However, because the tenant did not give the appropriate notice, the lease will have renewed for the renewal term (whatever the length of that term is),  and the tenant could be liable for rent for the full renewal term, less the avails of re-rental, if any.  Of course, the landlord could settle with the tenant and agree to terminate the lease upon the payment of another month's rent.