How is leasing different from home ownership?
What are my responsibilities as an occupant?
What can I do to keep my rental home a healthy home?
What if I have an unhealthy condition in my rental home?
What are my rights as an occupant?
Fact sheets for tenants and occupants during COVID-19
What about Residential Or Commercial Property Maintenance Codes?
What is URLTA?
What are the minimum standards for rental housing?
Can I make a protest?
What if I reside in government assisted housing?
Does the USDA assist with renters in backwoods?
Where can I discover more about healthy housing policy?
Additional resources

* * * Our Healthy Homes staff are not physicians or lawyers. The details on our Healthy Homes Website does not provide medical or legal suggestions. This info is not a replacement for visiting your medical professional or for speaking with a lawyer about your particular scenario. * * *

3 Actions a Concerned Renter Should Do:

1. Put everything in composing. Take photos and videos. Save emails, texts, letters, and voicemails. Write a calendar of occasions.

2. Do not stop paying lease. It would likely be against the lease or the law. Keep your lease receipts as evidence you paid.

3. Read your lease. Whatever is composed in the lease is a legal agreement. Both occupant and property manager have obligations.

It is likely illegal for a proprietor to strike back against a tenant who submits a complaint, calls Buiding Codes, or takes legal action. Changing locks, shutting down utilities, revealing up typically, or inappropriately raising lease can be retaliation.

How is leasing different from own a home?

Renting is different from home ownership because the renter must count on somebody else to make repairs. The occupant may not have the ability to make changes to the home without authorization. A tenant has both rights and responsibilities. Renting can be an excellent alternative for lots of people to maintain a healthy home environment, both inside and outdoors. Whether you lease a house, apartment or condo, duplex, mobile home or cabin you can keep the 7 healthy homes principles. Bear in mind that great health begins in your home.

What are my obligations as an occupant?

Renters are accountable for cleanliness and security. You may rent with no formal contract, or you may have a lease contract. The most typical kind of renter in Tennessee is a renter who signs a lease arrangement to pay rent every month throughout the year. Renters may be asked to offer a security deposit. Lease agreements are legally binding contracts. You are accountable for following the regards to your lease. Some lease contracts have addendums such as pet policies, insect control agreements or for reporting water damage. You are accountable for: paying your rent on time, paying any late costs, keeping the place clean and safe, not letting anybody else damage it, not breaking the law, getting rid of your trash, and following your property owner's rules. If you break your lease, then it might end up being a legal concern.

The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance shared Tips for First-Time Renters along with Tips on How to Spot Rental and Moving Scammers.

What can I do to keep my rental home a healthy home?

There are eight basic principles to keeping a healthy home.

1. Keep it Dry. - Damp homes provide a good environment for termites, roaches, rodents and molds.
2. Keep it Clean. - Clean homes help in reducing insect problems and direct exposure to contaminants.
3. Keep it Pest-Free. - Exposure to mice and cockroaches may increase asthma attacks. Improper pesticide treatments for pest infestations can worsen health problems, considering that pesticide residues in homes can present health risks.
4. Keep it Safe. - Most of children's injuries happen in the home. Falls are the most frequent reason for residential injuries to children, followed by injuries from items in the home, burns, and poisonings.
5. Keep it Contaminant-Free. - Avoid direct exposure to lead, radon, carbon monoxide gas, pesticides, asbestos and ecological tobacco smoke. Remember direct exposure is often greater indoors.
6. Keep it Ventilated. - Studies have actually revealed increasing fresh air in a home enhances respiratory health.
7. Keep it Maintained. - Poorly-maintained homes are at danger of being unhealthy.
8. Keep it Thermally Controlled. - Houses that do not maintain appropriate temperatures might position the security of locals at increased threat from direct exposure to extreme heat or cold.

If you use these principles as a guide, you can keep a safe and healthy home. If you are having a problem preserving any of these concepts, other parts of this site will know and resources to help you.

What if I have an unhealthy condition in my rental home?

If you have an unhealthy condition in your rental home, then it may be your duty to fix the problem or it might be your property manager's responsibility to make repair work. Read your rental lease agreement. Adhere to any requirements for cleanliness or safety. Report any required repair work to the landlord as they occur. Putting your concerns in composing is finest. This creates a record of your issues. Repairs to your rental home should be made in a sensible amount of time. The quantity of time may be listed in your lease.

If your landlord has actually not made repair work in a reasonable amount of time, you may require to interact more straight, such as with additional written problems or an in person conference. If your property manager continues to disregard your concerns, you might need to pursue legal action.

Disputes between a property owner and a tenant are civil issues. Most property owner and renter issues are beyond the authority of the Health Department. These issues would be ruled on by a civil court judge analyzing the law. There are some programs that support tenants.

What are my rights as a renter?

According to the Legal Aid Society, as an occupant you deserve to a livable location and to live peacefully. Your rights as a renter might differ depending upon which county you reside in. The Legal Aid Society has a beneficial truth sheet to help you understand your rights as a renter. How to get in touch with the Legal Aid Society or the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services is noted below.

If your rental home needs an emergency repair to keep it healthy, such as a repair of the heat, gas, lights, water, sewage, plumbing or cooling, you must signal your proprietor immediately.

If the need for repair in not an emergency, then 14 days is typically thought about as a reasonable amount of time for the landlord to make repair work. Hopefully, most repair work will be made much sooner after a landlord is warned. Use your regular technique of reporting needs for repair work such as a website, telephone call, text, or workplace go to. Put something into composing to document when you made the property manager mindful of the need for repair.

In some counties you can use a few of your lease money to make these instant repairs. If the issue was your fault, you may need to assist pay for the repair work.

You can not be displaced of your rental home. You can not be forced out without notice. The property manager can not change the locks or shut off your energies to make you leave. The majority of the time, a property owner requires to go to court before evicting you. If you did something unsafe or threatening, the proprietor just needs to offer you 3 (3) days to leave. If you did not pay rent or broke your lease arrangement, you might be given a thirty (30) day observe to vacate. If you have legal concerns about housing, you ought to talk to an attorney or legal services.

The Tennessee Alliance for Legal Serices has a HELP4TN website, chatbot, and telephone to help individuals who require help with their legal issues. If you do not have your own attorney, this is an excellent website to begin.

If you qualify based on income or support status, the Legal Aid Society may have the ability to assist. Keep in mind, Legal Aid has a customer waiting list and seldom will cases happen quick. Contact the workplace near you for more details.

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands - 1-800-238-1443
Offices in Clarksville, Columbia, Cookeville, Gallatin, Murfreesboro, Nashville, Oak Ridge, and Tullahoma

Legal Aid Society of East Tennessee - 1-865-637-0484
Offices in Knoxville, Johnson City, Chattanooga, and Cleveland

West Tennessee Legal Services - 1-800-372-8346
Offices in Jackson, Dyersburg, Huntingdon, and Selmer

Memphis Area Legal Services - 1-888-207-6386
Offices in Memphis and Covington

The Legal Aid Society created these fact sheets to assist you understand your rights and responsibilities as a tenant. Click the left image for counties of 75,000 or more population and the best image for smaller sized counties.

Anderson, Blount, Bradley, Davidson, Hamilton, Knox, Madison, Maury, Montgomery, Rutherford, Sevier, Shelby, Sullivan, Sumner, Washington, Williamson, or Wilson

Bedford, Benton, Bledsoe, Campbell, Cannon, Carroll, Carter, Cheatham, Chester, Claiborne, Clay, Cocke, Coffee, Crockett, Cumberland, Decatur, DeKalb, Dickson, Dyer, Fayette, Fentress, Franklin, Gibson, Giles, Grainger, Greene, Grundy, Hamblen, Hancock, Hardeman, Hardin, Hawkins, Haywood, Henderson, Henry, Hickman, Houston, Humphreys, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Lake, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Lewis, Lincoln, Loudon, McMinn, McNairy, Macon, Marion, Marshall, Meigs, Monroe, Moore, Morgan, Obion, Overton, Perry, Pickett, Polk, Putnam, Rhea, Roane, Robertson, Scott, Sequatchie, Sevier, Smith, Stewart, Tipton, Trousdale, Unicoi, Union, Van Buren, Warren, Wayne, Weakley, or White

What about Residential Or Commercial Property Maintenance Codes?

Residential Or Commercial Property Maintenance Codes or Building and Safety Codes are minimum residential or commercial property maintenance standards. Codes can apply to residential or non-residential residential or commercial properties or both. Codes examinations can occur at any time, though they are most common with brand-new building and construction or renovation. Building regulations assist to make sure security within a building. It is very important to have buildings up to code. Landlords are accountable for meeting Codes.

All cities in Tennessee have their own codes departments to enforce Residential or commercial property Maintenance Codes. Many large county or city governments have codes departments. Though, numerous towns and rural locations do not have any standardized minimum residential or commercial property upkeep codes. Several codes departments throughout the state have actually embraced the International Residential or commercial property Maintenance Code. Codes inspectors might inspect electrical, pipes, gas, zoning, and other physical elements of a home. Contact your regional codes department for info particular to your place.

Often Building Codes will ask if a renter has currently informed their landlord about the need for repair and given the landlord reasonable time to make the repair work. Afterward, Buiding Codes may perform an assessment. If there is an evaluation, make certain to request a copy of any notes or citations. Remember that Building regulations can just check out homes where the tenant has legal right to enable their go to.

What is URLTA?

Tennessee Code Annotated § 66-28 is the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. URLTA only uses in counties of greater than 75,000 population as of the 2010 U.S. Census. For these more populated counties, there are written requirements and defenses to rental arrangements consisting of commitments for maintenance by the property manager to adhere to requirements of applicable building and housing codes materially affecting healthy and security, as noted in 66-28-304.( a).

What are the minimum standards for rental housing?

The Tennessee Department of Health is accountable for promoting rules for minimum health requirements for rental housing. These rules become part of Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-5502 reorganized as § 68-111 in Chapter 1200-1-2. The guidelines cover standard devices and centers, light and ventilation, temperature level, and sanitation.

Can I make a protest?

If a rental residential or commercial property breaks minimum health standards it may be unsuited for habitation. According to Tennessee Code Annotated § 68-111-101, tenants whose rent is $200 or less weekly may submit a problem with their regional building inspector or county public health department. Complaints require to be submitted in writing with your county health department and a copy should be forwarded by licensed mail to the property owner. A certifying grievance can lead to a home examination. This part of the law does not apply to tenants who pay their rent regular monthly or for a term higher than month-to-month. For non-qualifying complaints, other building regulations or ordinances that the structure inspector is authorized to impose, might be relevant to house rented at greater rates.

What if I live in government assisted housing?

The federal government assists low-income families, the senior, and the disabled to afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing in the private market. Participants discover their own housing, including single-family homes, townhouses, and apartments. There is an annual Housing Quality Standards (HQS) examination treatment to make sure that homes are clean and safe. Renters with assisted housing, such as Section 8, must start by talking with the workplace that provided their rental Housing Choice Voucher (HCV).

The Tennessee Housing Development Agency carries out contract administration for Section 8 residential problems in 76 counties. If the residential or commercial property owner or agent is not satisfying their responsibilities, TDHA may step in. For more details, call THDA at 1-800-228-THDA (8432) during regular company hours or check out the THDA website anytime. Local public housing companies (PHAs) provide services in the other counties. Some of the local offices are the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency, Murfreesboro Housing Authority, Memphis Housing Authority, and Knox County Housing Authority.

Renters who receive assistance can contact their local U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development office. A number of HUD's programs have specific requirements for housing quality. If your housing is not up to requirements, then HUD may step in to have the proprietor make repair work as needed. Tennessee's HUD workplace contact numbers are:

HUD Knoxville Field Office - (865) 545-4370
Jurisdiction: Anderson, Bledsoe, Blount, Bradley, Campbell, Carter, Claiborne, Cocke, Cumberland, Fentress, Grainger, Greene, Grundy, Hamblen, Hamilton, Hancock, Hawkins, Jefferson, Johnson, Knox, Loudon, McMinn, Marion, Meigs, Monroe, Morgan, Pickett, Polk, Roane, Rhea, Scott, Sequatchie, Sevier, Sullivan, Unicoi, Union, Washington

HUD Memphis Field Office - (901) 544-3367
Jurisdiction: Benton, Carroll, Chester, Crockett, Decatur, Dyer, Fayette, Gibson, Hardeman, Hardin, Haywood, Henderson, Henry, Lake, Lauderdale, Madison, McNairy, Obion, Shelby, Tipton, Weakley

HUD Nashville Field Office - (615) 736-5600
Jurisdiction: Bedford, Cannon, Cheatham, Clay, Coffee, Davidson, De Kalb, Dickson, Franklin, Giles, Hickman, Houston, Humphreys, Jackson, Lawrence, Lewis, Lincoln, Macon, Marshall, Maury, Montgomery, Moore, Overton, Perry, Putnam, Robertson, Rutherford, Smith, Stewart, Sumner, Trousdale, Van Buren, Warren, Wayne, White, Williamson, Wilson

Does the USDA assist with renters in backwoods?

Yes. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has a rural development program. USDA assists with some 360 multi-family residential or commercial properties in Tennessee. If you have a concern about residing in USDA-assisted rural housing you can call your rural development local workplace.

Where can I find out more about healthy housing policy?

Our Healthy Places webpage supplies more details about the places we live, work and play. Click here to find out more about healthy housing policies.