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Healthy Homes – Renters

How is leasing different from home ownership?
What are my responsibilities as a tenant?
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 a renter?
Fact sheets for renters and tenants 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 help with occupants in rural areas?
Where can I find out more about healthy housing policy?
Additional resources

* * * Our Healthy Homes personnel are not doctors or legal representatives. The information on our Healthy Homes Website does not offer medical or legal recommendations. This info is not an alternative for visiting your doctor or for talking to a lawyer about your particular circumstance. * * *

3 Actions a Concerned Renter Should Do:

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

2. Do not stop paying rent. It would likely be versus the lease or the law. Keep your lease invoices as proof you paid.

3. Read your lease. Whatever is written in the lease is a legal contract. Both occupant and landlord have obligations.

It is likely illegal for a property owner to retaliate against a tenant who files a complaint, calls Buiding Codes, or takes legal action. Changing locks, turning off utilities, appearing frequently, or inappropriately raising lease can be retaliation.

How is leasing various from own a home?

Renting is different from own a home in that the occupant need to count on someone else to make repairs. The renter might not be able to make modifications to the home without approval. An occupant has both rights and obligations. Renting can be an excellent alternative for many individuals to keep a healthy home environment, both indoors and outdoors. Whether you lease a house, house, duplex, mobile home or cabin you can keep the seven healthy homes concepts. Keep in mind that health begins in your home.

What are my duties as a renter?

Renters are responsible for tidiness and safety. You may rent without any official arrangement, or you may have a lease agreement. The most typical kind of tenant in Tennessee is a renter who signs a lease contract to pay rent every month throughout the year. Renters may be asked to supply a security deposit. Lease contracts are legally binding agreements. You are accountable for following the regards to your lease. Some lease agreements have addendums such as pet policies, bug control agreements or for reporting water damage. You are responsible for: paying your rent on time, paying any late fees, keeping the place tidy and safe, not letting anyone else damage it, not breaking the law, getting rid of your garbage, and following your proprietor’s rules. If you break your lease, then it might become 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 concepts to preserving a healthy home.

1. Keep it Dry. – Damp homes provide an excellent environment for mites, roaches, rodents and molds.
2. Keep it Clean. – Clean homes help in reducing bug invasions and direct exposure to impurities.
3. Keep it Pest-Free. – Exposure to mice and cockroaches may increase asthma attacks. Improper pesticide treatments for insect infestations can get worse illness, since pesticide residues in homes can present health risks.
4. Keep it Safe. – Most of kids’s injuries take place in the home. Falls are the most regular cause of property injuries to children, followed by injuries from objects in the home, burns, and poisonings.
5. Keep it Contaminant-Free. – Avoid exposure to lead, radon, carbon monoxide, pesticides, asbestos and environmental tobacco smoke. Bear in mind direct exposure is frequently greater indoors.
6. Keep it Ventilated. – Studies have actually revealed increasing fresh air in a home enhances breathing health.
7. Keep it Maintained. – Poorly-maintained homes are at risk of being unhealthy.
8. Keep it Thermally Controlled. – Houses that do not preserve appropriate temperatures may put the safety of homeowners at increased threat from exposure to severe heat or cold.

If you utilize these concepts as a guide, you can keep a safe and healthy home. If you are having an issue preserving any of these concepts, other parts of this site will know and resources to assist 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 obligation to fix the issue or it might be your property owner’s duty to make repairs. Read your rental lease agreement. Adhere to any requirements for cleanliness or safety. Report any required repairs to the property owner as they emerge. Putting your concerns in writing is best. This produces a record of your concerns. Repairs to your rental home ought to be made in a reasonable quantity of time. The quantity of time may be listed in your lease.

If your proprietor has not made repairs in a sensible amount of time, you might require to communicate more directly, such as with extra written complaints or an in person conference. If your proprietor continues to neglect your issues, you may require to pursue legal action.

Disputes between a landlord and a tenant are civil problems. Most landlord and occupant concerns are beyond the authority of the Health Department. These concerns would be ruled on by a civil court judge translating the law. There are some programs that support occupants.

What are my rights as a tenant?

According to the Legal Aid Society, as an occupant you have the right to a habitable location and to live quietly. Your rights as an occupant may vary depending on which county you reside in. The Legal Aid Society has a helpful truth sheet to help you understand your rights as a renter. How to contact the Legal Aid Society or the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services is listed below.

If your rental home needs an emergency situation repair to keep it healthy, such as a repair work of the heat, gas, lights, water, sewage, pipes or a/c, you should alert your property owner right now.

If the requirement for repair in not an emergency, then 2 week is generally thought about as an affordable quantity of time for the proprietor to make repairs. Hopefully, a lot of repair work will be made rather after a property manager is warned. Use your routine approach of reporting requirements for repair such as a website, phone call, text message, or office go to. Put something into composing to document when you made the proprietor knowledgeable about the need for repair work.

In some counties you can use some of your rent money to make these immediate repairs. If the problem was your fault, you might have to assist spend for the repair work.

You can not be dislodged of your rental home. You can not be forced out without notice. The property manager can not change the locks or turned off your utilities to make you leave. The majority of the time, a landlord requires to go to court before evicting you. If you did something unsafe or threatening, the landlord just needs to provide you three (3) days to vacate. If you did not pay lease or broke your lease contract, you may be offered a thirty (30) day notice to vacate. If you have legal concerns about housing, you should seek advice from with an attorney or legal services.

The Tennessee Alliance for Legal Serices has a HELP4TN site, chatbot, and telephone to assist individuals who need assist with their legal concerns. If you do not have your own legal representative, this is an excellent site to begin.

If you qualify based upon income or support status, the Legal Aid Society may be able to help. Bear in mind, Legal Aid has a customer waiting list and rarely will cases happen quick. Contact the office near you to find out more.

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 help you understand your rights and duties as a renter. Click the left image for counties of 75,000 or more population and the right 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 upkeep requirements. Codes can use to property or non-residential residential or commercial properties or both. Codes inspections can happen at any time, though they are most common with brand-new building and construction or remodelling. Building regulations help to ensure safety within a building. It is essential to have structures up to code. Landlords are accountable for satisfying Codes.

All cosmopolitan areas in Tennessee have their own codes departments to enforce Residential or commercial property Maintenance Codes. Many big 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 across the state have adopted the International Residential or commercial property Maintenance Code. Codes inspectors might inspect electrical, pipes, gas, zoning, and other physical aspects of a home. Contact your local codes department for details specific to your place.

Often Building Codes will ask if an occupant has actually currently notified their property owner about the requirement for repair work and provided the property owner reasonable time to make the repair. Afterward, Buiding Codes might perform an evaluation. If there is an examination, be sure to ask for a copy of any notes or citations. Remember that Building Codes can only go to homes where the tenant has legal right to permit their see.

What is URLTA?

Tennessee Code Annotated § 66-28 is the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. URLTA just applies in counties of greater than 75,000 population as of the 2010 U.S. Census. For these more inhabited counties, there are written requirements and defenses to rental contracts consisting of responsibilities for maintenance by the property manager to abide by requirements of appropriate structure and housing codes materially impacting healthy and security, as noted in 66-28-304.( a).

What are the minimum requirements for rental housing?

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

Can I make a protest?

If a rental residential or commercial property breaks minimum health standards it might be unfit for habitation. According to Tennessee Code Annotated § 68-111-101, occupants whose lease is $200 or less per week may file a complaint with their regional building inspector or county public health department. Complaints need to be filed in writing with your county health department and a copy need to be forwarded by qualified mail to the property manager. A qualifying grievance can lead to a home investigation. This part of the law does not apply to renters who pay their lease regular monthly or for a term higher than monthly. For non-qualifying grievances, other structure codes or ordinances that the structure inspector is licensed to impose, may be applicable to residential home leased at higher rates.

What if I live in government assisted housing?

The federal government helps low-income households, the elderly, and the handicapped to afford decent, safe, and in the personal market. Participants find their own housing, including single-family homes, townhouses, and homes. There is an annual Housing Quality Standards (HQS) assessment treatment to make sure that homes are tidy and safe. Renters with assisted housing, such as Section 8, should start by talking with the workplace that issued their rental Housing Choice Voucher (HCV).

The Tennessee Housing Development Agency carries out agreement administration for Section 8 property problems in 76 counties. If the residential or commercial property owner or agent is not fulfilling their responsibilities, TDHA might step in. To find out more, call THDA at 1-800-228-THDA (8432) during normal organization hours or go to the THDA webpage anytime. Local public housing companies (PHAs) supply services in the other counties. Some of the local workplaces are the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency, Murfreesboro Housing Authority, Memphis Housing Authority, and Knox County Housing Authority.

Renters who get assistance can contact their local U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development workplace. Much of HUD’s programs have particular requirements for housing quality. If your housing is not up to standards, then HUD might intervene to have the proprietor make repairs as required. 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 rural locations?

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

Where can I find out more about healthy housing policy?

Our Healthy Places webpage offers more details about the places we live, work and play. Click here for more information about healthy housing policies.