How is renting different from home ownership?
What are my duties as a renter?
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 renters and tenants during COVID-19
What about Residential Or Commercial Property Maintenance Codes?
What is URLTA?
What are the minimum requirements for rental housing?
Can I make a protest?
What if I reside in government assisted housing?
Does the USDA assist with occupants in backwoods?
Where can I discover more about healthy housing policy?
Additional resources

* * * Our Healthy Homes staff are not physicians or attorneys. The info on our Healthy Homes Website does not supply medical or legal advice. This information is not a replacement for visiting your medical professional or for speaking with a lawyer about your particular circumstance. * * *

3 Actions a Worried Renter Should Do:

1. Put everything in writing. Take pictures and videos. Save e-mails, texts, letters, and voicemails. Write a calendar of events.

2. Do not stop paying rent. It would likely protest the lease or the law. Keep your rent 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 duties.

It is most likely prohibited for a landlord to strike back against an occupant who files a complaint, calls Buiding Codes, or takes legal action. Changing locks, turning off utilities, appearing often, or inappropriately raising lease can be retaliation.

How is renting various from home ownership?

Renting is different from home ownership because the occupant need to rely on another person to make repairs. The occupant may not have the ability to make modifications to the home without authorization. An occupant has both rights and duties. 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, duplex, mobile home or cabin you can keep the 7 healthy homes concepts. Keep in mind that great health begins in the house.

What are my duties as a renter?

Renters are accountable for cleanliness and safety. You might rent with no official agreement, or you may have a lease arrangement. The most common type of occupant in Tennessee is a tenant who signs a lease arrangement to pay lease every month throughout the year. Renters may be asked to supply a down payment. Lease arrangements are legally binding contracts. You are responsible for following the regards to your lease. Some lease arrangements have addendums such as pet policies, insect control contracts or for reporting water damage. You are accountable for: paying your lease on time, paying any late costs, keeping the place tidy and safe, not letting anyone else damage it, not breaking the law, dealing with your trash, and following your property owner's guidelines. If you break your lease, then it may end up being a legal problem.

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 8 basic principles to maintaining 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 pest invasions and exposure to impurities.
3. Keep it Pest-Free. - Exposure to mice and cockroaches may increase asthma attacks. Improper pesticide treatments for bug infestations can worsen health issue, considering that pesticide residues in homes can pose health risks.
4. Keep it Safe. - The majority of kids's injuries occur in the home. Falls are the most frequent cause of property injuries to children, followed by injuries from objects 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 exposure is often greater inside.
6. Keep it Ventilated. - Studies have shown 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 maintain sufficient temperature levels may place the security of locals at increased threat from exposure to severe heat or cold.

If you use these principles as a guide, you can maintain a safe and healthy home. If you are having an issue preserving any of these principles, other parts of this website 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 might be your obligation to repair the issue or it might be your property manager's duty to make repairs. Read your rental lease agreement. Adhere to any requirements for tidiness or security. Report any needed repair work to the proprietor as they arise. Putting your concerns in composing is finest. This develops a record of your concerns. Repairs to your rental home ought to be made in a sensible amount of time. The quantity of time may be noted in your lease.

If your landlord has not made repair work in an affordable amount of time, you might require to interact more straight, such as with extra written grievances or an in person meeting. If your property manager continues to neglect your issues, you might require to pursue legal action.

Disputes in between a proprietor and a renter are civil issues. Most property manager and tenant 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 occupants.

What are my rights as an occupant?

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

If your rental home requires an emergency repair to keep it healthy, such as a repair of the heat, gas, lights, water, sewage, pipes or air conditioning, you need to signal your proprietor right now.

If the need for repair in not an emergency situation, then 14 days is generally considered as a sensible amount of time for the property owner to make repair work. Hopefully, the majority of repairs will be made rather after a property owner is made aware. Use your regular method of reporting needs for repair such as a site, call, text message, or office check out. Put something into writing to record when you made the proprietor knowledgeable about the requirement for repair.

In some counties you can utilize some of your lease money to make these immediate repair work. If the problem was your fault, you might have to assist pay for the repair work.

You can not be required out of your rental home. You can not be forced out without notification. The proprietor can not change the locks or shut off your utilities to make you leave. The majority of the time, a property manager requires to go to court before evicting you. If you did something unsafe or threatening, the property owner only needs to give you three (3) days to vacate. If you did not pay rent or broke your lease contract, you may be provided a thirty (30) day notice to leave. If you have legal questions about housing, you should seek advice from with a lawyer or legal services.

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

If you certify based on earnings or assistance status, the Legal Aid Society might be able to assist. Bear in mind, Legal Aid has a customer waiting list and seldom will cases occur 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 help you comprehend your rights and responsibilities 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 standards. Codes can apply to residential or non-residential residential or commercial properties or both. Codes examinations can take place at any time, though they are most typical with new construction or renovation. Building Codes help to guarantee safety within a building. It is essential 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 big county or local government have codes departments. Though, numerous villages and rural locations do not have any standardized minimum residential or commercial property maintenance codes. Several codes departments throughout the state have actually adopted the International Residential or commercial property Maintenance Code. Codes inspectors may inspect electrical, pipes, gas, zoning, and other physical aspects of a home. Contact your local codes department for details specific to your area.

Often Building Codes will ask if an occupant has actually already informed their proprietor about the need for repair and offered the proprietor reasonable time to make the repair work. Afterward, Buiding Codes may carry out an evaluation. If there is an examination, make sure to ask for a copy of any notes or citations. Bear in mind that Building regulations can just visit homes where the renter has legal right to enable their check out.

What is URLTA?

Tennessee Code Annotated § 66-28 is the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. URLTA just uses in counties of higher than 75,000 population as of the 2010 U.S. Census. For these more inhabited counties, there are written requirements and defenses to rental agreements consisting of responsibilities for maintenance by the property owner to adhere to requirements of relevant structure and housing codes materially affecting healthy and safety, 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 standards for rental housing. These rules are part of Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-5502 reorganized as § 68-111 in Chapter 1200-1-2. The rules cover fundamental equipment and facilities, light and ventilation, temperature level, and sanitation.

Can I make a formal complaint?

If a rental residential or commercial property violates minimum health standards it might be unfit for habitation. According to Tennessee Code Annotated § 68-111-101, occupants whose lease is $200 or less each week might submit a grievance with their local building inspector or county public health department. Complaints require to be filed in composing with your county health department and a copy need to be forwarded by licensed mail to the landlord. A qualifying problem can lead to a home investigation. This part of the law does not apply to tenants who pay their rent monthly or for a term higher than month-to-month. For non-qualifying problems, other structure codes or regulations that the structure inspector is licensed to impose, might apply to house rented at higher rates.

What if I live in federal government assisted housing?

The federal government helps low-income households, the elderly, and the handicapped to manage good, safe, and sanitary housing in the private market. Participants discover their own housing, consisting of single-family homes, townhouses, and homes. There is an annual Housing Quality Standards (HQS) assessment procedure to make sure that homes are tidy and safe. Renters with assisted housing, such as Section 8, must start by talking with the office that issued their rental Housing Choice Voucher (HCV).

The Tennessee Housing Development Agency carries out contract administration for Section 8 property concerns in 76 counties. If the residential or commercial property owner or agent is not fulfilling their duties, TDHA may step in. For additional information, call THDA at 1-800-228-THDA (8432) throughout normal company hours or visit the THDA webpage anytime. Local public housing companies (PHAs) offer services in the other counties. A few of the local workplaces 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 regional 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 property manager 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 help with occupants in backwoods?

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

Where can I find out more about healthy housing policy?

Our Healthy Places web page offers more information about the locations we live, work and play. Click here to discover more about healthy housing policies.