Legal terms, explained

The words leases, notices, and landlords use, in plain language. Each term links to the rule in every place we cover.

• Air conditioning Summer cooling is treated differently from winter heat.
• Answer (responding in court) Your written reply to an eviction case. File it on time, or the court can decide without you.
• Appealing an eviction
• Bed bugs, roaches and mice
• Changing your locks When you can change the locks, and when your landlord can.
• Charges beyond the deposit Find out if your landlord can bill you for more than your deposit.
• Code inspection You can ask the city to send an inspector to check your home for unsafe conditions.
• Complaint line A government office you can call to complain about your landlord.
• Condemned home
• Constructive eviction When your home is so bad you have to leave. The law can treat it as if your landlord evicted you.
• Court records / evidence Photos, letters, and receipts you keep as proof.
• Default judgment
• Deposit after a sale
• Deposit as last month's rent
• Deposit escrow and interest Where your landlord must keep your deposit, and whether it earns interest for you.
• Deposit penalty damages (2x/3x) Extra money a landlord must pay you for wrongly keeping your deposit. Often 2 or 3 times the deposit.
• Deposit receipt Written proof that you paid your deposit.
• Deposit return deadline How many days your landlord has to return your deposit after you move out.
• Domestic violence If you live in housing that gets federal help, federal law protects you in one more way.
• Emergency entry Your landlord can come in without notice in a real emergency, like a fire or a burst pipe.
• Ending a lease early
• Eviction court process The steps of an eviction case, from the court papers to the hearing to the day you must leave.
• Eviction record sealing An eviction case leaves a public court record. Some places let you seal it, so future landlords cannot see it.
• Fair housing (discrimination) Laws that say a landlord cannot treat you worse because of your race, your family, a disability, and more.
• Federal housing assistance Extra protections if you live in public housing, use a voucher, or get other federal rent help.
• Fees you do not get back Ask whether any move-in fees are nonrefundable (money you will not get back).
• Filing a discrimination complaint
• Fire or flood
• Free lawyer in eviction court
• Grace period The days after the due date when your rent is not late yet.
• Harassment
• Heat and hot water
• Help lines Free phone lines that help renters, like 211 or a city tenant hotline.
• Help paying energy bills The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) helps pay heating and cooling bills and can help in an energy crisis.
• Holding deposit
• HUD housing counseling Free or low cost advice from a housing counselor approved by the federal government.
• Illegal lockout When a landlord locks you out or shuts off your utilities (water, electric, gas) to force you out. It is against the law.
• Inspection before move-out Ask your landlord to check the home with you before you move out.
• Itemized deduction statement The written list of what was taken out of your deposit, and why.
• Just cause to make you leave
• Landlord did not pay the utility bill
• Landlord must look for a new renter
• Landlord refuses rent
• Late fees How much a landlord can charge when rent is late, and when the fee starts.
• Lead paint Lead paint has its own federal rule, and it applies everywhere in the country.
• Legal aid Free lawyers and legal aid for renters who qualify.
• Mediation A neutral person helps you and your landlord reach a deal, instead of a judge deciding.
• Move-in condition report Make a record of the home's condition on the day you move in.
• New address for the deposit Give your landlord your new address in writing.
• New fees during a lease
• No increase during a lease term During a fixed lease term, your rent cannot go up unless you agree.
• No self-help eviction (court required) Only a court can make you leave your home. Your landlord cannot do it alone.
• Notice of entry How much warning your landlord must give before coming in.
• Notice to end a month-to-month lease
• Notice to quit A letter saying you must move out by a set date. It is not an eviction. The court case comes after.
• Partial payments What happens when you pay part of the rent.
• Pay and stay (redemption) Paying everything you owe to stop the eviction and keep your home. Many places allow it up to a deadline.
• Pay or quit notice The written warning before an eviction for late rent. It gives you a set number of days to pay or move.
• Penalties for illegal entry What your landlord must pay you for coming in without the right to.
• Quiet enjoyment Your right to live in your home in peace, without your landlord bothering you.
• Raising the deposit
• Reasonable accommodation The federal Fair Housing Act protects you if you have a disability.
• Rent control / rent stabilization Laws that limit how much your rent can go up each year.
• Rent debt collection What happens to rent you still owe after you move out. A debt collector may contact you, and it can show on your credit.
• Rent help programs Programs that help pay your rent when you cannot.
• Rent increase notice How much written warning your landlord must give before raising your rent.
• Rent receipts Pay rent in a way that leaves a record, and ask for a receipt.
• Rent share when income drops
• Rent withholding Not paying rent until your landlord fixes a serious problem. Allowed only in some places, with rules.
• Repair and deduct Paying for a repair yourself and taking the cost out of your rent. Allowed only in some places, with rules.
• Repair requests in writing Asking for repairs in writing, so there is proof of when you asked.
• Retaliation When a landlord punishes you for standing up for your rights. The law does not allow it.
• Right of entry (allowed reasons) The reasons your landlord is allowed to come in, like repairs or showing the home.
• Saying no to entry Do not refuse a legal entry.
• Security deposit cap The most a landlord can charge as a security deposit.
• Small claims court A low cost court for money disputes. You do not need a lawyer.
• Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms Test every smoke alarm and carbon monoxide (a poison gas with no smell) alarm.
• Things left behind Take everything you want to keep.
• Time to move after losing
• Utility shutoff protection Limits on when a utility company can shut off your water, electric, or gas. Extra protection in very hot or cold weather.
• Warranty of habitability Your landlord's duty to keep your home safe and fit to live in.