Why would a landlord have to make disclosures?
Federal, state, and local laws require landlords to make certain disclosures to tenants at or before lease signing and tenant move-in. Mandatory disclosures help protect the tenant’s legal rights and provide health and safety measures under environmental protections and housing code standards.
Mandatory disclosures of important landlord-tenant laws and landlord rental policies help the tenant understand his legal rights, his legal obligations, and the terms and conditions of the lease agreement for tenancy. Compliance with required disclosures can help protect the landlord in defending against tenant claims alleging injury, damage or harm due to landlord negligence.
Landlord disclosures must usually be provided in writing. Most often disclosures are incorporated into the lease agreement or provided as a separate disclosure document attached to the lease, preferably with cross-references between the documents.
The consequences to landlords who fail to make required disclosures may vary by state and jurisdiction as well as by subject matter. While some statutes may have landlord penalty provisions written within the statute, some statutes may not address the issue and follow general rules of law, such as small claims court for damages suffered as a result of a landlord’s failure to disclose. Consequences for a landlord’s failure to disclose required information can be monetary penalties such as a specified preset amount or actual damages.
Landlord failure to comply with required federal disclosures such as lead-based paint and/or lead-based paint hazards could result in possible civil penalties for willful and continuing noncompliance; court awarded actual damages to an injured tenant; or criminal fines assessed