Do You Need A Landlord-Tenant Lawyer:
The answer
should be is "Yes," unfortunately too often it is "No."
I say that only because we see many people, both landlords and tenants, who represent
themselves. Some do an adequate job and some do not. I personally think that is
is unrealistic to expect someone who is not trained in law to be an effective
advocate. Not to mention the obvious problem that you are personally
involved in the matter.
You are probably
wondering, if this is true, then why do they do it? The answer is simple; money.
Most of the time tenants are short of funds and so they represent themselves. At
least I can understand that if it is a choice between feeding your kids and
hiring a lawyer, they chose feeding their children. Many of these people wish
they could do both, but they know that they can't. They do the best they can and
we hope that everything works out for them. Although realistically it probably
won't.
Landlords are an
entirely different matter altogether. Most landlords who represent themselves
either don't want to spend the money or were previously burned by an
inexperienced attorney. I have also seen some landlords who are rather
proficient at the process, as long as it doesn't get too complicated. For some
reason, these people also seem to run a tight ship and don't have too many problems with
habitability defense issues.
Whether you are a Landlord or a
Tenant, an experienced attorney can help you understand your respective rights
and your respective responsibilities. As with all conflicts, we all tend to lose
our prospective. An experienced Landlord-Tenant Attorney can help allow you to
understand the other persons position. We can also advise you as to a particular
course of action, before you do something you shouldn't. In the long run this
will save you money.
Your job is
managing your property and you shouldn't have to try and keep current with
landlord-tenant law. Nor should you have to be sure that the forms you are using
are current. However, if you chose to represent yourself that is exactly what
you are doing.
Take the
issue of the forms. The judicial council changes these forms twice a year. If
you use the wrong form you have to start over. This year the 3-day notice forms
are changed and as of July 2002, the Complaint for for Unlawful Detainer has
been changed. If you use the wrong form, you have to start over by reserving the
notice. If you don't catch the error until trial, you could find yourself in
real trouble. You might find out that you are unable to kick the tenant out or
collect the rent. This is not a profitable way to be a landlord.
Especially when we can review your rental
agreement, leases and any notice that you may have received or want to send for
content, legality and at a reasonable cost. We can discuss strategy options that you should consider.
It's not just going to court, it is also about how to stay out of Court. Give us
a call if you would like to discuss it further. You will be glad you did.
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