Title: FAQ -- Landlord Responsibilities: Criminal Activities - FindLaw
Headings: FAQ -- Landlord Responsibilities: Criminal Activities
FAQ -- Landlord Responsibilities: Criminal Activities
What responsibilities does a landlord have for tenants' safety and security?
Are there ways that a landlord can limit their responsibility for the criminal acts of non-tenants?
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Can landlords face legal trouble for tenants that deal drugs on the rental property?
Are there ways that a landlord can limit their responsibility for a tenant's criminal conduct?
Get Legal Help With a Landlord's Responsibilities Regarding Criminal Activity

Content: This protection responsibility may impose a legal duty on the landlord to take steps to protect their tenants from thieves, assailants, and other tenants. In addition to this responsibility to the tenants, landlords may also be partially responsible for protecting the surrounding community from their tenants' criminal acts. For example, some states have laws that impose liability on landlords for renting property to drug dealers. There are also rules that punish landlords for not seeking eviction if a renter is doing something illegal. In increasing numbers, landlords are being brought to court by tenants that have been injured by criminals while in their rental properties. Settlements from these cases often reach into the millions of dollars, especially when a similar assault or crime occurred on the same rental property in the past. Are there ways that a landlord can limit their responsibility for the criminal acts of non-tenants? Yes, there are steps that a landlord can take that will not only lessen the chances of a crime being committed on the rental property but will also lessen the landlord's chance of being held liable for a crime being committed against their tenants. Thank you for subscribing! FindLaw Newsletters
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