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How is renting various from own a home? 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 a renter? Fact sheets for occupants and occupants 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 an official problem? What if I live in government assisted housing? Does the USDA assist with renters in rural areas? Where can I learn more about healthy housing policy? Additional resources

* * * Our Healthy Homes staff are not doctors or attorneys. The details on our Healthy Homes Website does not supply medical or legal advice. This details is not a substitute for your medical professional or for talking to a legal representative about your particular circumstance. * * *
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3 Actions a Worried Renter Should Do:

1. Put whatever in writing. Take photographs and videos. Save emails, 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 lease receipts as proof you paid.

3. Read your lease. Whatever is composed in the lease is a legal agreement. Both occupant and property owner have obligations.

It is most likely prohibited for a property owner to strike back against a renter who submits a grievance, calls Buiding Codes, or takes legal action. Changing locks, turning off energies, revealing up often, or wrongly raising rent can be retaliation.

How is leasing various from own a home?

Renting is different from own a home in that the occupant need to rely on someone else to make repairs. The occupant might not have the ability to make modifications to the home without permission. A tenant has both rights and duties. Renting can be a great choice for many individuals to preserve a healthy home environment, both inside and outdoors. Whether you rent a home, apartment or condo, duplex, mobile home or cabin you can keep the 7 healthy homes concepts. Bear in mind that great health starts in your home.

What are my duties as a renter?

Renters are accountable for cleanliness and security. You might rent with no official arrangement, or you might have a lease agreement. The most typical type of tenant in Tennessee is an occupant who signs a lease contract to pay lease each month throughout the year. Renters may be asked to supply a security deposit. Lease contracts are lawfully binding agreements. You are accountable for following the terms of your lease. Some lease agreements have addendums such as pet policies, bug control contracts or for reporting water damage. You are accountable for: paying your rent on time, paying any late costs, keeping the location tidy and safe, not letting anyone else damage it, not breaking the law, getting rid of your garbage, and following your proprietor's rules. If you break your lease, then it may end up being a legal issue.

The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance shared Tips for First-Time Renters as well as Tips on How to Spot Rental and Moving Scammers.

What can I do to keep my rental home a healthy home?

There are eight basic concepts to maintaining a healthy home.

1. Keep it Dry. - Damp homes offer a great environment for mites, roaches, rodents and molds.

1. Keep it Clean. - Clean homes help decrease pest problems and direct exposure to contaminants.
2. Keep it Pest-Free. - Exposure to mice and cockroaches might increase asthma attacks. Improper pesticide treatments for pest infestations can get worse health issues, considering that pesticide residues in homes can position health risks.
3. Keep it Safe. - Most of children's injuries happen in the home. Falls are the most regular cause of domestic injuries to kids, followed by injuries from items in the home, burns, and poisonings.
4. Keep it Contaminant-Free. - Avoid exposure to lead, radon, carbon monoxide, pesticides, asbestos and environmental tobacco smoke. Keep in mind direct exposure is often higher inside.
5. Keep it Ventilated. - Studies have actually shown increasing fresh air in a home improves breathing health.
6. Keep it Maintained. - Poorly-maintained homes are at danger of being unhealthy.
7. Keep it Thermally Controlled. - Houses that do not keep sufficient temperatures may put the security of locals at increased danger from direct exposure to extreme heat or cold.
   
   If you use these concepts as a guide, you can maintain a safe and healthy home. If you are having a problem maintaining any of these principles, other parts of this site will have information 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 duty to fix the issue or it may be your proprietor's responsibility to make repair work. Read your rental lease arrangement. Comply with any requirements for cleanliness or safety. Report any required repairs to the landlord as they develop. Putting your concerns in composing is finest. This produces a record of your issues. Repairs to your rental home must be made in an affordable amount of time. The amount of time may be noted in your lease.
   
   If your property manager has actually not made repairs in a reasonable quantity of time, you might need to interact more directly, such as with additional composed complaints or a face-to-face conference. 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 problems. Most property manager and occupant concerns are beyond the authority of the Health Department. These concerns would be ruled on by a civil court judge translating the law. There are some programs that support occupants.
   
   What are my rights as a tenant?
   
   According to the Legal Aid Society, as an occupant you can a habitable place and to live peacefully. Your rights as an occupant might differ depending on which county you reside in. The Legal Aid Society has a beneficial reality sheet to assist you understand your rights as a tenant. How to call the Legal Aid Society or the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services is noted below.
   
   If your rental home needs an emergency repair work to keep it healthy, such as a repair work of the heat, gas, lights, water, sewage, plumbing or a/c, you must signal your property manager right away.
   
   If the need for repair in not an emergency, then 2 week is usually thought about as an affordable quantity of time for the property manager to make repair work. Hopefully, the majority of repairs will be made much faster after a property manager is warned. Use your regular technique of reporting needs for repair work such as a site, telephone call, text, or workplace see. Put something into writing to document when you made the landlord conscious of the need for repair work.
   
   In some counties you can use some of your rent cash to make these instant repair work. If the issue was your fault, you may have to help spend for the repairs.
   
   You can not be dislodged of your rental home. You can not be forced out without notification. The proprietor can not alter the locks or turned off your energies to make you leave. Most of the time, a proprietor requires to go to court before evicting you. If you did something dangerous or threatening, the property owner only needs to give you three (3) days to leave. If you did not pay lease or broke your lease arrangement, you may be given a thirty (30) day see to move out. If you have legal concerns about housing, you ought to speak with a lawyer or legal services.
   
   The Tennessee Alliance for Legal Serices has a HELP4TN website, chatbot, and telephone to help people who need assistance with their legal issues. If you do not have your own attorney, this is a great site to start.
   
   If you certify based on earnings or support status, the Legal Aid Society may be able to help. Bear in mind, Legal Aid has a customer waiting list and rarely will cases take place fast. Contact the office near you to learn more.
   
   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 developed these truth sheets to assist you comprehend your rights and tasks as an occupant. Click the left image for counties of 75,000 or more population and the best 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 requirements. Codes can apply to property or non-residential residential or commercial properties or both. Codes inspections can happen at any time, though they are most typical with brand-new building and construction or renovation. Building regulations assist to guarantee safety within a building. It is essential to have buildings up to code. Landlords are responsible for meeting Codes.
   
   All city locations in Tennessee have their own codes departments to impose Residential or commercial property Maintenance Codes. Many large county or local government have codes departments. Though, numerous little towns and backwoods do not have any standardized minimum residential or commercial property maintenance codes. Several codes departments across the state have embraced the International Residential or commercial property Maintenance Code. Codes inspectors might examine electrical, pipes, gas, zoning, and other physical elements of a home. Contact your local codes department for information specific to your place.
   
   Often Building regulations will ask if a tenant has already notified their property manager about the requirement for repair and provided the proprietor reasonable time to make the repair work. Afterward, Buiding Codes may carry out an examination. If there is an assessment, make certain to request a copy of any notes or citations. Remember that Building regulations can only go to homes where the tenant has legal right to permit their go to.
   
   What is URLTA?
   
   Tennessee Code Annotated § 66-28 is the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. URLTA only uses in counties of higher than 75,000 population as of the 2010 U.S. Census. For these more populated counties, there are written requirements and securities to rental arrangements including responsibilities for maintenance by the property owner to comply with requirements of applicable building and housing codes materially impacting healthy and security, as listed in 66-28-304.( a).
   
   What are the minimum standards for rental housing?
   
   The Tennessee Department of Health is responsible for promoting rules for minimum health requirements for rental housing. These rules are part of Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-5502 rearranged as § 68-111 in Chapter 1200-1-2. The guidelines cover standard equipment and facilities, light and ventilation, temperature, and sanitation.
   
   Can I make a protest?
   
   If a rental residential or commercial property breaks minimum health requirements it may be unfit for habitation. According to Tennessee Code Annotated § 68-111-101, occupants whose lease is $200 or less per week may submit a grievance with their local structure inspector or county public health department. Complaints need to be submitted in composing with your county health department and a copy need to be forwarded by licensed mail to the landlord. A certifying problem can result in a home examination. This part of the law does not apply to renters who pay their rent regular monthly or for a term higher than regular monthly. For non-qualifying grievances, other building codes or ordinances that the structure inspector is authorized to impose, might apply to house leased at higher rates.
   
   What if I live in government assisted housing?
   
   The federal government helps low-income families, the senior, and the disabled to afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing in the personal market. Participants discover their own housing, including single-family homes, townhouses, and houses. There is an annual Housing Quality Standards (HQS) assessment treatment to ensure that homes are clean and safe. Renters with assisted housing, such as Section 8, should begin 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 domestic problems in 76 counties. If the residential or commercial property owner or agent is not satisfying their duties, TDHA might intervene. To find out more, call THDA at 1-800-228-THDA (8432) during regular organization hours or visit the THDA website anytime. Local public housing agencies (PHAs) supply 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 get assistance can contact their local U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development workplace. Many of HUD's programs have specific requirements for housing quality. If your housing is not up to requirements, then HUD may intervene to have the landlord make repair work as essential. 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 assist with occupants in rural areas?
   
   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 living in USDA-assisted rural housing you can contact your rural development local office.
   
   Where can I find out more about healthy housing policy?
   
   Our Healthy Places webpage offers more information about the places we live, work and play. Click on this link to get more information about healthy housing policies.