Indiana Tenant Information

Indiana Tenant Information – Renters Rights

 

When deciding to rent, make sure you understand your responsibilities and rights as an apartment tenant.

A lease is a written agreement between you and your landlord. Read the lease carefully before signing; if any point appears unclear, discuss it with the landlord. The lease should tell you how much your rent will be and for what period of time your contract is active. It also tells what services your landlord provides, such as those related to painting and repairs. If this information is not provided, ask your landlord to state on the lease how repairs and other maintenance concerns will be handled.

It is a good idea to keep a copy of the signed lease in a safe place until you have moved from the apartment.

A security deposit is usually required to offset the landlord’s cost of repairing any property damage you cause. Before you sign the lease and move in, find out what is covered by your deposit and what conditions there are for a refund.

 

Tenants Defending an Eviction Forms

Download How to answer an eviction forms in each state.

Tenant Defence Forms

 

 

If your landlord deducts any damages when you move out, ask him for an itemized list of the damages he deducted, including the amount and reason. Compare his list to the list you wrote down before you moved in. Let your landlord know immediately if there are items you disagree with. If you don’t, you may lose your rights to contest the damages, also losing some or all of your deposit

Under certain circumstances, a landlord may have the right to require the tenant to move with very little notice. Reasons may include disputes with other tenants or failure to pay rent. However, a landlord may not evict a tenant for reporting housing code violations, for joining or establishing a tenant’s “union” or similar organization, or for asserting other tenant rights.

Know your tenant rights. Rental agreements are generally not permitted by local laws to include:

• a waiver of the landlord’s responsibility for injury caused by his or her actions;

• a claim that the tenant must pay the landlord’s legal fees and court cost in the event of a trial;

• a waiver of the tenant’s rights to the full application of all local housing codes;

 

 

INDIANA

http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/states/indiana/renting/tenantrights

Statute Link:

The Indiana Code-Landlord Tenant
http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code/title32/ar31/
Other Links:

Landlord/Tenant Law-Monroe County–Indiana U
http://www.indiana.edu/~sls/landlord tenant.html

Indiana Civil Rights Division
Indiana Government Center North
100 N. Senate Ave., Rm N-103
Indianapolis, IN 46204-2773
(317) 232-2600
slj@crc.state.in.us

AG’s Consumer Protection
1-800-382-5516
http://www.in.gov/attorneygeneral/consumer/filecomplaint.html

 

Other links:

Attorney General
http://www.ag.state.il.us

The Tenant Union at Champaign-Urbana
www.tenantunion.uiuc.edu

Metropolitan Tenants Organization
The Home of Chicago Tenants Rights on the Web
http://www.tenants-rights.org/

 

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