Rules on Notifying Tenants of Bedbugs

State laws determine what landlords have to do if their rental properties have bedbug infestations. However, not all states have laws that specifically address the issue of bedbugs. As such, standards vary across the country, and you should consult your state's housing authority on whether you are legally required to notify tenants of bedbugs.

Disclosure

Depending on your state, you may or may not have to reveal whether there are bedbugs in your rental unit to tenants. Generally, if a tenant asks about a bedbug problem, you have to answer truthfully because lying could give your tenant legal grounds for breaking the lease. You can't hold him responsible for any portion of the rent from his remaining lease term, and you may have to pay damages if he brings the matter to court.

Renting

If the tenant does not ask you anything about bedbugs, you may or may not have to disclose infestation problems in the unit. If you remain silent and a tenant discovers the problem, he may report you to the housing authority and the result of an investigation varies on a case-by-case basis if your state laws don't address the issue of bedbugs. Some states, such as New York and Maine, don't allow you to rent units that you know to be infested by bedbugs.

Bedbug History

Some states require you to notify your tenants even if you have solved the bedbug problem and even if the bedbug problem is in other units in the building. In New York City, you have to give new residential tenants one-year bedbug infestation history of your rental unit. In Maine, you have to tell your tenants the last date that your rental unit or adjacent units passed a bedbug infestation inspection.

Bedbugs in Adjacent Units

Bedbugs spread from one unit to another in the same building. As such, problems in an adjacent unit can affect the tenants in your rental unit. Some states, such as Maine, require you to tell your tenants if the adjacent units are currently infested with bedbugs or being treated for bedbugs.

Control

Whether you notify tenants of bedbug problems, they are likely to eventually discover them. Even if your state laws don't specifically address bedbugs, you may have to handle bedbug treatment costs. If you don't make a sincere attempt to eradicate bedbugs, your tenants may break their lease, deeming that your rental unit has become uninhabitable. Your tenants may also file a lawsuit against you.

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  Bed Bugs & Landlord Liability Laws eHow

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  Landlord-Tenant Handbook: Other Important Laws

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  Bed Bugs - Information for Home Owners & Tenants

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  Information for Home Owners & Tenants. Bed bugs can enter homes by latching onto used furniture, luggage and clothing, and by traveling along connecting pipes and wiring.

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  Arizona Joins 3 Other States with Bed Bug Laws

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  Tweet Arizona, joins Maine, Illinois, and New York as the first states to have enacted substantive bed bug related legislation. Governor Jan Brewer signed into law ...

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