Most people think of housing for college students in the context of on-campus dormitories. However, many students elect to live in off-campus apartments. This is especially common for students of institutions located in urban areas like Boston. While living off-campus has many benefits, it also raises several legal issues in student housing that college students should be aware of before they or their parents sign an apartment lease.
To ensure that their legal interests are properly represented, college students and their parents should consult with the experienced student housing lawyers at Boston’s Calabrese Law Associates before they sign a Massachusetts apartment lease. However, if you have already signed a lease for a room or apartment in Massachusetts and a dispute has arisen with your landlord or college roommates, our firm’s skilled Boston student housing lawyers can step in to represent you and protect your legal rights.
Table of Contents:
- Student Housing Rights in Massachusetts
- Quiet Enjoyment of Apartments
- Massachusetts Habitability Laws for Apartments
- Tenant Rights for Students
- Landlord Obligations
- Common Student Housing Disputes
- Retaliation of Campus Housing Disputes
- Available Remedies for College Housing Disputes
- Contact Student Housing Disputes Attorneys
Student Housing Rights in Massachusetts
The nature of a student’s living arrangements will affect his or her legal rights. If the student’s legal right is only to occupy a single room or a small number of rooms, while the property itself remains in another person’s possession, the student is a lodger. An agreement that gives the student the right to use and occupy the entire property makes the student a tenant. A lodger has only a contractual right to occupy his room, while a tenant has a property right in the premises.
Certain rights, however, are enumerated by law and are therefore implied to exist in every residential Massachusetts apartment lease. These rights include the following:
Quiet Enjoyment of Apartments in the Greater Boston Area
Student tenants, like any other residential housing tenant in Boston and Massachusetts, are entitled to the quiet enjoyment of their apartment, without interference from the landlord or any other person. If the landlord commits any sort of interference, either through direct or indirect action, the landlord is liable to the tenant for the greater of damages that resulted or three months’ rent. The student housing attorneys at Boston’s Calabrese Law Associates can further explain the details during a free phone consultation.
This right pertains to acts or omissions that affect a leased premises’ value or character. The landlord’s intent is irrelevant to the question of whether this right has been breached – only his conduct matters. To prove a breach of the implied covenant and the statute, the complaint must also demonstrate that the landlord had notice of the interference and acted at least negligently in failing to remedy the situation. Liability may attach for failure to address actions by third parties if serious interference was a reasonably foreseeable consequence of the landlord’s action or inaction.
Here are a few examples of what might constitute a breach of the implied covenant of quiet enjoyment in Massachusetts that you may need to discuss with a student housing court lawyer in Boston:
- Excessive noise, if not mitigated over a long period of time.
- Failure to take action to prevent or reduce drug use by non-tenants on the premises.
- Presence of materials that severely impede access to premises.
- Upon receiving notice, repeated failure to repair defects to the extent that the premises’ value as a home is significantly impaired.
- Unauthorized entry into leased premises by the landlord without providing prior written notice. Such entry may also expose the entrant to liability for trespass because the tenant has exclusive possession of the premises for the duration of the lease.
Massachusetts Habitability Laws for Apartments
By offering the premises for rent, the landlord is making an implied warranty that the premises are safe for habitation. This is an absolute right that our firm’s student housing dispute lawyers in Boston and Burlington, Massachusetts can give you more insight into.
Habitability includes providing access to utilities, such as electricity or heat, and other services that are enumerated in the lease. The Massachusetts Sanitary Code lays out additional minimum standards for habitation, and the failure of a landlord to meet these minimum habitability standards is illegal.
These student housing regulations have a very wide scope and explicitly state that a person should not occupy as an owner or let to another person for occupancy in any dwelling unit or rooming unit for the purpose of sleeping, living, eating, or cooking therein in a way that is not compliant with the requirements set by 105 CMR 410.000. The landlord’s duty to maintain such minimal standards cannot be delegated.
Common breaches of the implied warranty of habitability in apartments located in Boston and throughout Massachusetts include:
- Broken windows and screens
- Leaks in the roof or ceiling
- Rodent or insect infestation
- Lack of heat or electricity
- The presence of mold
Any of the above problems should be reported to the proper governmental agency and remedied as soon as possible since these conditions pose significant health and safety hazards. College students and their parents should also contact our firm’s experienced Boston-based student housing lawyers as soon as possible because the student tenant may be entitled to withhold rent or receive a rent reimbursement for the time period the landlord violated the Massachusetts apartment habitability laws.
Tenant Rights for Students
Once a student tenant informs the landlord of an unsafe condition within their apartment, the landlord is obligated to repair it. If a defect renders the apartment uninhabitable, such as no heat or broken windows, the student tenant is entitled to withhold payment of rent until the defect is remedied, as our firm’s student housing court attorneys in Boston and Burlington, Massachusetts will advise you. The amount withheld is generally the difference between the amount of the rent and the fair market value of the premises in its present condition.
Claiming a withholding is generally used as a defense to a summary process action or eviction action brought by the landlord. To be entitled to withholding, the tenant must demonstrate that he has notified the landlord and that the premises were inspected by the local board of health or the commissioner of housing inspection in Boston.
Landlord Obligations
Landlords are required to avoid infringing on the rights of tenants. However, this does not necessarily mean that landlords must address every demand made by the tenants. It only requires that the landlord maintain the premises so that they are habitable and capable of being used for their intended purpose — a student housing apartment.
This means that if a real issue or violation of law is brought to the landlord’s attention, they must act to remedy it. Solving the problem may require more than some repairs. In some cases, it may require the eviction of another roommate, such as where one roommate is smoking in a non-smoking apartment and the remaining roommates wish to live in a smoke-free environment. You can ask one of our student housing dispute attorneys in Boston and Burlington, Massachusetts to provide you more information on what this might mean for you.
Common Student Housing Disputes
Renting an apartment is a common occurrence in Massachusetts. The process is fairly routine, and tenants’ rights create reciprocal obligations on the landlord. However, despite this, there are many potential pitfalls that tenants should keep in mind before they move into a potential apartment.
1. The Lease
Before moving in, student tenants and their parents should make sure they receive a written lease. If there is an oral agreement to execute a lease, the landlord must provide a signed written lease to the tenant within 30 days of the agreement — this requirement cannot be waived. Among other things, a lease cannot:
- Waive the notice requirements.
- Impose late fees less than 30 days of nonpayment of rent.
- Waive the landlord’s liability for preexisting violations of the Massachusetts Building Code in the common areas of the building.
- Waive the implied covenant of quiet enjoyment, the implied warranty of habitability, or the requirements of M.G.L. c. 186 § 14.
- Waive the requirements of M.G.L. c. 186 §§ 23-27 and M.G.L. c. 186 § 28.
Once a copy of the lease is made available, you should carefully read the lease to make sure it is compliant with state law. The student housing lawyers at Calabrese Law Associates help college students and their parents understand lease provisions and negotiate a lease with favorable terms. Please reach out to our team for student housing contract advice.
2. Initial Payments
Landlords often require tenants for student housing to make an initial payment as part of securing the apartment. The lease can only require the following initial payments:
- Rent for your full first month living in the apartment
- Rent for your full final month living in the apartment, which is calculated at the same rate as your first month
- Security deposit equal to your first month of rent, as long as your security deposit is deposited and that you are given the statement of condition as mandated
- The costs for purchasing and installing of a key and lock
This statute does not apply to any broker’s fee that may be applied, as it is not levied by the landlord. Additional requirements exist that apply only to the last month’s rent and the security deposit:
- Last month’s rent: A landlord who requests advance payment of the last month’s rent must give the tenant a receipt indicating that it has received the payment and placed it into an interest-bearing bank account. The tenant is entitled to interest on the last month’s rent, which should be paid annually or within 30 days of termination of the tenancy. Failure to pay the interest within the 30-day period after termination or the end of the year is entitled to damages of three times the amount of interest due.
- Security deposit: Like the last month’s rent, the landlord must give tenants a receipt stating that it has received the security deposit. Within 30 days of receiving the deposit, tenants must be given a receipt stating the location of the bank in which the deposit was placed, the size of the deposit, the account number, and the amount of interest that is payable. Failure to do so entitles the tenant to the deposit’s immediate return. The interest rules that apply to the security deposit are the same as those applicable to the last month’s rent.
The deposit should be returned to a tenant within 30 days of a tenancy’s termination. This generally means the entire deposit should be returned, but the landlord may retain a portion of the deposit to cover unpaid rent or water charges, unpaid increase in real estate tax obligations, and a reasonable amount necessary to repair damage caused by the tenant or any person on the premises with the tenant’s consent. In the event damage is present, the tenant must receive a sworn itemized list of the damages and written evidence thereof, such as invoices and bills, within 30 days of termination.
Landlords can forfeit their right to retain the security deposit or counterclaim for damage to the premises in a tenant’s action to recover the deposit under several circumstances. Issues with the security deposit are very common and are easy to overlook. Consulting with one of our student housing lawyers in Boston and Burlington, Massachusetts can help clear up any questions you have.
3. Condition of Apartment
Residential property landlords, including those who rent student housing, must produce a written statement of the premises’ condition upon receiving the security deposit or within 10 days of the tenancy’s commencement. This statement should describe any preexisting damage, including Sanitary Code violations. If the landlord decides to repair the preexisting damage after a tenant vacates the premises, the security deposit cannot be applied towards those repairs.
The tenant may conduct his own inspection and produce a list of what he believes are preexisting conditions at the premises. This list should be submitted to the landlord, who must then produce a copy with either a signed agreement or a statement of disagreement attached within 15 days of receiving it.
4. Rodents and Pests
The presence of rodents and other vermin in a unit is a violation of the Massachusetts Sanitary Code. The Sanitary Code requires landlords to keep the premises free of infestation. The standard varies, depending on whether the unit is a “rooming unit” or a “dwelling unit.”
Regardless of whether the premises constitute a rooming unit or a dwelling unit, an infestation is a breach of the implied warranty of habitability. You should immediately report an infestation to your landlord. You must receive notice of a scheduled extermination or other application of pesticides at least 48 hours prior to its occurrence.
5. Noise
Many buildings have quiet hours or instructions that noise should be kept to a minimum during certain times of the day. This is very common in condominiums. Excessive noise, if not remedied upon reasonable notice, is a breach of the implied covenant of quiet enjoyment. For students, noise is a critical issue because they need to study and prepare for exams.
Student tenants also have the ability to terminate their lease. For example, a victim of domestic violence or a similar offense may terminate upon written notice to the landlord within three months of the incident. If taking this path, be certain to have proof of its occurrence, as the landlord may request evidence. The victim’s release from the lease will have no effect on any other tenant of the premises.
Retaliation of Campus Housing Disputes
Many landlords want their tenants to keep quiet and pay their rent. They do not want to find out that one of their tenants is making repair requests or attempting to organize the other tenants against them. When these situations occur, a landlord may act in retaliation.
Some will attempt to retaliate by terminating the tenancy or otherwise punishing the tenant. This is illegal, and state law stipulates any notice of termination received within six months after a tenant takes such steps is presumed to be a reprisal by the landlord. This statute cannot be waived.
While a landlord can raise your rent or terminate your tenancy without reason, he or she cannot legally do so because you exercised your rights. If you believe the actions taken against you are in retaliation, you may be able to take legal action against your landlord.
Available Remedies for College Housing Disputes
If you discover a problem that is not being addressed, you are not powerless. The student housing lawyers at Boston’s Calabrese Law Associates can help. Any issue related to the implied warranty of habitability or the implied covenant of quiet enjoyment constitutes a violation of M.G.L. c. 186 § 14. Such a violation also constitutes an unfair or deceptive practice under Chapter 93A, entitling you to double or treble damages. If the defect is significant enough, you have the right to withhold a portion of the rent until it is remedied. You may demand that the landlord solve these problems.
Similarly, you are entitled to interest on your security deposit. It should be held in an interest-bearing account, and you should be paid interest on the deposit. You may demand payment of that interest. You should receive interest on your security deposit on the anniversary date of your payment, and the interest rate should be 5% per year or the rate of the escrow account at the bank.
You are also entitled to the return of your deposit and to know why any portion of it was withheld. As noted supra, the failure to put the deposit into a proper account is grounds for its immediate return.
Finally, you may fight any effort to evict you if an action is brought in court. This is a summary process action, and you may raise counterclaims against the landlord in response to the complaint.
Contact the Student Housing Dispute Attorneys at Calabrese Law Associates
At Calabrese Law Associates, we put our client’s interests first to help them achieve their legal goals. When you choose to partner with us, you will work with lawyers who represent the best of the legal profession and who provide high-quality legal services.
If you have a question about a potential student housing dispute in Boston or elsewhere in Massachusetts or if you are wondering if your rights are being affected, we encourage you to contact our office. It is important to address a housing issue right away in order to prevent further complications, such as eviction from student housing. To contact our office, simply call us at 617-340-6623 or fill out our client intake form, and one of the firm’s student housing attorneys will get in touch with you within one business day.
While Calabrese Law Associates does offer legal help for landlord-tenant disputes, it is extremely rare that we take on these cases. Only about 1% of tenant-related cases and 10% of landlord-related cases will be considered by our law firm.
*This publication and its contents are not to be construed as legal advice nor a recommendation to you as to how to proceed. Please consult with a local licensed attorney directly before taking any action that could have legal consequences. This publication and its content do not create an attorney-client relationship and are being provided for general informational purposes only.
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