Can a landlord raise rent because of another person moving in ?

Question

I have a friend who's landlord is threatening to raise the rent because of my staying there over night occasionally. The landlord feels that I could eventually move in. Which I have NO plans of doing. Is this legal?

Answer 1

Yes. He rented the apartment to your FRIEND, not you and your friend. When you are there you consume water etc, which the landlord probably pays for. He has every right to raise the rent.

Answer 2

The landlord can not raise rent for an occasional overnight guest, but when it starts to look like your there more than you aren't then he can.I am a landlord and I've done it, when my tenant's sister would be here for a day or two and that turned into 4 or 5. Perfectly legal.

Answer 3

I'm a former practicing attorney.

You don't mention whether your friend has a written lease. With a lease, the rental terms specified in writing up front will govern whether or not- and under what conditions- a change in the rental amount can be made during the lease term. Occasional overnight guests would ordinarily not be mentioned as a reason for a rent raise, so the landlord would have to point to some other clause in the lease as the reason for doing so, and usually the terms are fairly restrictive toward rent raises.

But if there's no written lease, the tenancy will fall under the common law of your state/local area along with any housing codes that apply. This means among other things that the landlord may have more freedom to determine the conditions under which the property is rented- it just depends whether your laws are friendlier toward landlords or toward tenants. For example in my city it is illegal to refuse to rent to someone because they have children. Check your local housing code to be sure. But remember that without a lease, the landlord can always raise the rent more quickly as long as he/she is doing it for an otherwise legal reason.

Answer 4

I don't thin so....your friend is allowed to have guests who stay overnight.  It is referred to as" right to quiet enjoyment".  I suggest that your friend sit down with the landlord and see what the real problem is.   As long as you are not spending more than 90% of your time in your friends apartment there shouldn't be an issue.

Answer 5

First your friend needs to read the lease, to see what it says about quest and frequency,  

Answer 6

No, not without doing a new lease.  Your friend should continue to pay the regular rent amount by check or money order (to show proof it was paid) and if the landlord tries to take it to court the judge would throw it out.