With the first day of Summer this past June 21 ushering in a heat wave of stifling, muggy temperatures across the country, there’s a sweltering of another kind nationwide that has citizens rather steamed.
‘Mugged,’ if you will.
It’s their perception of the violation of the Fourth Amendment by city officials who would – without “any warrant to be judicially sanctioned and supported by probable cause” – enter any and all rental properties for inspections.
“Unreasonable searches,” complain the citizens.
‘For purposes of safety,’ claims the city.
‘The Bill of Rights has been wronged,’ increasingly rule the courts.
As Lakewood, WA prepares to roll out its own version of the Rental Housing Safety Program – and tsunami-like roll over a resistant populace in the process – it’s perhaps instructive to witness the efforts of tenants and landlords across the country seeking legal higher ground.
Wary are the landlords of city leaders in Sanford, Maine, for example, where ostensibly a proposal to license and inspect rental housing is “to ensure the safety of tenants.”
Or so they say, per the June 22 article by Tammy Wells, Senior Staff Writer for the “Journal Tribune.”
However, attracting business investment to the city – a city frequented by campers found along the lakes of Sanford’s many wooded shorelines – appears more indicative of the intrusive program’s true purpose.
As much said Sanford’s Community Development Director Ian Houseal:
“Buildings that meet codes lead to greater housing and job market confidence, sustainable business practices and greater investment in Sandford’s workforce and housing market.”
Except then as the official declaration – more like a literal foot in the door – Sanford seems to make short shrift of safety in favor of the real goal of bolstering the economy.
Not surprisingly but ironically on this first day of Summer was this rather heated caption for the photo of a policeman – hand on his holster – as he enters a home featured in the June 21 edition of “The Columbia Heart Beat”:
“A nation fed up with expensive, expansive city intrusions.”
The article accompanying the photo that addresses a possible class action in Columbia, Missouri “for all rental inspections performed without judicially-approved search warrants since the law was passed in 1978” is just the latest in a litany of litigations exposing the dirty laundry of municipalities muscling landlords out of their way – if not out of business.
Lest laundering landlords be labeled licentious, consider the verdict rendered by the Justices when in 2015 a Federal Court in Ohio ruled that rental property inspections and licensing fees – “indiscriminate and warrantless government inspections of rental properties,” and “unlawfully-extracted ‘rental inspection fees’’ – were unconstitutional:
“The physical entry of the home is the chief evil against which the wording of the Fourth Amendment is directed.”
But that’s not the half of it. More like a tenth of it as the piece by “Heart Beat Staff” highlights – or lowlights, depending on which side of the threshold of the rental being inspected you’re on – no less than nine other cases where cities have been or are being hauled into court only to be thrown out or soon to be thrown out on their collective posteriors for circumventing clearly written law not to mention harassing law abiding, conscientious, hardworking property owners.
One creative solution realized by one of those aforementioned ‘conscientious objectors’ to the onerous and intrusive rental inspection program was, rather than change the law, to force the resignation of the rental home inspector and issue recall petitions for Council members.
A similar opportunity exists for those soon forced to oblige entry for Lakewood approved inspectors when they come knocking: a vote.
Four of the seven city councilmembers who approved the Rental Housing Safety Program are up for election this November.
David… name one renter who has complained about housing safety.
I can come up with5 in a complex in Tillicum. Unless you do not consider a non working stove, cockroaches, and bedbugs a safety issue. That’s for starters.
I can come up with5 in a complex in Tillicum. Unless you do not consider a non working stove, cockroaches, and bedbugs a safety issue. That’s for starters.
For any renters who read these stories and are experiencing sub-standard housing that you feel is a health or safety problem, there is no need to wait for city inspectors to go through your home. The tools to resolve these problems are available for you right now.
http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/overview-landlord-tenant-laws-washington.html has an excellent, plain English description of the state laws that protect you. It even tells you when you can legally withhold rent to pay for repairs if the landlord refuses to. Your local public library also has publications available with this same information.
What is disappointing is that the elected leaders of Lakewood don’t put any effort into making this information easily available to citizens. If you search through the city’s website, you will find a short reference at the very bottom of the “Building Division” page that states “NOTE: The City of Lakewood has no direct authority in regard to dealing with tenant/landlord issues. The pamphlet below is intended to provide general information only.”
Here is a link to that page:
https://www.cityoflakewood.us/community-development/building-and-safety?highlight=WyJsYW5kbG9yZCIsImxhbmRsb3JkJ3MiLCJ0ZW5hbnQiLCJ0ZW5hbnQncyIsInJpZ2h0cyIsImxhbmRsb3JkIHRlbmFudCIsImxhbmRsb3JkIHRlbmFudCByaWdodHMiLCJ0ZW5hbnQgcmlnaHRzIl0=
Good info!
Landlord Tenant act has no teeth thru Attorney General as they understaffed and overwhelmed or so I am told. But it is good info to know. The thing is, many renters feel intimidated to even talk to the state. I have worked with some, given them the tools and there is rarely any follow thru. Perhaps it is too cumbersome and they hear the word “lawyer” and freak. I think that they believe the devil you know is better than the one you don’t. Still, I keep trying to educate!
There is no reason to report it to the state and it would not even need to involve state Landlord/Tenant laws.
As in most cities (including Lakewood), if a tenant has substandard housing, the quickest and easiest way to get it fixed, if the landlord won’t, is to just report it to the city inspection line (or web page).
The response will be within a few days and it will be fixed. The city has the power already. There is no reason for the RIP program. RIP is just redundancy with a large personal privacy and tax dollar cost.
Agree! It can be resolved rather easily.
A thousand years ago, I was privileged to work with the first Viet Nam Veterans Outreach Program. One of their principal Outreach Workers when asked his opinion on any subject would reply: I tend to look at this subject like this, ( He would then upend his person and look towards the speaker).
While I appreciate wholeheartedly that there is even a discussion regarding the subject of RIP, , I wish there were more realistic avenues for the more common folk to influence this proposed program.
While there are a great number of responsible landlords and tenants in the City of Lakewood, there are as many if not more “slum lords” and disenfranchised renters .
And here’s the deal – Those disenfranchised, and/or intimidated renters, are mostly also voters. They just don’t know yet about that power they potentially posses
I can’t help but think that if more emphasis was put on the “articles” in a way that the “common” folk could readily understand – there would be a huge benefit to the community.
In the meantime, I love the comments. It makes getting up in the morning worth while..
I’ve been a landlord for about 25 years and while most tenants and landlords are not familiar with the more rare and extreme aspects of landlord-tenant law, I don’t believe that they are disenfranchised or unable to learn it. Most people never get evicted. Most people never have to use the lanlord-tenant law to resolve problems.
For some reason, tenants tend to get diminished by others about their knowledge and intellect. Renters are not second class citizens ranking below homeowners. There is nothing wrong with renting a home. Every time I pay for a significant repair or upgrade to my house, I often wish I was renting.
Stating that there are as many, if not more, slumlords as responsible landlords is completely without basis in fact and is a very unfair accusation.
We have some of the most fairly written state civil laws that protect both landlords and tenants. In my experience, problem tenants and landlords make up a very small percentage. While we do not yet know the true motives behind this RIP program, it most certainly is not to protect tenants.
“…While we do not yet know the true motives behind this RIP program…”
Tell me… what are the motives behind your opposition?
Fair question. My motive is the avoidance of government overreach, especially when it violates one of the most basic founding principles of our nation, the right of people to be secure in their houses against unreasonable searches.
If the RIP motive was simply safety, there are so many easier, faster, cheaper and safer methods of accomplishing it. Sadly, all options were already dismissed and the decision made before the public hearing. The city then selectively edited a small portion of a TV news report to remove the part that highlighted these methods, which only served to cast a shadow of deceit on their motives.
Tenants will be the ultimate victim in this program. If the city decides, subjectively, that some major upgrade or repair must be made, even if the tenant and landlord disagree, the property owner must comply or be subject to the full power of government enforcement. All of that cost will ultimately be passed on to the tenant.
If a tenant decides that their home is fine and does not need a city inspectors coming in and looking around, the landlord will be compelled to enforce remedies in the landlord-tenant act against him/her, which could result in a termination of tenancy or financial penalties.
For landlords and tenants who have low income, the results could be much harsher.
Rental Housing Safety Program Lets Go!
LETS GO RHSP LETS GO! LETS GO RHSP LETS GO!
COME ON CITY COUNCIL LETS GO AND GET THIS STARTED!
SLUMLORDS LOVE MOLD OH NO! SLUMLORDS LOVE MOLD OH NO!
LETS GO RHSP LETS GO! LETS GO RHSP LETS GO!
US RENTERS (MANY MORE THAN SLUMLORDS) CHEER YOU ON!
DON’T LISTEN TO THE SLUMLORD FEW!!!
WE ARE CHEERING YOU ON LAKEWOOD CITY COUNCIL! LETS GO AND FINE THE SLUMLORDS NOW!