Landlord and Tenant Lawyers in Oak Creek

Find the right Tenant attorney in Oak Creek, WI

Tenant Law in Wisconsin

In Oak Creek, Wisconsin, it's not simple to be a tenant or a landlord, and relations between those parties can occasionally get testy.

Landlords and tenants have various rights and responsibilities. What follows is a partial list of the rights that landlords and tenants have, and the corresponding duties of the other party.

Landlord's Rights in Oak Creek, WI

Most obviously, landlords have a right to collect rent from their tenants. When a tenant agrees to pay a landlord a specific amount of money for the right to occupy the landlord's property, a contract is formed. Tenants have to hold up their end of the deal.

They additionally have a right to compensation for any damage that a tenant causes, beyond ordinary wear and tear. Landlords are free to bill the tenants for repairs to damage they caused, and deduct the cost from the security deposit.

Tenant's Rights in Oak Creek, WI

At the most basic level, tenants have a basic right to what they're paying for: a habitable living environment. Consequently, landlords in Oak Creek, Wisconsin must ensure that the units they rent to tenants meet some basic standards for human habitation. These requirements vary from state to state, but are often fairly easy to meet. There are no legal criteria that rented units be pretty, particularly spacious, or luxurious. They simply have to be fit for human beings to live in them. To be considered "habitable," rented units must have water, electricity, some form of heating (if the local climate necessitates it), and adequate protection from the elements (proper insulation, no roof leaks, windows that close, etc.).

Moreover, tenants are entitled to common areas that are reasonable safe and sanitary. The common areas of an apartment building would contain lobbies, laundry rooms, stairwells, hallways, and fire escapes (essentially, any part of the building which all of the tenants can access). In Oak Creek, Wisconsin, these areas must be kept reasonably clean and safe.

Under the laws of Wisconsin, and the United States, discrimination in housing on the basis of race, religion, or gender is strictly prohibited. Moreover, under the Americans with Disabilities Act, landlords must not discriminate against renters on the basis of any physical disability. They also have to permit the renter to make reasonable modifications to their apartment, to make it more accessible. Generally, landlords are only required to allow relatively minor and reversible modifications, and tenants cannot compel them to remodel the building, for example. Also, once the tenant leaves, the landlord can bill the tenant for the costs of restoring the apartment to its original condition.

Lastly, the laws of most states safeguard tenants from unfair eviction. In general, as long as a tenant is paying rent on time, and is not damaging the unit, they cannot be evicted before the term of the lease expires, unless there is a very good reason to do so (such as excessive noise caused by the tenant, or illegal activities in the apartment).

Can a Oak Creek, Wisconsin Landlord/Tenant Lawyer Help?

Landlords and tenants almost always prefer to prevent conflict. In a perfect world, tenants would pay rent on time, and landlords would always provide the services that they're being paid for. As we know, the world isn't perfect. When cases demonstrate the world's imperfection, an Oak Creek, Wisconsin real estate attorney can help, whether you're a landlord or a tenant.

Talk to a Real Estate Law Attorney now!

Life in Oak Creek

Oak Creek, Wisconsin is a city in Milwaukee County. It has a population of about 30,000 people. Oak Creek is a suburb of Milwaukee, the largest city in Wisconsin. Until the 1950s, Oak Creek was mostly semi-rural farmland. It was incorporated in 1955, out of unincorporated county land. This move was orchestrated by Tony Basile, who would become Oak Creek's first city attorney. The people of Oak Creek decided to incorporate into a town so the area would not be annexed by the rapidly-expanding Milwaukee. Oak Creek is the headquarters of Midwestern Airlines, a small regional commuter airline, and the source of hundreds of jobs in the area. However, the parent company of the airline is moving its headquarters to another city. Since that announcement, a large mining equipment company announced that it would be moving its headquarters to Oak Creek, Wisconsin, to occupy the corporate offices being vacated by the airline. If you live in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, and are in need of some type of legal help, Oak Creek, Wisconsin lawyers are ready to help. Oak Creek, Wisconsin lawyers can handle almost any legal problem a person might be faced with.

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