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A constructive eviction occurs when a property becomes uninhabitable. It can occur when a landlord’s actions impact a tenant's quiet enjoyment of the property or if the landlord fails to address a major issue. Constructive eviction laws give a tenant the right to break their lease before the term ends if the property is no longer habitable and the landlord won't resolve the situation.
Here's a closer look at constructive evictions and what tenants and landlords can do to avoid this situation.
The purpose of constructive eviction laws is to force real estate investors and landlords to comply with housing regulations, including a tenant's ability to peacefully live in the property they're leasing. A constructive eviction must meet three conditions to legally allow a tenant to terminate their lease and potentially seek damages.
They include:
Tenants have the right to quiet enjoyment of their homes. Because of that, the landlord can't do things that interfere with a tenant's reasonable use of a property. Similarly, they must act to resolve an issue impacting a tenant's living situation within a reasonable amount of time.
Here's an example of a constructive eviction: A tenant reports to the landlord that they have no hot water. The landlord responds that they'll take care of it. A day goes by, and the landlord hasn't gotten the hot water fixed, so the tenant checks in with the landlord to see when they will get it fixed, but the tenant doesn't get a response. The tenant continues following up for several more days without an answer. Because the property is uninhabitable without hot water, the tenant moves out. They wouldn't have to pay any more rent or fees to break their lease and could seek damages from the landlord.
The constructive eviction process has three parts:
Tenants have the right to live in their property peacefully. However, if the landlord does something that significantly affects a tenant's use of the property or doesn't address a necessary repair, a tenant can take steps to remedy the problem. These include:
Real estate investors can't interfere with tenants' ability to quietly enjoy the property they've leased. Because of that, when a tenant comes to their landlord with a significant issue, they should work to address the situation as quickly as possible. To avoid a constructive eviction, a landlord should:
While investors want to maximize their income from commercial real estate investment, they can't put off a repair to save money. That would interfere with a tenant's ability to live in the property. Constructive eviction laws protect tenants when landlords don't address an issue that makes a property uninhabitable. It allows them to terminate the lease without penalty when a landlord fails to act.
