This woman feels violated after she clearly told her landlord she didn’t want him in her house. He did what he wanted to anyway.
While landlords will need to come into your apartment from time to time, there are still rules they must follow.
After all, once they rent their property out, it becomes someone else’s home, and they can’t just come and go as they please.
Landlord illegally enters woman’s house
In a viral video that’s gained more than 300,000 views since Dec. 7, TikTok user Michelle (@michellestjohn) shared that she caught her landlord “red-handed.”
In the TikTok, Michelle explained that she got a call from her landlord as she was headed to work, and he told her he was going to stop by and change the filters in her house.
“Well, that’s really nice, but you don’t have to do that. Just leave the filters out by the front door… and when I get home I’ll do it myself. But thank you very much,” she told him.
“I don’t want my landlord in the house without me here. How weird would that have been?” she added.
Michelle gets home a bit early from work, and as she walks up the steps, she immediately notices something is off because her dog Sammy goes down to greet her. Michelle doesn’t leave her door open, so the only way for Sammy to get out is if another person opens the door after her.
Michelle got up to the top of the steps, and her door was wide open.
To her surprise, there were two men in there. One of them was her landlord, and the other was someone she’d never met.
The unidentified man was sitting at her kitchen table while her landlord, get this, was pulling out a Diet Coke from her fridge.
“I was amazed. I said, ‘What the heck are you doing in my house?’ I can’t believe it. It just blew my mind,” Michelle said
Can a landlord enter your home without permission?
For the most part, your landlord cannot enter your home without permission. While there are specific exceptions to his rule, there are still legal rules and processes that they must follow, according to FindLaw.
About half of all U.S. states have rules regarding landlord entry for rental units. While they vary from state to state, generally, the law says that a landlord can’t just enter a tenant’s home for any reason at just any time.
Instead, they must give written notice at least 24 hours in advance and can usually only come during normal business hours from Monday to Friday.
Even then, many state laws only allow entry in specific circumstances, FindLaw states, including:
- During an emergency
- To make repairs or assess the need for repairs
- To inspect the premises for damage
- To show the premises to insurance or mortgage companies
- To investigate potential tenancy violations under the lease agreement
- To show the apartment to prospective tenants or prospective buyers/purchasers
- If the tenant invites the landlord in or asks them to enter the apartment
- To comply with local, state, or federal law, such as to cooperate with law enforcement pursuant to a warrant by court order
The exception is if there is an emergency like a fire or severe water leak.
Can I deny entry?
A tenant cannot unreasonably deny entry in one of the situations listed above, but they can request the date of entry be moved.
If a tenant refuses to let their landlord in multiple times, the landlord can get a court order to be allowed to enter the home.
What if my landlord trespasses?
In Michelle’s situation, it seems like her landlord might’ve trespassed since she verbally denied him entry, he didn’t give written prior notice, and he wasn’t within the listed circumstances that would qualify for a landlord entry.
If she chose to, Michelle could make a claim with the court. But she should first speak to her landlord about the violation, and if that doesn’t work, send a written letter if it continues. Only after that should she escalate her complaint to the courts.
Commenters react
“That’s against the law. I’d make a report with the police,” a top comment read.
“Get a lawyer and file a lawsuit against the landlord. That was illegal,” a person echoed.
“Violated your personal space. Not right,” another said.
“‘I need to change filters’ is a standard way for landlords to check and make sure their property is OK. Also to make sure heat/AC unit is OK. But it shouldn’t be an excuse to nose through anything!” a commenter shared.
@michellestjohn08 #rent #right #law #house #apt #business #america #help #lawyer #tiktokvideo ♬ original sound – Michelle St John
The Daily Dot reached out to Michelle for comment via email and TikTok direct message.
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