Articles — education

You're Going To Get Sued

Posted by Stephen Marshall on

You're Going To Get Sued

Welcome to the rental industry. You are an owner or manager whose income is created by providing one of the most basic human needs: housing. Because it is so fundamental to our existence, housing touches hearts. It creates emotion. It brings out the best and worst. It is also a pawn in the political game that our government plays. As a result, you are going to get sued. The sooner you realize that fact, the better. When you deal with issues that touch people’s hearts and arouses their emotions, lawsuits result. It’s just a fact. Expect it. And realize that...

Read more →

Fair Housing Testing: It's Happening Near You, Right Now

Posted by Stephen Marshall on

Fair Housing Testing: It's Happening Near You, Right Now

Those of you subscribe to my newsletter already know this, but there is a new group that is conducting Fair Housing testing on a fairly widespread basis in central Kentucky. Fair Housing Advocates, Inc., is an organization out of Arlington, Texas, who, according to their website, provides advocacy and education related to Fair Housing issues. Here is their website and their Facebook page.  Currently, their testers are calling apartment complexes throughout central Kentucky claiming to be interested in renting an apartment. Their current ruse is to claim to be a disabled person with an Assistance Animal (typically an emotional support...

Read more →

Only a Fool Learns from His Own Mistakes

Posted by Stephen Marshall on

I was in court in central Kentucky this week for a pretty complicated eviction case. There were eight witnesses on my side alone. The judge announced afterward that it was the longest eviction docket in his many years on the bench. After a two-hour hearing, my client had prevailed. However, one of the things that struck me about that day was that I watched three other landlords with much, much, much simpler cases have their evictions dismissed. Each of those cases involved non-payment of rent and, in each case, the dismissal was the result of the landlord failing to give...

Read more →