Articles

We don't get much case law in the landlord-tenant arena. It's usually too expensive for either side to appeal their case up to the Kentucky Court of Appeals or Kentucky Supreme Court. So landlords, tenants, and their attorneys are left trying to guess how their local judges will interpret the statutes that we have. But we got some additional clarification last month in the case of Young v. House, which originated in Pulaski District Court. You can read the full opinion here. The Case: Young v. House The lease in this case had expired, and the tenants were renting the property month-to-month. Rent was...

MORE PROPOSED LANDLORD LEGISLATION There’s been a flurry of activity at our state legislature recently, with several new bills being filed that would impact the rental industry. Several of them repetitive, mirroring bills already filed in the other legislative chamber. And most of them are bad. Let’s take a look. LEGISLATIVE UPDATE  Senate Bill 289 – This bill is sponsored by Senator Reggie Thomas from Lexington. It would allow tenants to expunge any eviction judgment based on nonpayment of rent during the Covid-19 pandemic, beginning March 6, 2020. You can read the bill at this link. Senate Bill 357 –...

As I mentioned in my last update, millions of dollars in rental assistance are still available. In Lexington, the Housing Stabilization Program has now opened the application process for tenants to receive a second round of funding. That means tenants who received HSP funding already are again eligible to receive additional assistance. The caveat is that the tenant may only receive a total of 15 months of funding.  So, if your tenant received 10 months of funding already, that tenant is now eligible to receive up to five months of additional funding. The same eligibility requirements are in place, and...

A NEW YEAR’S PRIMER ON EVICTIONS  Happy New Year, everyone. It’s always good to see a new year because it means you’re still in the game.  At the beginning of each year, I like to do a refresher course on evictions, but rising Covid numbers has put a damper on that. I may do it later in the year. But I wanted to put a few reminders out that will help make your eviction cases more successful.  PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR NOTICES  Evictions are all about getting the details right, and that starts with your notices.  Get the names and...