Gregory Dean Luce's Answers

Is it legal for a landlord to regulate the level of heat provided?

It's a little complicated. Minnesota law requires a landlord to comply with state law and local ordinances relating to health and safety, which would include any city ordinances requiring a minimum level of heat. Most towns in Minnesota do not have local housing code ordinances, but in Minneapolis, the local ordinance generally requires heat of at least 68 degrees measured a certain distance (36 inches) from interior walls. This requirement, however, does not become effective until October of...

3 people marked this answer as helpful

Can I legally break my lease if we have mold in our home

Probably not. There really are only two reasons you can legally walk away from a lease in Minnesota without being held liable for rent or 'damages': 1) your rental house or apartment has been legally condemned by the city or government or 2) a court issues an order that you are not liable for rent (or are liable for a lesser amount than the full rent). Without either of those situations, the tenant is legally required to continue to pay rent. In your case, if you believe you have mold in your...

How much can my landlord raise my rent?

I'm assuming that you are not living in a subsidized rental unit, such as Section 8, which generally limits the amount a landlord may charge the tenant for rent. If you do not live in subsidized housing, the landlord usually can raise the rent any amount he or she wants so long as the landlord provides sufficient notice to the tenant about the increased rent. Usually, in a case where there is no lease, that notice would be one calendar month (which is not necessarily thirty days). For example,...

Damage Deposit

Minnesota's security deposit law requires only that the landlord provide a "written statement' within 21 days after the tenant moves out and provides a fowarding address to the landlord. The law says that it is "sufficient" to provide the notice by U.S. mail, but it does not rule out delivery of the written statement by e-mail. Given the facts you've provided, it would be highly unlikely that a court would agree that the landlord failed to follow the law. This answer, however, does not address...