Renting and landscape maintainance

E

escrowbear

New member
I have been renting a unit for a little over a year now. If the contract does not specifically state that there is landscape maintainance, who should pay for it if it becomes necessary?

The house I am renting has an abundance of plant debris and I can't keep up with it. So there is an accumulation of leaves etc and also some large palm leaves (that the owner has never ever trimmed since I've been renting).

So now I'm curious as to who should foot the bill. The landlord says they didnt agree to it and they said that I am renting it and I should take out the trash.

I think it's too much to ask for, especially with large palm trees and the large number of plants.
 
That should be spelled out in your Rental Agreement (there is a section for it on the form).

I don't know how you rented your place but if you did through MLS and a realtor, this should have been covered.

We rented a pretty expensive home in QH and I was irritated that the landscape maintenance wasn't included. We paid the guy the owner was using but it was like .006% of the monthly cost... which I think considering the high rent we were paying, he should have covered.
 
This is all I could find referring to this:

10. OBLIGATIONS AND DUTIES OF LANDLORD:
(f) Building, grounds and appurtenances at the time of the commencement of the lease or Lease agreement in every part clean, sanitary, and free from all accumulations of debris, filth, rubbish, garbage, rodents and vermin, and all areas under control of the landlord kept in every part clean, sanitary, and free from all accumulations of debris, filth, rubbish, garbage, rodents, and vermin.

But that seems to only occur at the "start" of the lease. Or would you interpret that as on-going?

This is in the tenant section but does not specifically state landscaping:

11. OBLIGATIONS AND DUTIES OF TENANT:
In compliance with California Code ? 1941.2, Tenant covenants:

(1) To keep that part of the premises which he occupies and uses clean and sanitary as the condition of the premises permits.

(2) To dispose from his dwelling unit of all rubbish, garbage and other waste, in a clean and sanitary manner.
 
Unless specifically mentioned in the rental agreement (me speaking as a landlord), the landlord is responsible for the maintenance cost of the landscaping. Think about it this way, if the rental was was a condo or a home with an HOA that handles the front maintenance the landlord almost always pays the HOA monthly dues.
 
[quote author="escrowbear"]Front maintainance is part of the HOA and the landlord does pay for that. I am referring to the backyard.[/quote]
Ahh, that is a little more tricky. When it comes to the backyard I would assume that the tenant would take care of the more routine maintenance like mowing the lawn and racking up an leaves, but when it comes more extensive maintenance like trimming trees or cutting down overgrown branches off palm trees the landlord should pick up that tab. Just like IHO mentioned, because who should cover what backyard maintenance cost is just a gray area it is best to have it clearly spelled out on the rental agreement (he is correct in that the CAR realtor lease agreement does have an area where things like that can be spelled out).
 
we rent a home in irvine, the landlord pays for the landscaping maintenance. The grass is mowed weekly and all plants/trees bushes are trimmed as necessary. We dont do anything except pay for the water (sprinklers), which was outlined in the lease that we were required to water. I believe the landlord pays about 90/month for landscaping. Seems very reasonable.
 
[quote author="escrowbear"]This is all I could find referring to this:

10. OBLIGATIONS AND DUTIES OF LANDLORD:
(f) Building, grounds and appurtenances at the time of the commencement of the lease or Lease agreement in every part clean, sanitary, and free from all accumulations of debris, filth, rubbish, garbage, rodents and vermin, and all areas under control of the landlord kept in every part clean, sanitary, and free from all accumulations of debris, filth, rubbish, garbage, rodents, and vermin.

But that seems to only occur at the "start" of the lease. Or would you interpret that as on-going?

This is in the tenant section but does not specifically state landscaping:

11. OBLIGATIONS AND DUTIES OF TENANT:
In compliance with California Code ? 1941.2, Tenant covenants:

(1) To keep that part of the premises which he occupies and uses clean and sanitary as the condition of the premises permits.

(2) To dispose from his dwelling unit of all rubbish, garbage and other waste, in a clean and sanitary manner.
[/quote]

leasemaintenance.JPG


Above is the text of the CAR forms landscaping maintenance. Note that the watering is separate from the maintenance (paragraph 11b and 11c) for landscaping. If you have a non-CAR lease form that was signed and it does not specify, the property is the owner's and the owner's responsibility.

With that said, this is an opportunity to build some good will with your landlord. "If I do this... will you do that..." is a good solution to something that should have been clarified at the beginning of the lease but unfortunately was left untied. And get it in writing.

Good luck,
-IR2
 
This thread reminds of my transition from an IAC lease to private rental. I took for granted all the great things IAC did behind the scenes for maintenance until I moved into my private rental house.

I was spoiled with IAC and loved calling them to change my light bulbs, unplug my hair full drains, and replace my air filters. All with 24-48hr response time. Now I purchase my own bulbs (CF type since I am more lazy than Green), buy Drano and change air filters myself.

Overall I am happy with the move and more space/privacy. My landlord is responsive though not as good as IAC maintenance. I realize it costs him money out of his pocket to pay for repairs so of course he is not happy to hear me complain about maintenance issues. Versus the mostly happy folks who take your maintenance requests at the IAC offices. My landlord takes a wait and see approach until the problem becomes more obvious and persistent, then tries to repair it himself. If that doesn't work, he calls for professional help.

As for our particular yard situation: the HOA maintains part of the front and our lease includes weekly yard maintenance for the rest of the property.
 
[quote author="escrowbear"]Just FYI - The landlord has decided to perform the maintainance. Thanks to everyone for their help!

[/quote]
Glad to hear that it worked out at the end of the day. I'm sure your landlord realized that you guys were good renters and didn't want to have deal with re-renting the property...lesser of two evils for him.
 
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