Spring Break
Senate lawyer advises students on landlord disputes down the line
Jeff Sullivan
Issue date: 2/1/08 Section: Campus
2/1/08 - The University of Rhode Island's senate lawyer, Sam Fleisig, gave advice yesterday to any student thinking of renting an apartment or house.
"The best thing you can do before you sign the lease is to go and see the house with the current tenants still there," he said. "Talk to them if you can, ask them about problems with the house or landlord."
Fleisig said that the biggest problem many students face once they have signed the lease is that the landlord can be unreasonably intrusive. The definition of the regulation states that the landlord can only come to the house with reasonable notice, but it does not define the minimum time the landlord can state as "reasonable."
"You can get a landlord who comes down once a week, which they are not supposed to do but it still happens," he said. "Is once a week reasonable? Is five days a week reasonable? I don't think so."
Fleisig also explained the best way to avoid noise complaints and unlawful gatherings.
"As soon as you have signed the lease you have to meet the neighbors around you and give them your numbers," Fleisig said. "Then when you know there might be an issue, you go and tell them that if there is a problem that they should call you first, not the police."
Fleisig recalled a group of students he knew who were renting a house in Wakefield. They became good friends with an elderly couple across the street.
"They invited [the couple] over for breakfast, shoveled their driveway in the winter that sort of thing," he said. "Now when they got caught with a keg later on, the neighbors supported the students. You might avoid a lot of problems just by winning over your neighbors, invite them over for lunch, invite them to one of the house parties even, whatever you can do."
"The best thing you can do before you sign the lease is to go and see the house with the current tenants still there," he said. "Talk to them if you can, ask them about problems with the house or landlord."
Fleisig said that the biggest problem many students face once they have signed the lease is that the landlord can be unreasonably intrusive. The definition of the regulation states that the landlord can only come to the house with reasonable notice, but it does not define the minimum time the landlord can state as "reasonable."
"You can get a landlord who comes down once a week, which they are not supposed to do but it still happens," he said. "Is once a week reasonable? Is five days a week reasonable? I don't think so."
Fleisig also explained the best way to avoid noise complaints and unlawful gatherings.
"As soon as you have signed the lease you have to meet the neighbors around you and give them your numbers," Fleisig said. "Then when you know there might be an issue, you go and tell them that if there is a problem that they should call you first, not the police."
Fleisig recalled a group of students he knew who were renting a house in Wakefield. They became good friends with an elderly couple across the street.
"They invited [the couple] over for breakfast, shoveled their driveway in the winter that sort of thing," he said. "Now when they got caught with a keg later on, the neighbors supported the students. You might avoid a lot of problems just by winning over your neighbors, invite them over for lunch, invite them to one of the house parties even, whatever you can do."
