A tenant association is made up of tenants who live in a building or development, or it can be larger and include tenants in a city or country. Landlords or property managers do not need to fear if they hear that their tenants have created a tenant association (also known as a tenant union). The goal of tenant associations is generally to inform tenants of their rights, organize on behalf of tenant rights, improve the relationship between tenants and landlord, improve the rental building or encourage communication (source).
According to NOLO landlords should not be upset or anxious if their tenants decide to organize. Instead landlords can work to take charge of the situation by taking quick action.
Find out about the Association: Find out about the main reasons behind why your tenants started the association. Generally, only key issues would motivate tenants to organize.
Fix the crucial issues: After you find out why your tenants decided to organize you should work to manage the problems. First, you can take immediate action which can take away the driving force behind the tenant association. Then you can make sure that in the future you work towards having clear communication with tenants and being responsive to their complaints to prevent any more reasons for tenants to organize.
Attend Association Meetings: Have yourself or employee attend the meeting with the goal of staying informed and showing your tenants you care about the issues they are discussing.
Do not retaliate: Do not try to retaliate against any tenants that joined the association or reward any tenants that did not join. Retaliating against tenants who join a tenant association is also illegal in many states.
Do not interfere with the association: Trying to interfere with the association by imposing rules on tenant association elated activities, like not allowing their leaflets in the lobby, may be illegal in your state and my will lead to bad blood between you and the association.
Managing your rental property effectively will help you avoid key issues that can lead tenants to create tenant associations. Property management software can help you stay organized so that you do not let small problems turn into major issues.
This post is provided by RISSOFT Residential and Commercial Property Management Software, specializing in innovative and cutting-edge property management software for all 50 states. Request a demo or contact us today to receive more information.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this post in not intended to be construed as legal advice, nor should it be considered a substitute for obtaining individual legal counsel or consulting your local, state, federal or provincial tenancy laws.