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The definitive reference on Arizona landlord and tenant law!

5th Edition

ISBN-13: 978-1-881436-08-9 | 8.5” x 11, 552 pages

CHAPTER

1. PRELIMINARY MATTERS . . 1

A. HOW TO GET THE MOST BENEFIT FROM THIS BOOK . . 1

B. WHAT THIS BOOK COVERS . . 2

C. WHAT THIS BOOK DOES NOT COVER . . 3

D. CONVENTIONS . . 4

E. CAVEAT FROM THE AUTHOR AND PUBLISHER . . 8

F. COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS; ERRORS . . 8

2. PREPARATION . . 11

A. GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR DOING BUSINESS . . 12

B. LEGAL ADVICE TO LANDLORDS . . 15

C. APPLICABILITY/SCOPE OF THE ACT AND THE LANDLORD AND TENANT STATUTES . . 22

D. REVIEW/CREATE YOUR RESIDENTIAL RENTAL AGREEMENT . . 27

E. PREPARE YOUR OTHER FORMS . . 77

3. GETTING TENANTS . . 99

A. PREPARE UNIT FOR NEW TENANTS . . 100

B. ATTRACT APPLICANTS — ADVERTISING . . 114

C. SHOW THE PROSPECTIVE TENANTS THE UNIT . . 122

D. HAVE THE TENANTS FILL OUT THE APPLICATION . . 123

E. SELECT THE BEST TENANT; REJECT ALL OTHERS . . 142

F. TERM OF TENANCY . . 160

4. MANAGING TENANTS EFFECTIVELY . . 163

A. THE ART OF EFFECTIVELY HANDLING TENANT PROBLEMS . . 164

B. COMMONLY RECURRING TENANT PROBLEMS . . 169

C. PROBLEM TENANTS . . 185

5. TERMINATING TENANTS AND EVICTIONS . . 187

A. NORMAL TERMINATIONS . . 187

B. EVICTIONS . . 193

6. CIVIL JUDGMENTS AND COLLECTION . . 229

A. LAWSUIT FOR DAMAGES . . 229

B. COLLECTION OF JUDGMENTS . . 236

7. COMMERCIAL LEASES . . 241

A. OTHER RELEVANT MATERIAL . . 242

B. PREPARATION . . 242

C. TENANTS AND TENANT PROBLEMS . . 244

D. TERMINATING TENANTS AND EVICTIONS . . 244

E. APPENDIX OF COMMERCIAL FORMS . . 275

QUICK REFERENCE SECTION . . 281

I. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS . . 284

II. PROCEDURES . . 295

APPENDICES

APPENDIX A — CHECKLISTS . . 333

APPENDIX B — FORMS . . 343

APPENDIX C — STATUTES . . 415

APPENDIX D — JUSTICE COURTS OF ARIZONA . . 487

GLOSSARY . . 501

INDEX . . 515

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Below is a reprint of the "Prologue" from the

Fifth Edition of the Arizona Landlord's Deskbook.

Practical Approach to a “Real World” Dilemma

Most books and legal guides tell you what you can/cannot do under the law. That is all well and good, but a mere recitation of the law does not explain how to apply the law to the facts of the problem you have right now. What most landlords want is a quick, inexpensive and practical answer to their immediate problem. This book was written with those landlords in mind and with an eye toward “real world” problems that actually happen every day.

Consider this “hypothetical” situation. Your residential tenant tells you that he has just lost his job, his car has broken down and he has one dollar to his name. Assume that his rent is paid through the end of the month (one week away). The only thing hypothetical about this situation is the part about the tenant voluntarily telling you this information before his rent is overdue. As we both know, tenants never volunteer any information. In truth, this is a very common “real world” scenario.

Question - How do you handle this all too common occurrence?

Answer - There are two possible solutions:

(1) the legal solution and

(2) the practical solution.

The Legal Solution: Give the appropriate notices and evict him when he fails to pay next month’s rent.

How long will this really take? You can’t give him a notice to vacate until his rent is overdue; rent is not yet overdue. Rent will again be due on the first of the month, but, let’s face it, most rental agreements provide that rent is not “delinquent” until after the fifth of the month (what does your rental agreement say?). And most landlords won’t do anything until rent is delinquent. In truth, even if your rental agreement provides rent is delinquent after the fifth of the month, rent is “overdue” (i.e., “unpaid and due”) on the second day of the month, and you may begin the eviction process on that day. As a practical matter, however, most landlords won’t start the process until the sixth day of the month. Early on the sixth day, you give him a Five-Day Notice to Pay or Quit. Five days later (calendar days), not counting the day you served him with the Five-Day Notice, is the eleventh day of the month. On the twelfth day of the month you file your Forcible Detainer action (actually called a “Special Detainer” action). The justice court (most Special Detainer actions are filed in justice court) gives you a court date not less than three days nor more than six days (business days) away (not including the day you file the action), which will inevitably include a weekend and possibly a holiday, which are not counted. That gives you a court date on approximately the eighteenth day of the month. You go to court on the eighteenth and receive a judgment for possession and past due rent. The Writ of Restitution, which grants you the right of possession of the premises, however, will not be issued until (you guessed it) another five calendar days has elapsed. You get your Writ of Restitution on the twenty-fourth. You immediately pay the necessary fee to the constable to go out and “forcibly” evict him. It is your lucky day and the constable gets around to serving him with the Writ the very next day (if you haven’t already guessed, this is an unlikely occurrence). It is now the twenty-fifth. But wait, the constable has learned through experience that once a tenant sees him at the door, s/he will pack-up and leave. So the constable goes to the door, the tenant sees him and “swears” that he will be out tonight. The constable will probably give the tenant twenty-four hours to get out before actually executing the Writ. The next day the tenant is either gone or the constable forcibly removes him. It is now the twenty-sixth day of the month. You are out nearly a month’s rent, plus whatever time it takes to make repairs and get the unit ready for the next tenant. In addition, you are out the cost of filing the Special Detainer action, the fee paid to the constable and any administrative and legal fees. Incidentally, you have made the last thirty days very unpleasant for this tenant; in return, you may anticipate that the amount of repairs that have become necessary during the last thirty days will probably exceed “normal wear and tear.”

The Practical Solution: Pay him to leave.

Remember, he is paid up through the end of the month. Tell the tenant that if he is out at the end of this month and the unit is reasonably clean, you will refund all his deposits or, if he has no deposits, that you will give him some amount of money (i.e., $100, $200, etc.). “Heresy,” you exclaim! You are offended by the mere notion of paying this deadbeat to get out. Remember, this is business. Take the course of least resistance and the one that is most economical in terms of your time (which I presume is worth something) and your money (don’t forget the court costs, process server, constable’s fee, etc.). Compare the two solutions:

The legal solution gives you possession of the premises twenty-six days later (maybe), a judgment against a deadbeat, the wonderful opportunity to spend lots of time with those incredibly fast, efficient and courteous people down at the courthouse and a month of headaches.

The practical solution, on the other hand, gives you possession of the premises on the first day of the month; with luck, the unit is even clean. In any event, the deadbeat is gone and you can immediately put in a paying tenant.

The decision is yours, as it should be. I will endeavor to give you guidance as to what you may or must do under the law. But, I will also tell you about other options available to you (which are also in accordance with the law) that I have learned through time, practice and experience, that usually produce the best result. Nevertheless, you, as the landlord, must make the ultimate decision.