What types of rental accommodations are covered by legislation governing residential tenancies in Alaska?

The Alaska Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act covers rental of a residential property, such as a house, apartment, condo or mobile home. Tenants who receive a government housing subsidy or who live in a government housing project may have additional rights.

What types of rental accommodations are NOT covered by this legislation?

The Act does not apply to rooming houses, hotels or motels, temporary housing at a shelter or supportive housing program, or commercial premises.

Is it necessary to have a written lease or rental agreement?

No, however most landlords use a written agreement. The law requires that the landlord show the tenant any rules and regulations applying to the rental property (such as homeowner association rules, apartment building rules, etc) before the tenant enters into an agreement. If the tenant has a lease, the rules may not be changed during the term of the lease if such changes would substantially modify the lease agreement. If the tenancy is month-to-month, the landlord may make such changes, but only after giving the tenant 30 days written notice prior to the rent date on which the rule changes will take effect.

What about a signed move-in move-out inspection report?

An inspection report is only necessary if the landlord requires it, however it is recommended. The landlord can require that the tenant sign the report as a condition of renting the property. The tenant should inspect the premises with the landlord prior to moving in, noting any damages that are already there. Both should sign the report and keep a copy. Both parties should again inspect the premises after the tenant has moved out, and refer to the move-in report to determine any damage caused by the tenant. Tenants cannot be charged for damage caused by normal wear and tear.

Can the landlord charge a deposit?

Yes, the landlord can require the tenant to pay a security deposit to protect from financial loss if the tenant fails to pay the rent, causes damage to the property or does not clean up properly when he/she leaves. Unless the rental unit rents for more than $2,000 per month, the security deposit and prepaid rent cannot total more than 2 months' rent.

A nonrefundable application fee that covers a landlord's actual reasonable costs for services performed (such as performing a credit check) is allowable. However, it is NOT lawful to charge a fee that becomes the security deposit if the tenant moves in, but is forfeited if the tenant decides not to rent the premises.

Deposits and prepaid rent must be deposited in a trust account in a bank or savings and loan association, or with a licensed escrow agent. A trust account can be any separate savings or checking account used only for deposits and prepaid rents. Landlords are required to provide tenants with the terms and conditions under which prepaid rents or deposits (or any portion of these funds) might be withheld by the landlord.

The Act does not require that the trust account earn interest, but if the tenant's deposit does earn interest, the tenant is entitled to the interest unless the parties have agreed otherwise. If the property is managed by a licensed property manager, the interest MUST go the tenant, unless the tenant agrees in writing that the interest may go to the landlord. The property manager may not keep the interest.

If the tenant has given proper notice of moving, the landlord must provide a written, itemized list of accrued rent and damages with any refund due the tenant within 14 days of the date the tenancy is terminated and the tenant has moved out. If the tenant does not give proper notice or abandons the premises, the landlord may take up to 30 days after the move (or after he/she becomes aware of the abandonment) to return the deposit or provide a written notice of accrued rent and damages.

When is the landlord allowed to increase the rent?

If there is a fixed term lease, the landlord cannot raise the rent during the lease term unless the lease specifically provides for a rent increase. In a month-to-month tenancy, the landlord is legally entitled to raise the rent by any amount, upon no less than 30 days written notice to the tenant before the increase takes effect. If a tenant does not accept the rent increase, he/she can terminate the rental agreement by giving the landlord a written 30-day notice of intent to terminate tenancy.

Can the landlord levy additional charges for late rent?

The Act does not state whether a landlord may assess late charges for late rent payments or NSF fees if a check is returned for insufficient funds. No automatic late charge or NSF fee is legally enforceable unless it has been agreed upon beforehand.

How can a lease be terminated?

A fixed term lease cannot be terminated during the term, only at the end of the lease term. If the tenant decides to move during the term, the tenant is still responsible for paying rent for the balance of the lease period, unless the premises can be subleased or re-rented earlier. The landlord must make a good faith effort to re-rent the property and may not charge the original tenant rent after the property is re-rented.

The amount of notice needed to terminate a rental agreements depends on whether the tenancy is week-to-week, month-to-month or year-to-year. To end a month-to-month tenancy, the tenant must give written notice at least 30 days before the next rental due date, whatever date that falls on. Likewise, the landlord must give a full tenancy month's notice to the tenant to vacate the premises. A landlord or a tenant who wants to terminate a week-to-week tenancy must give written notice to the other party at least 14 days before the termination date specified in the notice.

A 1-year written notice is required when a mobile home park operator wishes to require tenants to move their mobile homes because the land is being converted to a common-interest community, such as condominiums. A mobile home tenant may be required to vacate earlier than 1 year if the tenant is evicted for cause.

Can a tenant assign a lease or sublet the premises?

If the rental agreement requires the landlord's consent to sublease, the tenant may find one or more qualified tenants to take over the lease, upon consent from the landlord. The new tenants can only be rejected for specific reasons (insufficient credit standing or financial responsibility, too many people for the residence, unwillingness of new tenant to accept the terms of the rental, new tenant's pets are unacceptable, new tenant's proposed commercial activity, or a bad report from a former landlord). Outside of these reasons, the landlord cannot unreasonably prevent the tenant from subleasing.

When is the landlord permitted to enter the premises?

A landlord generally needs the tenant's permission to enter the premises, but he/she can enter without permission if (i) it is not possible to contact the tenant by ordinary means, (ii) the tenant has been gone from the property more than 7 days without notice, or (iii) there is an emergency. A landlord may enter the premises only to make necessary repairs or maintenance, supply agreed-to services, inspect for damage, show the premises to prospective buyers or tenants, or remove personal property belonging to the landlord which is not covered by the rental agreement. Notice of entry must be given at least 24 hours in advance, must state the proposed date and time of entry, which must at reasonable times. A tenant cannot unreasonably refuse to allow the landlord to enter. If the tenant refuses the landlord's reasonable requests to enter the premises, the landlord can terminate the tenancy upon 10 days written notice. The landlord cannot abuse the right to request entry or use it to harass tenants.

On what grounds can a landlord evict a tenant?

The landlord may evict for failure to pay rent when due, deliberate infliction of substantial damage to the premises, failure to pay utility bills, illegal activity on the premises, breach of the lease / rental agreement or of the tenant's responsibilities under the Act (such as disturbing other tenants or failing to maintain the premises to the point that the health and safety of others are endangered). A landlord can also evict if he/she needs the dwelling vacant to make repairs needed to meet code requirements, if the landlord plans to use the property for something other than a residential dwelling for at least 6 months, the landlord wants to use the property for personal purposes, if he/she wishes to substantially remodel or demolish the premises, or if the property is being sold and the new owner intends to substantially remodel, demolish, use for personal use or change the premises from rental use for at least 6 months.

If a tenant has given a moving notice but fails to move out by the date specified in the notice, the landlord may sue for eviction. If the tenant stays beyond the specified moving date willfully and not in good faith, the landlord may also sue for 1 1/2 times actual damages.

Failure to pay rent when due. A 7-day written notice is required to terminate a tenancy when a tenant is behind in rent. If the rent is paid before the complete 7 days are up, the tenant may stay. If the tenant tries to pay after the 7 days are up, the landlord may refuse to accept the rent and continue with the eviction. If the landlord accepts any payment, the landlord must either make a new written agreement with the tenant to extend the eviction for a specific period of time or begin the eviction process over again.

Deliberate infliction of substantial damage. A minimum 24-hour written notice is required to terminate a tenancy when the tenant or his/her guests have intentionally caused more than $400 damage to the landlord's property.

Illegal activity on premises. A 5-day notice is required to evict a tenant if any illegal activity is conducted on the premises (such as gambling, prostitution, drug or alcohol production or sale).

Failure to pay utility bills. If a utility company discontinues service to the premises because the tenant failed to pay the bill, the landlord may issue a 5-day notice to terminate the tenancy. If the tenant reinstates the service within 3 days after service of the notice and repays the landlord for any payments made to the utility company, and provided the premises were not damaged due to the lapse in service, the eviction process ends and the tenant can stay. However, if the same utility service is disconnected again within 6 months due to a lack of due care by the tenant, the landlord can terminate the tenancy with a 3-day notice, and the tenant has no opportunity to fix the problem.

Breach of duties. A 10-day written notice is required to terminate a tenancy due to the tenant's breach of a material provision of the rental agreement or the tenant's duties under the Act. If the problem is corrected before the notice period expires, the tenant may stay. However, if the tenant is in violation in substantially the same way more than once in a 6-month period, the landlord can evict the tenant with a 5-day notice and the tenant has no right to fix the problem.

A landlord may not coerce a tenant to move by shutting off utilities, changing the locks, taking the tenant's belongings or taking possession of the dwelling by force without a court hearing. Under no circumstances may the landlord seize the tenant's property to satisfy unpaid rent or to cover damages. The landlord may not retaliate against a tenant by raising the rent, decreasing services or starting or threatening to start an eviction proceeding.

Unless the tenant is a mobile home park tenant, a landlord can evict a tenant in winter, including tenants with small children.

Mobile home park tenants can only be evicted for the following reasons: (i) the tenant is behind in space rent and has not paid even after receiving a 7-day written notice; (ii) the tenant has been convicted of violating a law or ordinance, the violation is continuing, and endangers the health, safety or welfare of others in the park; (iii) the tenant has violated a reasonable provision of the rental agreement or lease and does not stop the violation even after receiving written notice from the landlord; or (iv) there will be a change in the use of the land on which the park is located. Reason (iv) requires a notice of at least 270 days for change other than conversion to a common-interest community, and a tenant may not be required to move between October 15 and May 1. With this exception, the same notice periods are required for mobile home park tenants as for other types of tenants.

The foregoing summary is provided for information purposes only and is not to be considered legal or business advice. The information may not be complete, accurate or applicable for any particular situation and should not be relied upon.