Know How to Protect Your Rights

Landlords' Rights Attorney in Portland, Oregon

The ORLTA (Oregon Residential Landlord Tenant Act) contains a great number of duties for landlords, as well as rights for tenants. There are also rights that protect landlords; however, since landlords often have more duties than they expect or are aware of, problems could arise. There are confusing provisions in this Act and it may be difficult to determine if you will be able to win a case after charges have been filed against you as a landlord. One of the ways that you can protect your rights when renting or leasing a property is to comply very carefully with ORLTA. Only then will you be well protected against meritless legal claims or defenses that could be raised by a tenant. Murphy Law Group P.C. could assist new or experienced landlords in complying with the Oregon Residential Landlord Tenant Act.

Laws Regarding Evictions

Many tenants are able to successfully defend themselves against an eviction, merely based upon ambiguous language in a termination notice, improperly calculated termination dates, or even incorrect delivery of the notice. We strongly advise landlords who are unfamiliar with the eviction process-or unfamiliar with how easily that process can go wrong-to contact my firm for legal assistance. There are numerous attorneys in the Portland area and throughout the state that focus on protecting tenants' rights, usually at no cost, expecting that they will recover the legal fees as part of the verdict or settlement. This is one of many reasons why you should not hesitate to get aggressive representation as a landlord.

At the beginning of your eviction process against a tenant, we will first ensure that a properly worded termination notice is correctly served to the tenant. In some cases, you may want to be able to cite a specific reason for the eviction, such as failing to pay rent or causing great damage to the property. In others, you may issue a "no cause" termination notice, which does not require you to cite your reasoning for requiring that tenant to leave, as long as you allow them at least 90 days to do so.

If the tenant fails to comply with the notice, we will go to Circuit Court and file a Forcible Entry & Detainer (FED) complaint for eviction. The Court will schedule a "First Appearance" date, which is a court-mandated settlement meeting where both parties or their attorneys are required to attend and attempt to resolve the dispute informally. In most circumstances, a stipulated settlement agreement can be reached and a trial avoided. However, if no settlement can be reached and a trial is needed, you can be confident that the eviction process was properly followed and have the highest level of confidence that you will be granted Judgment of Restitution. Once the judge passes such a judgment, a Notice of Restitution will be placed on the door of the tenant's property and they will be required to move out.

Lease & Rental Agreements Make a Difference

There are many free lease and rental agreements that can be found online or in office supply stores. These "boilerplate" agreements may not be sufficient to protect your rights as a landlord when disputes arise. These documents are not written for Oregon's laws in most cases and therefore fail to provide you with your proper rights. They might also give you the illusion of having legal rights that you really do not have. A tenant can be successful in a legal dispute if you have improperly worded agreements or addendums. Make sure that you have a carefully, correctly drafted lease or rental agreement that reflects your unique property, as well as a detailed list of rules and regulations to control tenant conduct. Whether the matter involves damage to the property, the tenant's duties, pets, or other matters, everything must be drafted carefully to protect you.

Who Protects Landlords?

To a new or experienced landlord, it can appear that tenants have all the rights, but this is not true. You do have rights as a landlord and, as an Oregon landlord-tenant attorney, we are here to assist you. Our legal team primarily represents landlords and we believe that the owner of a property deserves the highest quality, cost-effective representation. Having successfully served landlords throughout the state for years, we have gained the experience to provide you with confidence. Whether you need to evict a tenant that is destroying your property or you need to defend yourself in Court against baseless claims against you, your success depends on following the legal procedure. Our mission is to protect landlords in any dispute or legal situation involving landlord and tenant laws in Portland and across all of Oregon.