Anyone hear about the apartments in Newport that got sacked by the doorman with access to keys last year?

I believe that NJ law allows a tenant to change the locks of the apartment and need not give a copy of the key to the landlord. The landlord does not have the right to ask for a key. The landlord can only enter in emergency situations, such as there is a flood or gas leak, etc. In those circumstances, they can break the door, just like the fire department can. Of course they can charge you for repairing the door. BUt this will eliminate sneaky landlords checking on their tenants. You can also demand that the landlord gives advance notice before showing your apartment to potential buyers.
Tenant's rights are printed in a booklet called Truth in Renting.

if your landlord pisses you off again, just watch this movie and learn a few tricks from michael keaton's character....

I guess I should add a post-script to this.

After I made that phone call and reported the episode here she made an appearance. She didn't knock on my door. I just heard the security gate open, female foot steps and a banging noise. A loud banging noise. Bang bang bang. I don't know what she was hitting with that hammer but she was beating the hell out of it. (Lovely. I've manged to freak out a crazy person. And this time I didn't do anything wrong. But then, I was in construction mode. [I'm wired on coffee. Don't bother me. Please.])

You see, when I signed my lease she was acting girlish. Like she wanted our relationship to progress. But I was getting crazy relationship vibes. (Danger Will Robinson. Danger danger.) Once or twice of that is enough for me.

So I'm thinking, is it possible to get a Taser like they use on Cops? I'm not interested in killing someone. The thought of that doesn't get me off. A mild seizure would be fine. Just long enough so I could dial 911 while continuing to multi-task on my notebook. That may seem cold, but if you can't multi-task while subduing your landlord you're way behind the curve.

Thank you all very much. I actually hadn't taken the sign down and left the nasty message, yet, when I started this thread this morning. Believe it or not, I can blow things out of proportion and be an asshole at times when I'm pissed off. I was on my way out the door for a company fishing trip and decided to give myself a few more hours to think about it before launching into a war with my landlord.

So I get home, phone in hand, and read your posts, which got me good and fired up. (You know how you have butterflies in your stomach when you're about to read someone the riot act.) And Robin, your post was beautiful. Nothing like going to battle with ammunition and intelligence.

Remember, she's a girl in her late 20s who's flighty. But she's also a pushy little thing. Not a bitch, not to me, just assertive.

So I used the strategy I sometimes use of letting someone go on a bit and make a few verbal mistakes before I lift up my arm and release the cavalry.

So I say, "this is Brad at this address."

"Yeah," she says...

"I come home and there's a 'for rent' sign in my window."

"Well I tried to call you but you never answer your phone."

"But you couldn't leave a message?"

"Well I'm sorry I did that but I had something else to talk to you about which would have been kind of awkward to say in a message."

"OK, what would that be?"

"You need an area rug in your apartment."

"Oh, I intend to," I say calmly and earnestly. "I'm having problems with my bank. [another thread I'm about to post] I just switched banks and as soon as my card comes and I close out my account with my first bank I will buy the rug. In fact, they made me miss a Furniture Liquidator rug sale."

Now... lets get back to the first issue...

[Men... raise your weapons and fire at will.]

"You have no right to enter my apartment when I'm not there. I have *exclusive possession* over my apartment..."

"Well no, actually," she starts to say like I knew she would...

"no... when you enter my apartment without my permission you are breaking the law. I posted this online last night and now I have the legal facts right in front of me."

Then I fired off the facts in Pinky's post.

By the time I got done with her she was apologizing profusely. It was all I could do to hang up.

Thank you all!

I'd say your options are:

1. call the cops and file a complaint
2. change locks
3. put an alarm system in
4. get an attack dog

Personally, I would choose 1 & 2. In this case, 2 Wrongs = Right.

It would be a good way for identity theft!

I would have called the police if you suspect anyone was in your apartment - landlord or not. I'd also place a matchstick in the door frame, to let you know if someone has been in - the matchstick can be placed at the base of the door frame so its out of sight and if its on the floor when you return - don't enter and call the police!

Safety first and fcuk the landlord if they are doing something illegal. Imagine if they didn't like you and planted something in your apartment - how do you explain it to the police without history of the landlord entering without permission. It's just food for thought and the worse case scenario.

NO THEY CAN NOT!


Tenants' Rights: When Can a Landlord Enter Your Home?

All leases, whether written or oral, give the tenant ?exclusive possession? of the dwelling unit. This means that only the tenant, members of the tenant?s household, or people the tenant allows in the house or apartment have the right to be there. The landlord does not have the right to come into the house or apartment whenever he or she wants. In a written lease, the landlord?s duty not to enter the tenant?s house or apartment is called the covenant of quiet enjoyment. This covenant (promise) means that the tenant has control over who can or can?t come into his or her apartment or house.

When can a landlord enter?

The law allows the landlord or the landlord?s workers to go into the tenant?s dwelling only in a few special situations:

If the tenant invites or asks the landlord or one of the landlord?s workers to come in.
If the landlord needs to inspect the apartment, but only:
at reasonable periods of time?every day is unreasonable, every few months might be okay;
at a reasonable time of day?4 a.m. is unreasonable, 4 p.m. might be okay, depending on whether the tenant will be home at that time; and
only after giving the tenant reasonable notice that he or she is coming to inspect. Reasonable notice usually means a written notice. It also usually means that the notice must be given at least one day before the landlord wants to come in. For buildings containing three apartments or more, there is a regulation requiring one day?s notice before a landlord can come into an apartment to make an inspection or do repairs.


If the landlord or one of the landlord?s workers needs to come into the apartment to do maintenance or make repairs. If the repairs are not an emergency, they can only come into the house or apartment at a reasonable time and after giving reasonable notice.
If the landlord or the landlord?s workers need to come into the house or apartment to do emergency repairs. Under this circumstance, the landlord may not have to give one day?s notice?or even any notice?if the emergency is really serious or dangerous (for example, the apartment is on fire or water is rushing out of a broken pipe and pouring through the floor). But even in the case of an emergency, the landlord should try to give some notice if possible, even if the notice is just a phone call.
What if the landlord won?t stay out?

If the landlord or one of the landlord?s workers comes into your house or apartment and does not have your permission or does not have one of the other reasons discussed above, he or she is breaking the law. You should send a letter by certified mail to the landlord complaining about what happened. Make sure to keep a copy for your records. You can also call the police or go to the police station or local court and file a complaint for ?trespass? or ?harassment? against the person who entered without your permission. You might be able to file a trespass or harassment complaint because, even though your landlord owns the building, he or she has given you the right to possess the apartment.



This article is taken from Tenants' Rights in New Jersey, and also appeared in the April 2004 issue of Looking Out for Your Legal Rights?.http://www.lsnjlaw.org/english/placeilive/irentmyhome/index.cfm

it is unfortunate, but this sort of thing, atleast in my experience as a renter, routinely happens. I have yet to have an apt. where the landlord did not break this rule. sure, my landlords would tell me most of the time that they needed to get in for some reason or another, but each of my landlords has always on atleast a few occasions neglected to let me know.

When I was living on Bright, my landlord routinely broke this rule. I came home one day from work, parked my car across the street from my front door, and as I turned and started walking towards my apt., I see two Mexicans standing in my doorway, just kinda hanging out, front door wide open, and my roommate wasn't home. Of course I immediately thought "wtf", I approached the two guys asking what their business was being in my apt., they couldn't speak ANY English, and eventually after bringing me upstairs to the second floor, showed me they were doing work on a window in my hallway. This sort of thing just shouldn't be, ya know?

I came home from work last night to find people asking if I knew where my landlord was. She was supposed to meet them there to show them the upstairs apartment and didn't show up. (She's flighty.) One of them pointed to a "for rent" sign in the second floor window. (My window.) I said, "that looks like it's taped on from the inside." Sure enough, it was.

She didn't ask me beforehand. Didn't even leave a note. She just let herself in and put it up. I've seen some outrageous bullsh*t in my time but that blows my mind. I'm sure it says on my lease that "landlord can enter property if need be," but this is ridiculous.

So I took the sign out of my window and left a nasty message on her cell phone. Why, Lord, oh why?