§521-74  Retaliatory evictions and rent
increases prohibited.  (a)  Notwithstanding that the tenant has no written
rental agreement or that it has expired, so long as the tenant continues to
tender the usual rent to the landlord or proceeds to tender receipts for rent
lawfully withheld, no action or proceeding to recover possession of the
dwelling unit may be maintained against the tenant, nor shall the landlord
otherwise cause the tenant to quit the dwelling unit involuntarily, nor demand
an increase in rent from the tenant; nor decrease the services to which the
tenant has been entitled, after:



(1)  The tenant has complained in good faith to the
department of health, landlord, building department, office of consumer
protection, or any other governmental agency concerned with landlord-tenant
disputes of conditions in or affecting the tenant's dwelling unit which
constitutes a violation of a health law or regulation or of any provision of
this chapter; or



(2)  The department of health or other governmental
agency has filed a notice or complaint of a violation of a health law or
regulation or any provision of this chapter; or



(3)  The tenant has in good faith requested repairs
under section 521-63 or 521-64.



(b)  Notwithstanding subsection (a), the landlord
may recover possession of the dwelling unit if:



(1)  The tenant is committing waste, or a nuisance, or
is using the dwelling unit for an illegal purpose or for other than living or
dwelling purposes in violation of the tenant's rental agreement;



(2)  The landlord seeks in good faith to recover
possession of the dwelling unit for immediate use as the landlord's own abode
or that of the landlord's immediate family;



(3)  The landlord seeks in good faith to recover
possession of the dwelling unit for the purpose of substantially altering,
remodeling, or demolishing the premises;



(4)  The complaint or request of subsection (a)
relates only to a condition or conditions caused by the lack of ordinary care
by the tenant or another person in the tenant's household or on the premises
with the tenant's consent;



(5)  The landlord has received from the department of
health certification that the dwelling unit and other property and facilities
used by or affecting the use and enjoyment of the tenant were on the date of
filing of the complaint or request in compliance with health laws and
regulations;



(6)  The landlord has in good faith contracted to sell
the property, and the contract of sale contains a representation by the
purchaser corresponding to paragraph (2) or (3); or



(7)  The landlord is seeking to recover possession on
the basis of a notice to terminate a periodic tenancy, which notice was given
to the tenant previous to the complaint or request of subsection (a).



(c)  Any tenant from whom possession has been
recovered or who has been otherwise involuntarily dispossessed, in violation of
this section, is entitled to recover the damages sustained by the tenant and
the cost of suit, including reasonable attorney's fees.



(d)  Notwithstanding subsection (a), the
landlord may increase the rent if:



(1)  The landlord has received from the department of
health certification that the dwelling unit and other property and facilities
used by and affecting the use and enjoyment of the tenant were on the date of
filing of the complaint or request of subsection (a) in compliance with health
laws and regulations;



(2)  The landlord has become liable for a substantial
increase in property taxes, or a substantial increase in other maintenance or
operating costs not associated with the landlord's complying with the complaint
or request, not less than four months prior to the demand for an increase in
rent; and the increase in rent does not exceed the prorated portion of the net
increase in taxes or costs;



(3)  The landlord has completed a capital improvement
of the dwelling unit or the property of which it is a part and the increase in
rent does not exceed the amount which may be claimed for federal income tax
purposes as a straight-line depreciation of the improvement, prorated among the
dwelling units benefited by the improvement;



(4)  The complaint or request of subsection (a)
relates only to a condition or conditions caused by the want of due care by the
tenant or another person of the tenant's household or on the premises with the
tenant's consent; or



(5)  The landlord can establish, by competent
evidence, that the rent now demanded of the tenant does not exceed the rent
charged other tenants of similar dwelling units in the landlord's building or,
in the case of a single-family residence or where there is no similar dwelling
unit in the building, does not exceed the market rental value of the dwelling
unit. [L 1972, c 132, pt of §1; am L 1975, c 104, §5; am L 1981, c 235, §4; gen
ch 1985]



Case Notes



 



  Specified rights and remedies are not exclusive as basis for
defense of retaliatory eviction.  59 H. 104, 577 P.2d 326.