Landlord-Tenant Law and Property Management
What the exam tests
Landlord-Tenant Law and Property Management tests Pennsylvania statutory duties, eviction procedure, security deposits, habitability, and licensing of property managers. Questions often combine agency and landlord-tenant rules.
Core rules
- Pennsylvania’s Landlord and Tenant Act governs residential leases, notice to quit, and eviction; a landlord may not use self-help to remove a tenant.
- For nonpayment of rent, the landlord generally must give written notice and file a complaint with the district justice; the tenant may have a right to cure in some circumstances.
- The implied warranty of habitability requires the landlord to maintain safe, sanitary conditions; retaliation for tenant complaints is prohibited.
- Security deposits are limited and must be held in escrow; the landlord must provide a written statement of damages and return the balance within the statutory period.
- Property management for another for compensation is brokerage activity requiring a Pennsylvania broker license; a salesperson may manage only under a broker.
Worked example
A tenant withholds rent because the furnace failed in January. The landlord changes the locks. The lockout is unlawful self-help; the landlord must pursue eviction through the district justice. The tenant may raise habitability and escrow defenses, but cannot be locked out without a court order.
Traps that cost marks
Do not confuse notice to quit with a court judgment. Do not assume a lease waiver of habitability is enforceable. Do not let an unlicensed property manager negotiate leases for a fee. Do not overlook deposit escrow and accounting rules.