Tristan’s Landlord-Tenant Law Blog
Call us: (414) 276-2850
Page 25 of 43. Go to first page
The Thoughts of One Over-Assessed Rental Propety Owner
Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in Property Assessments / Comments
This is helpful information for landlords that feel that their rental properties have been over-assessed and provides one landlord's view of the vicious cycle of over assessing rental property in certain areas of the city. I would like to thank Tim Ballering for allowing me to reprint his article on my blog.The tax assessment appeal period will close on Monday the 16th at 4:45 PM. You can get paper forms at the ...
Read MoreMust A Landlord Actually Repair Tenant-Caused Damage Before The Landlord Can Deduct The Cost From A Tenant's Security Deposit?
Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in Tenant Damage, Security Deposit / Comments
This issue keeps raising its head over and over and over . . . so I feel compelled to address it. The question: Must a landlord have completed the repair of tenant-caused damages to a rental unit before being legally able to deduct the repair costs from the tenant's security deposit?I personally believe the answer to that question is "No" -- the repair work does not need to be completed prior to a landlord being able ...
Read MoreMilwaukee County Eviction Court "Odds & Ends"
Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in Evictions, Milwaukee County / Comments
I wanted to update everyone about some recent news in Milwaukee County Eviction Court. Each of the items are too small for there own blog post, so I thought I would combine them as "Odds & Ends." This might be a regular blog post column in the future : )1. Out with the old and in with the new -- commissioners, that is.Most of the court commissioners that had been serving in small ...
Read MoreThe Consequences of A Landlord Violating Wisconsin's Residential Rental Practices (ATCP 134)
Posted by admin in ATCP 134 / Comments
The Residential Landlord Tenant relationship is controlled by two main areas of law: (1) Chapter 704 of the Wisconsin Statutes, and (2) the Wisconsin Administrative Code, Chapter ATCP 134 entitled "Residential Rental Practices."ATCP 134 sets forth 21 regulations that a landlord must follow in a residential landlord tenant context. ATCP 134, under its orginal name "Agriculture 134," was first introduced in ...
Read MoreA Legal Explanation To Landlords About Who Can Appear In Eviction Court on Behalf of a LLC and Why
Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in Evictions, LLC's / Comments
In the last few months I have been asked by many landlords why Milwaukee County will not allow members of an LLC to represent the LLC in eviction court. I would like to address this issue with the hope that I can shed some light on this subject.First, let’s deal with the elephant in the room which happens to be wearing a suit and carrying a briefcase (and writing this blog ...
Read MoreRepeal of Expanded 1099 Requirements Signed Into Law
Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in Legislation, 1099's / Comments
President Obama has officially signed H.R. 4, the “Comprehensive 1099 Taxpayer Protection and Repayment of Exchange Subsidy Overpayments Act of 2011” into law. This new law retroactively repeals prior 1099 reporting rules for landlords that were added by 2010 legislation (i.e. the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act -- better known as Obamacare).Prior to the 2010 legislation, it was generally required that if you were ...
Read MorePursuing a Money Judgement Against An Ex-Tenant . . . Should You Even Bother?
Posted by admin in Tenant Damage, Collections / Comments
Once you have evicted a tenant and have your property returned to you, you are confronted with the decision of whether to invest the time and money to pursue the ex-tenant for money damages or not.Some of my landlord clients always pursue the ex-tenant for money judgments. Of that segment of landlords, some will obtain their ...
Read MoreCity of Waukesha's Free Landlord Training Program Tomorrow
Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. / Comments
For those of you who own and/or manage rental properties in the city of Waukesha or the surrounding areas, the City of Waukesha Police Department will be holding its Landlord Training Program tomorrow, April 13, 2011.The program will be held at the Rotary Building which is located at 1150 Baxter Street (behind the Frame Park baseball diamond).I will presenting a free seminar as part of the program starting at 12:30 pm. ...
Read MoreCCAP Might Be Affected by Governor's Proposed Budget
Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in Legislation, CCAP / Comments
Just when we thought CCAP would be left alone for awhile (after the dismantling of the CCAP Comittee) word comes of another potential attack on CCAP --- this time it is financial. The Wisconsin Law Journal recently published a post by Jason Smathers of the Associated Press indicating that court officials are concerned that CCAP may be affected if the governor's proposed budget breaks up its funding.The Governor's proposed budget apparently would ...
Read MoreU.S. Senate Votes to Repeal New 1099 Reporting Requirements for Businesses and Landlords
Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in Legislation, 1099's / Comments
The U.S. Senate has passed H.R. 4 which repeals the new 1099 reporting laws for businesses and rental property owners. The vote was 87-12. Since the House had already passed this bill -- and no modifications were made by the Senate -- the bill will now go to the President for his signature. While the President has indicated that he did not care for the "pay for" (offset) provisions that were included in ...
Read More
