SB 390 = Big changes in 2016

SB 390 = Big changes in 2016

The passage of SB 390 this fall is making some big changes in Oregon Landlord Tenant Law. Landlord and tenant advocacy groups are both claiming victory. However, those in the trenches managing property clearly see that there was no victory for either side, and at this point we are just trading blows. Some of the changes going into effect are:   

• The ability to pass through some municipal bills directly to tenants. There are some restrictions for this and Empire will be taking advantage of this new law.

• New standards on how tenant payments are to be applied.

• New standards for requiring all bedrooms to have a secondary emergency exit. This is not an issue for most of us. However, many older homes who were previously grandfathered in may be open to a new interpretation. We are waiting on some clarification on this issue.

• Empire has been requiring our tenants to carry a renters insurance policy for several years. Now we can require the tenants to add Empire as an interested party to the policy. This will help with Empire enforcing the issuance.   

As a rule Empire does not support the passage of any new changes to the current landlord tenant law as we have seen through the years that even the laws that benefit landlords create friction and conflict between landlords and tenants. Sadly, politicians thrive on this conflict as their source of importance is keeping the two sides in perpetual war.