The Appeals Court issued an interesting decision last week about the important landlord-tenant topic of how to return a security deposit. The decision, Slater v. Traynor Management, is included below. Massachusetts law covers nearly every aspect of a landlord’s acceptance, more »
Massachusetts heavily regulates security deposits for residential tenancies. The law covers nearly every aspect of the acceptance, holding, and return of a security deposit. Security deposit violations can occur in many ways. The penalties for not complying with this law more »
This Wednesday, I will be moderating a panel at the Boston Bar Association on Massachusetts’s security deposit law. Most people, especially landlords, are often surprised at how something as mundane as a security deposit law can be so complex and more »
It is not uncommon for Massachusetts landlords to accept security deposits from tenants. In doing so, many make mistakes in complying with Massachusetts’s security deposit law; arguably one of the most complex and detailed laws in the state. This law more »
A recent article from the Boston Globe, “Apartment management won’t return security deposit? That’s just one problem at this Revere complex,” highlights the importance of understanding Massachusetts’ security deposit law: an important consumer protection law for tenants. Overview of Massachusetts’s Security more »
A landlord not returning a security deposit is one of the most common complaints that comes up between tenants and landlords in Massachusetts. Massachusetts law heavily regulates the handling of security deposits, and this law can be used when a more »
A landlord not giving a security deposit back is one of the most common type of landlord/tenant problems. What should a tenant do if this happens to them? Overview of Massachusetts’s Security Deposit Law Massachusetts’s security deposit law regulates how more »
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court issued an important decision on Massachusetts’s security deposit law earlier this year which clarifies the damages than a tenant can obtain from a security deposit violation. In Phillips v. Equity Residential Management, LLC, the Supreme more »
Both tenants and landlords can benefit from help with a security deposit. Massachusetts’s security deposit law is not light reading, and often requires even the most experienced landlord-tenant attorney to review the law more than once to understand its many, more »
Rule number one for Massachusetts landlords: never, never take a security deposit. As I have written before, the risks just aren’t worth it. The Massachusetts Security Deposit Law is one of the most complex and detailed laws on the more »
