The Renter's Right to Full Disclosure in Minnesota
- Minnesota's utility notice disclosure law requires landlords to enter into written leases with their tenants if they use single utility meters. Their leases must contain a utility meter provision outlining how they will divide utility costs between tenants and their method of apportionment. Landlords must provide their prospective tenants with total utility costs of their total utility bills if they use single utility meters. They must use the last 12 months of their utility bills to estimate their costs. Tenants have a right to request original utility bills from their landlords during their tenancies, and landlords are required to keep copies of their bills for at least two years or from the time they purchased their buildings from previous landlords, whichever is later.
- Landlords must disclose any outstanding citation orders before they actually enter into leases with tenants, or collect rent or security deposits. Furthermore, landlords are required to give their tenants a copy of condemnation orders. Landlords who lease their properties with pending condemnation orders may not be able to keep their tenants' rent. Under Minnesota law, landlords must post summaries of their inspections in conspicuous areas in their buildings.
- Minnesota landlords are required to notify tenants of the existence of lead-based paint dangers in their apartments if their units were built before 1978. Landlords must provide their tenants with an EPA brochure, "Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home." Furthermore, landlords are required to provide their tenants with a written provision in their leases warning them of the health hazards from exposure to lead-based paint.
- Minnesota law requires landlords to disclose any pending foreclosure actions before they enter into leases with their tenants, collect rent from them, or collect security deposits. Their disclosures must notify the tenants of whether they received foreclosure notices or deed cancellation notices. Banks foreclosing on a Minnesota landlord's property must also provide these foreclosure notices to prospective tenants, and banks can face civil fines of $500 for failing to notify tenants of their pending intent to foreclose upon their landlords' buildings.