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01-18-2013 at 8:56 AM
bel194
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Do I have to tell my landlord that I'm pregnant?

Our lease doesn't say anything about kids but when we were moving into our new place, he told us that he doesn't like to rent to people with kids.  We got our bfp a week after we moved in, so the landlord still doesn't know.  Do we legally have to tell him and could he evict us once the baby is here? I live in Wisconsin if that makes a difference..  

 
01-18-2013 at 8:58 AM
gulickr
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I doubt he could evict you; that screams "illegal" to me. That said, if you live in an older building, he may be required to do things like test for lead paint, or if you live above the first floor, he may be required to install safety guards on your windows, depending on your state/town regulations.

I'd just call the town or state housing office and ask to speak with someone who can advise you. 


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01-18-2013 at 9:06 AM
MelRC117
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I live in Wisconsin and I think him evicting you because of having a child would be illegal (assuming you don't live in like a senior community thing).  If you had an adult living with you not on the lease, yes that could be a violation on the lease, but children typically aren't put on the lease.  It may be he doesn't like renting to people with kids because he may have had bad experiences, maybe noise issues, more wear and tear on the apartment, having to replace carpeting, etc.

I would contact your city housing department or if you dont have that your planning department should know or could direct you to another resource that can answer your question about having to tell him or if he has the right to evict you or not renew your lease because of having a child.


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01-18-2013 at 9:09 AM
elmoali
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You have a lease so that's important.  When our son was born we lived in a month to month apartment and I knew that when given the choice, our landlord always opted to rent to people with no kids.  Of course, she can't say that legally but if you've got two applicants you can make a case for choosing one over the other.  Because we had no lease, she could also ask us to leave at any time so I was nervous about telling her but it ended fine.  The only thing is, the other poster is right about testing for lead paint.  Ours never did even though she was legally required to do so.  I would have pushed the issue except that A) none of our wood was painted so we knew the risk was lower and B) we were actively house hunting the first year he was born.  But if you're going to stay there, make sure they do that.

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01-18-2013 at 9:15 AM
etoille
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bel194:
Our lease doesn't say anything about kids but when we were moving into our new place, he told us that he doesn't like to rent to people with kids.  We got our bfp a week after we moved in, so the landlord still doesn't know.  Do we legally have to tell him and could he evict us once the baby is here? I live in Wisconsin if that makes a difference..  

No.  You don't have to tell him.

No.  He can't evict you.  Not unless he wants to pay a truckload of damages.

Lots of law schools have students doing housing clinics - if you run into problems I'd start there.


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01-18-2013 at 9:16 AM
lisa5201
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Well, housing discrimination is illegal so your landlord cannot legally evict you for being pregnant. That would fall under familial status and it would be rental discrimination. You could have a lawsuit

I believe that you will have to disclose if you have another person living with you. Normally  on your lease you list the occupants of the home, and you'll need to add your LO, so yes, eventually you will have to disclose.

While there are plenty of perfectly legal reasons your landlord could evict you, your familial status is not one of them. If you get an eviction notice, file a complaint with the department of housing and urban development immediately. If you Google housing discrimination you should get plenty of info. If you have good rental history and have not broken your lease in any way your landlord must honor your lease. I would definitely put up a fight. The kind of person who would evict a pregnant woman is not the type of person who should be allowed to be a landlord.


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01-18-2013 at 9:22 AM
ConnieRob
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How many bedrooms is your apartment?

I know when we lived in a one bedroom apartment there was a max of 2 people allowed to live there. It was part of our lease. I'd check your lease and see if it says anything about that. I doubt our landlord would have evicted us if we brought DS home but we were on a wait list for a 2 bedroom in the same complex and wound up moving just a few weeks before he was born.


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01-18-2013 at 9:35 AM
RissNRuss
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Read through your lease- ours says a maximum of 2 people, any new move in's must be decendents of the current residents (so the way my layman brain works, we couldn't move in with a kid as signed, but if we have a baby its fine). We're planning to move based on size anyway, our baby is due 4 weeks before our lease is up! I wish you luck!

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01-18-2013 at 10:03 AM
SouthSideD...
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No, you're fine. None of his business.

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01-18-2013 at 10:13 AM
Tangerine0...
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It is discrimination for your landlord to tell you that they do not "like to rent to people with kids".  I work for a property management company and you would be surprised some of the things owners will say they do not want in their property, but there is no way we could ever enforce requests to only rent to white people or people without children.  If they are bound by the landlord tenant act in my state they can't even discriminate against college students, which many people wish they could do! 

I wouldn't bring it up unless you happen to see your landlord for some reason, or after the baby is born to say you want to add their name as someone residing in the property.  As long as your lease isn't month to month like the poster above, they cannot kick you out for having a baby. 


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01-18-2013 at 10:46 AM
LadyDelila...
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Um no. They can evict you for using drugs not your choice to have a child. They can choose not to renew your lease but other than that theres nothing they can do.

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01-18-2013 at 1:15 PM
I Love my ...
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I wouldn't say anything

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01-18-2013 at 1:23 PM
highlights
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This document has some numbers to call. I'd start there: http://datcp.wi.gov/uploads/Consumer/pdf/TenantsRights143.pdf


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01-18-2013 at 1:29 PM
KtrynReu
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Like someone else said, read your lease.  My lease, for my one-bedroom, says that I can live with my child in my one bedroom until the child is 18 months old.  After that, I cannot.  I could move into a two-bedroom and stay in the same place, but not stay in my same apartment. 

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01-18-2013 at 1:46 PM
starrjelly
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The only thing I can think of is if there are additional housing law/requirements for apartments with kids.  Some cities require the window bars which would then cost the landlord (for example).

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01-18-2013 at 2:05 PM
sometimesd...
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The only reason I'd mention it is because you might need to get lead paint removed, or window guards placed. You want to make sure your home is as safe as possible for baby.

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01-18-2013 at 5:07 PM
jessonadve...
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Check out the Tenant Resource Center in Madison. They're a fabulous resource for tenants' rights and advocacy.

http://tenantresourcecenter.org/pc/ 

 
01-18-2013 at 8:55 PM
HelgaFunk
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LadyDelilah:
Um no. They can evict you for using drugs not your choice to have a child. They can choose not to renew your lease but other than that theres nothing they can do.

I'm confused. I'm pretty sure people chose whether or not they're having a child.


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01-18-2013 at 9:10 PM
sometimesd...
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HelgaFunk:

LadyDelilah:
Um no. They can evict you for using drugs not your choice to have a child. They can choose not to renew your lease but other than that theres nothing they can do.

I'm confused. I'm pretty sure people chose whether or not they're having a child.

 

Do you really want to go there? Really? Let's not have a reproductive rights debate here at the bump, please. 


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01-19-2013 at 5:09 AM
StarshineR
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"I'm pretty sure people chose whether or not they're having a child."

Isn't that what Delilah said?  

 
01-19-2013 at 7:41 AM
lindsey618...
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StarshineR:
"I'm pretty sure people chose whether or not they're having a child."Isn't that what Delilah said? nbsp;


Yes. People apparently don't know how to read. She stated that they could be evicted for using drugs but could not be evicted because they chose to have a child....

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01-19-2013 at 11:03 PM
Jasmineeel...
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It must depend on where you live. I live in Alberta Canada and there are a lot of buildings that are adults only and we have to move into a family friendly building because our lease says no children.

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01-20-2013 at 4:51 AM
Runaway22
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If there's nothing in the lease (aka the legal contract), he can't evict you for having a baby. There might be a clause about paying extra rent for an additional member of the household, but he can't evict you because he doesn't like renting to kids. 

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01-20-2013 at 6:00 PM
lalvillar0...
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sometimesdee:
HelgaFunk:

LadyDelilah:
Um no. They can evict you for using drugs not your choice to have a child. They can choose not to renew your lease but other than that theres nothing they can do.

I'm confused. I'm pretty sure people chose whether or not they're having a child.

 

Do you really want to go there? Really? Let's not have a reproductive rights debate here at the bump, please. 

 This sentence is missing punctuation. I think she meant that they can evict you for using drugs, but they can't evict you for choosing to have a child. You are on the same page, don't worry! 

 
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