The Nevada State Legislature recently passed Assembly Bill 486, which protects tenants from being evicted under a specific set of circumstances, until June 2023. This expiration date conveniently lines up with the next state legislative session.
What this means for Nevada landlords is,
- Eviction for nonpayment of rent is much more difficult.
- Nevada landlords cannot use a “no-cause” eviction if the tenant is in default of rent at the time the notice is served.
- Tenants may not be evicted for nonpayment in Nevada if:
- they have a pending application for rental assistance
- the landlord refuses to accept the rental assistance
- the landlord refuses to cooperate with a rental assistance program
It is important to note that AB 486 is not applicable to serious nuisance issues, unlawful subletting, unlawful business activities, foreclosure, commercial evictions, or in case of extreme lease violations like drug violations or property damage. It is applicable only in case of nonpayment.
The Impact of AB 486 on Nevada Landlords
While the rental assistance program offers protection to the tenants against eviction due to nonpayment of rent, it can put landlords in a dicey situation, if they cannot collect rent in a timely manner and cannot evict non-paying tenants in a reasonable timeframe.
Under the law, if tenants apply for assistance and oppose eviction, landlords cannot evict them for ninety days until the application is processed. This implies that the landlord may have to wait for at least 3 months to know if a tenant’s application has been approved or denied. In addition, landlords cannot refuse to participate in the rental assistance program.
The result? Non-payers will be able to stay longer in your Las Vegas rental property.
In addition, landlords will have to hire licensed professionals to send legal notices for eviction filing procedures, which will add to their costs.
From a long-term perspective, since this law is set to be expire in June 2023, which coincides with the next state legislative session, we expect additional changes to the Nevada landlord-tenant law at that time.
It could mean that no-cause evictions may become illegal in Nevada. We may see “just cause” eviction rules become legislated in Nevada in 2023, similar to several other states’ laws. The bottom line is that landlords need to be more careful than ever in screening rental applications, to avoid costly problems with bad tenants.
How is Strawberry Property Management Dealing with This?
AtStrawberry Property Management Las Vegas, we already have a very strict tenant screening policy and hence, a very high percentage of tenants (about 97-98%) who pay rent on time.
All rental applicants are required to meet basic requirements such as:
- Verifiable income at least 3 times the rent (we verify deposit history electronically)
- No evictions in the past 5 years
- No unpaid landlords or utility bills
- Must not be currently behind on “essential” payments such as car loans
- No active criminal proceedings, or any history of violent crimes or criminal property damage
- No registered sex offenses
In addition, we require renters meet a minimum credit score of 650 to qualify, or be ready to pay increased security deposit. We conduct thorough local and national background checks to screen the best tenants for your Nevada rental.
With new landlord-tenant laws passing in 2019 and again in 2021, we have tightened our tenant screening processes, to ensure that our clients always have a good leasing experience.
Professionally speaking, while the new legislation may have been passed with good intentions, it is more likely to cause landlords to raise their expectations of prospective tenants. However, Nevada is still more landlord-friendly than several coastal states, with more affordable real estate prices, which makes it a great option for out of state rental investors.
For more information about how AB 486 can impact your Nevada rental or what are the steps you need to take if you need to evict a tenant, contact us atStrawberry Property Management Las Vegas.