Many Americans look forward to one of the biggest social holidays of the country— New Year’s Eve. People from different areas of the country hold dinners in their homes, go to private parties or attend large public celebrations. They have fun as they bid adieu to the past year and receive the new year. You can expect your Exeter tenants to do something similar as well. They may entertain guests in their home to celebrate New Year’s Eve. Because of this, when the question of your renters throwing parties comes up, you’ll need to identify how you can keep the parties from going out of control. There is a proactive approach you can take: from the language in your lease documents to proper enforcement of its terms.
Making sure your tenants’ New Year’s Eve celebrations don’t become unruly affairs that increase the risk of damage and liability can be challenging. As an illustration, think about how many people are allowed to join a party on your property; how many would be too many? Would it be legal (or even a good idea) to try and limit the amount of alcohol served? What if the celebration your tenants want would be to use traditional fireworks or noisemakers at midnight?
Problems like these can all be cleared up in your lease documents. The wording in your lease should explicitly state the allowable number of guests permitted on the property at any given time; and if the tenant would want even more people, they should ask for special permission. The specific number can vary, but “no more than 10 for fewer than four hours” is a popular option.
While you can’t lawfully prevent your renters from consuming alcohol, you can put in specific language in your lease that addresses illegal activities, and write down in no uncertain words the specific consequences of tolerating such behavior on your rental property in Exeter. Consider, also, prohibiting excessive numbers of people— and with that, a large number of cars— and unreasonably loud noise. Fireworks should be not be permitted at all of your rental homes, and you probably need to write a specific section that tackles specific holiday-related activities (such as music played at excessive volumes or the use of noisemakers) that would cause a public nuisance for everybody in the neighborhood.
Another option you have is to require your tenants to get renters insurance including renters legal liability. Because, if they do throw a large party on your property, the probability of damage and injury increases considerably. If damage or injury does happen, you could be considered responsible unless your tenants have their own insurance coverage.
Finally, to protect your rental home, you need to be diligent in enforcing the terms of the lease agreement. If a celebration gets unruly and loud, destructive, or illegal activity is taking place, it’s essential that you act immediately and resolutely to hold your renters accountable.
The great news is that you don’t need to face all these issues on your own. At Real Property Management Seacoast New Hampshire, we will ensure that your lease documents include specific and binding language while monitoring activity, watching for those things that may not comply. Feel free to contact us online or by phone at 603-343-2202. We’ll be glad to answer any of your questions.
We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. See Equal Housing Opportunity Statement for more information.