Housing Law

Landlords and tenants have different responsibilities under Connecticut law. It is important that landlords and tenants understand their responsibilities as well as the responsibilities of the other and the remedies allowed by law. Under Connecticut law:

Landlord’s responsibilities. A landlord shall: (1) Comply with all applicable building and housing codes that materially affect health and safety; (2) make repairs and do whatever is necessary to keep the premises in a fit and habitable condition; (3) keep all common areas of the premises in a clean and safe condition; (4) maintain all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating and other facilities and appliances and elevators, supplied or required to be supplied by him in good and safe working order and condition; (5) provide and maintain appropriate waste receptacles for the removal of garbage; and (6) supply running water and reasonable amounts of hot water at all times and reasonable heat unless not required by law. 

Landlord rules and regulations. A landlord may adopt a rule or regulation concerning the tenant’s use and occupancy of the premises. Such rule or regulation is enforceable against the tenant only if (1) the purpose of the rule or regulation is to promote the convenience, safety or welfare of the tenants in the premises, preserve the landlord’s property from abusive use or make a fair distribution of services and facilities held out for all the tenants generally; (2) the rule or regulation is reasonably related to the purpose for which it is adopted; (3) the rule or regulation applies to all tenants in the premises in a fair manner; (4) the rule or regulation is sufficiently explicit in its prohibition, direction or limitation of the tenant’s conduct to fairly inform him of what he shall or shall not do to comply; and (5) the tenant has notice of the rule or regulation at the time he enters into the rental agreement or when the rule or regulation is adopted.

However, if a rule or regulation that would result in a substantial modification of the terms of the rental agreement is adopted after the tenant enters into the rental agreement, such rule or regulation is not valid unless the tenant consents to such rule or regulation in writing. 

Tenant’s responsibilities. A tenant shall: (1) Comply with all obligations primarily imposed upon tenants by applicable provisions of any building, housing or fire code materially affecting health and safety; (2) keep the premises clean and safe as the condition of the premises permit; (3) remove garbage and other waste from the premises in a clean and safe manner; (4) keep all plumbing fixtures and appliances in the dwelling unit as clean as the condition of each such fixture or appliance permits; (5) use all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air conditioning and other facilities and appliances, including elevators, in the premises in a reasonable manner; (6) not willfully or negligently destroy, deface, damage, impair or remove any part of the premises or permit any other person to do so; (7) conduct himself and require other persons on the premises with his consent to conduct themselves in a manner that will not disturb his neighbors’ peaceful enjoyment of the premises or constitute a nuisance; and (8) if judgment has entered against a member of the tenant’s household for serious nuisance by using the premises for the illegal sale of drugs, not permit such person to resume occupancy of the dwelling unit, except with the consent of the landlord. 

Breach of rental agreement by tenant. Measure of damages. If a landlord terminates a residential or commercial tenancy on the grounds that the tenant committed a breach of the rental agreement and the landlord brings an action for damages for the breach, such damages shall include the amount of rent agreed to by the parties but unpaid by the tenant. The landlord is obligated to mitigate damages.

Breach of agreement by landlord. Tenant’s remedies. If there is a material noncompliance by the landlord with the rental agreement or a noncompliance with landlord’s responsibilities under the statute which materially affects health and safety, the tenant may deliver a written notice to the landlord specifying the acts and omissions constituting the breach. If the breach is not remedied within fifteen days after receipt of the notice, the rental agreement will terminate on such date. If substantially the same act or omission which constituted a prior noncompliance of which notice was given, recurs within six months of the first act of noncompliance, the tenant may terminate the rental agreement upon at least fourteen days written notice specifying (1) the date the breach complained of occurred and (2) the date the tenant intends to terminate the rental agreement by vacating the premises, which date shall be within thirty days of such breach. 

Failure of landlord to supply essential services. Tenant’s remedies. If the landlord is required to supply heat, running water, hot water, electricity, gas or other essential service, and fails to do so and the failure is not caused by conditions beyond the landlord’s control, the tenant may (1) give notice to the landlord specifying the breach and may elect to pay for it and deduct the actual and reasonable cost of such service from the rent; or (2) find reasonable substitute housing during the period of the landlord’s noncompliance if the landlord fails to supply such service within two business days of such breach; or (3) if the failure to supply such service is willful, the tenant may terminate the rental agreement and recover an amount not more than two months’ periodic rent or double the actual damages sustained by him, whichever is greater.

Noncompliance by tenant. Remedy of breach by tenant. Landlord’s remedies. Prior to a summary process action, the landlord must deliver a written notice to the tenant specifying the acts or omissions constituting the breach and that the rental agreement will terminate upon a date not less than fifteen days after receipt of the notice. If the breach can be remedied by repair by the tenant or payment of damages by the tenant to the landlord and is not so remedied within such fifteen-day period, the rental agreement will terminate.

Retaliatory action by landlord prohibited. A landlord shall not maintain an action or proceeding against a tenant to recover possession of a dwelling unit, demand an increase in rent from the tenant, or decrease the services to which the tenant has been entitled within six months after: (1) The tenant has in good faith attempted to remedy by any lawful means, including contacting officials of the state, town, city or borough or public agency or filing a complaint concerning the premises; (2) any municipal agency or official has filed a notice, complaint or order regarding such a violation; (3) the tenant has in good faith requested the landlord to make repairs; (4) the tenant has in good faith instituted legal action; or (5) the tenant has organized or become a member of a tenants’ union. 

Actions deemed not retaliatory. A landlord may maintain an action to recover possession of the dwelling unit if: (1) The tenant is using the dwelling unit for an illegal purpose or for a purpose which is in violation of the rental agreement or for nonpayment of rent; (2) the landlord seeks in good faith to recover possession of the dwelling unit for immediate use as his own abode; (3) the condition complained of was caused by the willful actions of the tenant or another person in his household or a person on the premises with his consent; or (4) the landlord seeks to recover possession on the basis of a notice to terminate a periodic tenancy, which notice was given to the tenant before the tenant’s complaint.

Eviction Process in Connecticut

When a landlord wishes to regain possession over the premises, he/she may evict a tenant for legitimate reasons.  The process for removing an occupant is the same regardless of whether the rental unit is a room within a single-family residence or an apartment in a multi-unit building. This is true even if the primary resident is a renter. Subtenants are protected under the landlord-tenant laws, and tenants have standing to evict subtenants.

Eviction is accomplished through summary process, which proceeds as follows:

1. Notice to Quit. The landlord must serve the notice to quit before a rental agreement is terminated.
2. Summons and Complaints. If the tenant does not quit possession by the date specified in the notice, the landlord must serve a summons and complaint upon the tenant.
3. Appearance. A tenant must respond to the summons and complaint by filing an appearance with the court. If the tenant does not file an appearance, the landlord may file a motion for judgment for failure to appear and an endorsed copy of the notice to quit with the court. The court must then enter a judgment against the tenant and issue an order to vacate.
4. Answer to Complaint. In addition to filing an appearance, the tenant should file a summary process answer. If he or she does not, a landlord can file a motion for judgment based on failure to plead.  And if the tenant fails to plead within three days after receipt of the motion by the clerk, the court must enter judgment against the tenant.
5. Trial. A trial is scheduled after pleadings are closed (after the complaint has been answered and any special defenses have been raised and countered).
6. Judgment and Execution. A judgment is entered after the trial. If judgment is entered for a landlord, he or she must ask the court for an order of execution, which requires the tenant to move. After the court issues the execution, it must be given to a state marshal for proper service. The state marshal then serves the execution on the tenant. The state marshal is required to use reasonable efforts to locate and notify the tenant of the eviction date and time. After this period, the state marshal can physically remove the tenant’s possessions.
7. Stay of Execution. The law provides for an automatic five-day stay of execution. The tenant must file any appeal within this period. The court may grant an additional stay of up to six months if the tenant applies for it and proves, at a hearing, that he or she cannot find other suitable premises in the same town or an adjacent town. 

Termination of Lease

Notice of Termination

Before a landlord may commence a summary process action against a tenant, the lease under which the tenant has occupied the premises must have terminated. A lease will terminate as a result of the Notice to Quit being served.

Except in cases where the landlord evicts based on nonpayment of rent, on conduct by the tenant which constitutes a serious nuisance, or on violation of C.G.S. § 47a-11(h), in order to terminate the lease, the landlord must give 15 days’ notice to the tenant specifying:

1. the acts or omissions constituting the material breach of the rental agreement or the material breach of the tenant’s duties under the law or the landlord’s rules and regulations upon which the termination is based; and
2. a date not less than thirty days after receipt of the notice by the tenant when the lease will terminate.

Note that the breach must be a material noncompliance which materially affects the health and safety of the other tenants or materially affects the physical condition of the premises or a material noncompliance by the tenant with the rental agreement or a material noncompliance with the rules and regulations.

Cure by Tenant

If the breach can be remedied by the tenant or payment of damages by the tenant to the landlord, and such breach is not so remedied within fifteen days, the rental agreement shall terminate, except that, if the breach is remediable by repairs or the payment of damages and the tenant adequately remedies the breach within such fifteen day period, the rental agreement shall not terminate.

Exceptions to Tenant’s Right to Cure

If substantially the same act or omission for which notice was given recurs within six months, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement. 

Notice to Quit

Tenants’ Duties and Responsibilities

Notice of material failure to comply with tenants’ responsibilities and failure to cure, as indicated above, may result in termination of the rental agreement. Tenants’ responsibilities under Connecticut law are to:

1. Comply with all obligations primarily imposed upon tenants by applicable provisions of any building, housing or fire code materially affecting health and safety;
2. keep such part of the premises that he occupies and uses as clean and safe as the condition of the premises permit;
3. remove from the dwelling unit all ashes, garbage, rubbish and other waste in a clean and safe manner to the place provided by the landlord;
4. keep all plumbing fixtures and appliances in the dwelling unit or used by the tenant as clean as the condition of each such fixture or appliance permits;
5. use all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air conditioning and other facilities and appliances, including elevators, in the premises in a reasonable manner;
6. not willfully or negligently destroy, deface, damage, impair or remove any part of the premises or permit any other person to do so;
7. conduct himself and require other persons on the premises with his consent to conduct themselves in a manner that will not disturb his neighbors’ peaceful enjoyment of the premises or constitute a nuisance or a serious nuisance as defined by law; and
8. if judgment has entered against a member of the tenant’s household for serious nuisance by using the premises for the illegal sale of drugs, not permit such person to resume occupancy of the dwelling unit, except with the consent of the landlord.

Abandonment of Dwelling by Occupants

If a tenant abandons a dwelling unit, the landlord may avoid the necessity of serving a notice to quit and commencing a summary process action by sending notice to each occupant at his last known address both by regular mail and certified mail stating that (1) the landlord has reason to believe the occupant has abandoned the dwelling; (2) the landlord intends to reenter and take possession unless the occupant contacts him within ten days of the receipt of notice; (3) if the occupant does not contact him he intends to remove any possessions and personal effects remaining in the premises and to re-rent the premises; and (4) if the occupant does not reclaim such possessions and personal effects within thirty days after the notice, they will be disposed of. The notice is to be in clear and simple language and must include a telephone number and a mailing address at which the landlord can be contacted. If the notices are returned as undeliverable, or the occupant fails to contact the landlord within ten days of receipt of the notice, the landlord may re-enter and take possession of the dwelling unit, at which time any rental agreement or lease still in effect shall be deemed to have been terminated.

“Abandonment” under the statute means that the occupants have vacated the premises without notice to the landlord and do not intend to return, which intention may be evidenced by removal of substantially all of their possessions and personal effects and either (1) non-payment of rent for more than two months or (2) an express statement by the occupants that they do not intend to occupy the premises after a specified date.

The landlord must inventory all possessions and personal effects of the occupant and must remove and keep them for not less than thirty days. If the occupant does not reclaim the articles, the landlord may dispose of them as he or she deems appropriate.

When Notice is Not Required

Although notice to quit will still be required to evict a tenant, the notice is not required:

1. when the landlord proceeds to evict based on nonpayment of rent, or
2. when the landlord proceeds based on conduct by the tenant which constitutes a serious nuisance as defined by law, or
3. when the landlord proceeds based on violation of C.G.S. § 47a-11(h).

In those instances, the nonpayment of rent or serious nuisance itself terminates the lease and allows the landlord to proceed directly with a notice to quit and summary process action.

Serious Nuisance Defined and Burden of Proof

A “serious nuisance” which will automatically terminate the rental agreement and permit service of a notice to quit and commencement of summary process, is defined as:

1. inflicting bodily harm upon another tenant or the landlord or threatening to inflict such harm with the present ability to affect the harm and under circumstances which would lead a reasonable person to believe that such threat will be carried out,
2. substantial and willful destruction of part of the dwelling unit or premises,
3. conduct which presents an immediate and serious danger to the safety of other tenants or the landlord, or
4. using the premises or allowing the premises to be used for prostitution or the illegal sale of drugs.

If the landlord moves to evict based upon an allegation that the tenant failed to require other persons on the premises with his consent to conduct themselves in a manner that will not constitute a serious nuisance, and the tenant claims to have no knowledge of such conduct, and if the landlord established that the premises have been used for the illegal sale of drugs, the burden is on the tenant to show that he had no knowledge of the creation of the serious nuisance.

Connecticut Landlord Rules and Regulations

A landlord may adopt a rule or regulation concerning the tenant’s use and occupancy of the premises. Such rule or regulation is enforceable against the tenant only if:

1. the purpose of the rule or regulation is to promote the convenience, safety or welfare of the tenants in the premises, preserve the landlord’s property from abusive use or make a fair distribution of services and facilities held out for all the tenants generally;
2. the rule or regulation is reasonably related to the purpose for which it is adopted;
3. the rule or regulation applies to all tenants in the premises in a fair manner;
4. the rule or regulation is sufficiently explicit in its prohibition, direction or limitation of the tenant’s conduct to fairly inform him of what he shall or shall not do to comply; and
5. the tenant has notice of the rule or regulation at the time he enters into the rental agreement or when the rule or regulation is adopted.

If, after the tenant and landlord enter into a rental agreement, the landlord adopts a rule or regulation which has the effect of substantially modifying this rental agreement, the rule or regulation will not be valid unless the tenant consents to it in writing.

Summary Process: First Step Toward Eviction

Unless the tenant’s eviction is sought for nonpayment of rent or conduct by the tenant which constitutes a serious nuisance or a violation of C.G.S. § 47a-11(h), the first step in a landlord’s efforts to evict a tenant must be the 15-day notice as outlined above.

Landlord’s Retention of Tenant’s Tendered Payment

Although the general rule is that acceptance of rent by a landlord after termination of a tenancy waives any default by the tenant which may have existed and renews the tenancy, the issue may arise as to whether the actions of the landlord constitute such acceptance.

A landlord who intends to accept payment after service of a notice to quit may protect against a deemed waiver of the tenant’s default by including specific language in the notice to quit.

Variance between Notice to Quit and Complaint

A notice to quit describing an address different from the one in the complaint or inaccurately describing the premises is invalid.

Where a notice to quit alleging nuisance and no corresponding allegation of notice appears in the complaint, a landlord may be stopped from proceeding on the ground of termination of lease, raised for the first time in the complaint.

Contact an Experienced Connecticut Housing Lawyer

Housing law can be difficult to understand and whether you need to evict a tenant or defend against an eviction, contact APEX Law Firm to understand your legal rights. We have the experience to help landlords and tenants navigate the eviction process efficiently and successfully. Call 860-900-0900 or fill out a free case evaluation form today.