|
|
|
|
General
Information
Clerk
of Court
Probation
Links |
Rent Escrow
If
a landlord fails to comply with § 5321.04 of the Ohio Revised Code,
“Obligations of Landlord”, or fails to fulfill any obligation
imposed upon him by the rental agreement, and if the conditions of the
residential premises are such that the tenant reasonably believes that a
landlord has failed to fulfill any such obligation, or if a governmental
agency has found that the premises are not in compliance with building,
housing, health, or safety codes that apply to any condition of the
premises that could materially affect the health and safety of an
occupant, the tenant may take the following steps to deposit their rent
in escrow. The
tenant must give notice in writing to the landlord, specifying the
wrongful acts, omissions or code violations that constitute
noncompliance. The notice
shall be dated and sent to the person or place where rent is normally
paid and state that if repairs are not made, rent will be deposited with
the court. If
the landlord fails to remedy the condition within a reasonable time
considering the severity of the condition and the time necessary to
remedy it, or within thirty (30) days, whichever is sooner, and if the
tenant is current in rent payments due under the rental agreement, the
tenant may deposit all rent that is due and thereafter becomes due the
landlord with the clerk of the municipal or county court having
jurisdiction in the territory in which the residential premises are
located, plus 1% of the rent due, which shall be taxed as court costs.
A copy of the written notice must be filed with the clerk when
the application to deposit rent is filed. The
clerk in turn will send a “Notice to Landlord” notifying them of the
rent escrow action. The
landlord will need to file a motion to release rent or a motion for
hearing on the rent escrow. The
matter will be set for hearing before the Judge.
All parties will be notified in writing of the hearing date and
time. Until then, all rent
must be paid by the due date to the clerk. Applications
to deposit rent are available at the Clerk’s Office. |
