Anita Lewis

The board was recently informed of the passing of Anita Lewis, a founding member of Lane ROA. I met her at meetings a few times, but others on our board have long-term memories of her and her husband Bill, who passed previously. I try to always keep in mind the people that came before us and created a fantastic organization that continues to serve our members. While the times may be changing, we would not be where we are without the many years of service from those who came before us. It’s incumbent on all of us to take our turn to be of service to our chapter, our state and our industry.

Dennis Casady, our longest serving board member, remembers them fondly. “I knew both Bill and Anita well.  They built their home on Hill Road in the Mohawk Hills. They were founding members of ROA and were active in our organization. The year when we hosted the state meeting, Anita made matching vests for our local officers to wear at the meetings.  Both Bill and Anita were Great members and will be missed.”

Scott Smith says, “I knew Anita and Bill since I was a kid. We went to church with them at Mohawk Community Church; as a little kid, the sight of Bill pulling the rope to ring the church bell was unforgettable.  For those that didn't know Bill, he suffered a near fatal accident involving high voltage electricity as a young man and lost an arm, some fingers and had severe scarring on his head. But that didn't stop him!  They had a portfolio of mobile homes on rural property in the Mohawk Valley as I recall. Both Anita and Bill (who were inseparable) were very active ROA members when I first joined up in the mid-1990s.  I believe they were awarded a Landlord of the Year award from ORHA at one point in the late 90s or early 2000s. Anita and Bill were the epitome of "mom & pop" landlords who were good business people, actively managing their own units.  They also had big hearts and were ethical, benevolent people.”

 Eugene Rental Housing Code

I’m still getting a lot of calls to the Helpline with members not quite understanding the rules for properties in the city limits of Eugene. The ordinances are extremely complicated with high penalties for noncompliance. Read my updated article on the code later in the bulletin and stay tuned for the possible implementation of Phase 3 – the success of your business depends on it.

Towing law changes

In case you weren’t aware, the Oregon State Board of Towing has implemented some rule changes that landlords need to know. I hope you’ll join us in welcoming Torey McCullough from the agency who will walk us through the new rules at this month’s online General Meeting on February 27th.

One of the important things people often miss when renting property is ensuring that there are solid rules in place about vehicles. Our rental agreement allows you to limit the number and type of vehicles on the property; requires that all vehicles on the premises must current on registration and operable; restricts vehicle repairs; specifies that no vehicles may be parked on the lawn or block access to emergency vehicles, sidewalks or walkways; prohibits storage of vehicles without the prior written consent of Owner/Agent; and prohibits anyone from living in a vehicle on the premises. The term “Vehicles” includes but is not limited to campers, cars, trailers, boats, semi-tractors, semi-trailers and motorized equipment.

I get calls on the Helpline all the time about abandoned vehicles. One of the more costly things to tow (+/- $3,000.00) is trashed RV’s, campers and motorhomes, so watch your properties and act immediately if you see a vehicle violation. If you don’t have good rules in place, remember that under ORS 90.262 (1), a landlord is allowed to change rules so if you have no good vehicle rules but have a tenant who is bringing junk vehicles to the property you may be able to implement reasonable restrictions during the tenancy.

If adopted, a rule change is enforceable only if:

      (a) Its purpose is to promote the convenience, safety or welfare of the tenants in the premises, preserve the landlord’s property from abusive use (emphasis mine), or make a fair distribution of services and facilities held out for the tenants generally;

      (b) It is reasonably related to the purpose for which it is adopted;

      (c) It applies to all tenants in the premises in a fair manner;

      (d) It is sufficiently explicit in its prohibition, direction or limitation of the tenant’s conduct to fairly inform the tenant of what the tenant must or must not do to comply;

      (e) It is not for the purpose of evading the obligations of the landlord; and

      (f) The tenant has written notice of it at the time the tenant enters into the rental agreement, or when it is adopted.

      (2) If a rule or regulation adopted after the tenant enters into the rental agreement works a substantial modification of the bargain, it is not valid unless the tenant consents to it in writing.

Pay attention to subsection (2). You can’t just change any rule you want and remember; nothing can be changed during a fixed-term lease without the tenant’s written consent.

 

Hope you’ll join us to learn more about the towing process.