Length of guest stay--PA

[ekw122]

The PA Landlord Tenant Act of 1951 says that a tenant has the right to have a guest for a "reasonable" period. What does the court consider "reasonable"?
I had a friend and her two small children stay with me for 10-14 days back in July of 2007. My landlord was informed in advance of the visit, and did not demand rent from me then. During a conversation we had in April, he told me that he wasn't going to charge me for their stay even though he said he was entitled to. Now that I have moved out, he is charging me $900 in back rent because there is a clause in the lease that says that if any person "occupies the premises in any manner" that they are subject to $300 rent.

My questions are:
1) Was the duration of my guests' stay "reasonable" according to the courts' definition of "reasonable"?
2) Is the clause about additional rent enforceable since I am legally allowed to have guests?

Thank you.

There is a difference between guests and those who stay to live with you. A single guest stay of approximately 2 weeks on one occassion over the space of a year would probably be considered a guest by the court. Especially since you informed the LL of her stay in advance and she left at the end of the visit. I would not consider this person as an occupant. It was a limited stay from a guest.

Having someone coming over each week and staying is different. Staying at your unit several times a week rises well above what a court or a reasonable person would consider a guest. The repeated nature of these visits help define it as an additional occupant. This person would be considered an occupant since they continue to come back to the unit and stay over and over again. Different people can be considered an extra occupant also if the act of someone staying over is repeated frequently.

Most leases give a stated number of days that someone may come and stay at your unit. (Mine says 7 days total for the life of the lease.) Some leases say that anyone staying over x days total needs to be registered at your residence. (I provide a guest registration form for anyone staying longer than that period which asks for arrival and departure dates.) This protects the LL against a tenant who has a BF or GF coming and staying there all the time, running up the utilities and causing extra wear and terar on the unit. The clause is legal as it applies to this type of occupant. The clause is for that purpose.

Since your guest stayed only a few days then left, and if you did not have multiple or repeated stays by other people, and since the LL failed to pursue the extra fee at the time of the guest stay, I do not see how he can charge this now. If he deducts this from your deposit, you should write a challenge letter to him stating the above facts. If he still keeps that amount, you can sue him in small claims for the refund.

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply to my posting! What you said has confirmed my feelings on the matter also. I have been in touch with a lawyer to help with the letter.

Any other input from other readers is appreciated.

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply to my posting! What you said has confirmed my feelings on the matter also. I have been in touch with a lawyer to help with the letter.

The lease states that "no person shall occupy the premises in any manner" other than the person whose name is on the lease (myself) or there will be a $300 fee. I have done some reading and I believe that this clause violates my right as a tenant to free association. Would this argument be one that a judge would be likely to support?

Any other input from other readers is appreciated.

In court, you can simply state that the guest stayed a short time for one visit of 10 days during the entire length of your tenancy. That the person was simply a visiting guest as defined by the act above and was not occupying the premises. The guest did not overstay the intended time period which was explained to and approved by your LL prior to arrival. The guest did not live at the unit or reside there and was not there long enough to establish residency at the address. Therefore, the guest did not occupy the premises according to the act.

If you wish to challenge the clause of the lease and how it conflicts with your rights as the act above defines them, you can do so.