🚀 go-pugleaf

Mark Brown (mbrown@austin.ibm.com) wrote:
> > srt@zaphod.csci.unt.edu (Steve Tate) writes:
> >Mark Brown (mbrown@austin.ibm.com) wrote:
> >the walls goes, I don't think you have the right to "check up" on
> >your tenants to see if they are doing that, unless you have other
> >substantial reasons to feel they are doing so.  You do have a right
> >to sue them for damages, but I don't think you should have the right
> >to look over their shoulder to make sure they're "being good".

> Do I have the right to protect the value of my property? Do I have the
> right to do preventative maintenance? Can not the tenant *agree* (via
> signing a contract) to periodic inspections?

I think the "probable cause" restrictions on government/police are
excellent general principles that should be applied to this situtation
as well.  If you have reason to believe that your property is being
damaged, then you should be allowed to check this out.  If you want
to check just to check, then I would say no, you shouldn't have that
right.

> >And I will make a strong argument that there are rights that a person
> >has in their home, and it should not be possible for ANYONE (government,

> It isn't *their* home. They are paying to use someone ELSE's home. It
> doesn't become theirs merely because they are renting it. Does a car
> become yours when you rent it?

It *IS* their home.  "Home" has nothing to do with who owns the property
or the building --- it simply has to do with where someone lives.
Property ownership is totally irrelevant to what "home" means.

> >Listen:  It is THE TENANT'S HOME, not the property owner's.  Period.

> You can say this all you want, but the basic fact is that you are on
> someone else's property as part of a business transaction, made official
> by contract. The terms of the contract govern the renter's rights and
> privileges regarding said use. Doesn't make the property "yours".

I never said the property was the tenant's.  But it is their home.

Look, it basically boils down to this:  You've got a trade-off of
two sets of rights.  The tenant deserves certain rights because they
are making the rental their home.  The property owner deserves certain
rights because they own the property.  Where we disagree is in what
weight to put on these conflicting things.   My own personal belief is
that where someone makes their home is one of the most fundamental
things there is in life, and rights inherent in living somewhere
(privacy, etc.) should be second to nothing.  I've never been
particularly moved by any rights gained soley because you own a
piece of property, so that loses out in a big way in my mind.
You disagree, and your view actually seems to be held by quite
a few people in Texas --- just don't expect me to agree, and do
expect that I'll be opposed to such ideas when they come up.

--
Steve Tate  ---  srt@cs.unt.edu | "As often as a study is cultivated by narrow
Dept. of Computer Sciences      |  minds, they will draw from it narrow
University of North Texas       |  conclusions."  -- John Stuart Mill, 1865.
Denton, TX  76201               |