LawHelp Legal Information search results for Housing

Working for Fairness

	Housing > View All Subtopics


	Explaining the Law and Providing Self-Help Information for Low-Income Iowans

There are 46 resources

Page 2 of 2

	Evictions 101 Many people don’t know what to do when their landlords threaten to evict them. The law protects rights of tenants. It also protects rights of landlords. Like other legal topics, issues in landlord-tenant law can be complicated. Still, most of the basic rules and steps parties must follow are fairly simple. By: Iowa Legal Aid Read this in: Spanish / Español


	Fair Housing–Making New Apartments Accessible to Persons with Disabilities The Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 made a lot of changes in fair housing law. One of the changes dealt with making apartments accessible. When does an apartment have to meet the fair housing accessibility requirements? By: Iowa Legal Aid


	Mobile Homes in Iowa This resource concerns the rental of lot space for a mobile home or modular home. If the mobile home itself is rented, a different law, Iowa's regular landlord/tenant act, applies to the rental of the mobile home. By: Iowa Legal Aid


	New Requirements for Landlord Notices of Clear and Present Danger In Iowa, a landlord can evict a tenant if the landlord feels the tenant is creating a situation which places others in danger. This article explains Iowa’s “clear and present danger” law. By: Iowa Legal Aid


	Tenant Rights When Landlords Check Credit Histories When you find a house or apartment that you would like to rent, the landlord or public housing authority will want to know if you will pay the rent. A landlord may refuse to rent to you if you have a poor credit history. The Fair Credit Reporting Act says a landlord must give you some details if he or she won’t rent to you or charges you a higher deposit based on a credit report. By: Iowa Legal Aid


	Tenants and Utility Service Fees A recent Iowa Utilities Board ruling concerns who should pay any additional charges to monitor the costs of natural gas when tenants do not have individual meters. By: Iowa Legal Aid Read this in: Bosnian / Bosanski , Spanish / Español


	The Fair Housing Act and Iowa Civil Rights Act Protect the Housing Rights of Persons with a Mental D Discrimination against a person with a mental disability is illegal. The federal Fair Housing Act and the Iowa Civil Rights Act require landlords to make exceptions, called “reasonable accommodations,” in rules, policies, practices or services. By: Iowa Legal Aid


	What Duty Does a Landlord Have to Accommodate a Tenant’s Disability? Anyone may have a hard time finding a rental unit he or she can afford. There is not enough low- and moderate-income housing to meet the need. Persons with disabilities may have even fewer housing choices. Some rental units could become suitable with a few changes. The landlord’s rules or policies might need to change before the tenant could live there. What are a tenant’s rights in such cases? By: Iowa Legal Aid


	What Is Discrimination in Housing? A landlord may consider a number of different things in choosing tenants or in deciding how to treat a particular tenant. Some of the things a landlord considers are legal and proper, while others are illegal, improper, and may not be considered. By: Iowa Legal Aid

Other Housing Issues

	Buying a House Buying a home on a contract can be a way for persons who are low-income or who have poor credit to become homeowners. However, there are certain risks to know about to avoid surprises after the contract is signed. By: Iowa Legal Aid


	Common Legal Terms (Separate Website) An online glossary of legal terms from A to W By: Iowa Judicial Branch


	Facing Foreclosure? Tips to Help Restructure Debt and Deal with Mortgage Companies When the foreclosure process starts or is just around the corner, homeowners must decide whether to stay in the home or move. This is not an easy choice to make. By: Iowa Legal Aid


	Going to Court Could Get Easier It would be good if people had a lawyer whenever they needed one. But there has never been enough money to make this happen for low-income Iowans. This leaves a lot of people on their own. The Iowa State Bar Association and the Iowa Judges Association have accepted the recommendations of a joint task force. Proposed changes would help people who don’t have a lawyer. By: Iowa Legal Aid


	Know How to Hold it - Pros and Cons of Certain Types of Property Ownership The manner in which you own your property can have important consequences. The common forms of ownership are sole ownership, joint tenancy with right of survivorship and tenancy in common. Each form of ownership has its pros and cons. By: Legal Hotline for Older Iowans


	Lending: Buying a House "On Contract" Buying a home on a contract can be a way for persons who are low-income or who have poor credit to become homeowners. However, there are certain risks to know about to avoid surprises after the contract is signed. By: Iowa Legal Aid


	Mobile Home Park Issues Owining a mobile home is not the same as owning a conventional house. It is different from renting, too. By: Iowa Legal Aid


	Mortgage Foreclosures and Land Contract Forfeitures People are usually not able to pay in full when they buy a home. As a result, most Iowans finance homes through either a mortgage or a land contract. If the buyer fails to make payments the loan terms require, each of these financing tools allows the lender to retake the home. The steps involved depend on whether it is a mortgage or land contract. By: Iowa Legal Aid


	Property Tax Suspension for People Who Get SSI Many people with a disability own or are buying their homes. They may have a hard time paying their property taxes which become due each year. Under Iowa law, people who get Supplemental Security Income (SSI), or State Supplemental Assistance (SSA), or live in a health care facility, can get their property taxes suspended. By: Legal Hotline for Older Iowans


	Refinancing A lot of people try to deal with debt by refinancing their loans. Refinancing means paying an old debt with a new debt. Sometimes that makes sense because your total cost of borrowing money may be less. Refinancing may look good now when interest rates are lower than they have been in years. However, smaller monthly payments do not always mean that refinancing will be a good deal for you as a consumer. This article takes a general look at this topic and gives some tips to protect yourself. By: Iowa Legal Aid


	Rent Reimbursement and Property Tax Credits for Elderly and Disabled People Elderly or disabled Iowans may be able to receive financial benefits this year from one or more of three programs. By: Legal Hotline for Older Iowans Other Formats: WPD File


	Waiting Lists and Public Housing What you can do if you applied for a voucher but it may take two years or more for your name to come up. By: Iowa Legal Aid Read this in: Bosnian / Bosanski , Spanish / Español

Page 2 of 2

READ THIS BEFORE USING ANY PART OF THE IOWA LEGAL AID WEBSITE (ILAW) If you cannot afford a lawyer and have a legal problem in Iowa, you may be able to get free legal help. Call Iowa Legal Aid. To find out which office serves your county, call 1-800-532-1275 or 515-243-2151 in the Des Moines calling area. If you are age 60 or over, you may be able to get free legal advice from The Legal Hotline for Older Iowans at 1-800-992-8161 or 282-8161 in Des Moines. All numbers are Voice and TTY.

This Website Does NOT Give Legal Advice. When you use ILAW, you are just making a request for information. No part of this site or any link found through this site is meant to give you legal advice. Using any part of this site does not make you a client. If you send an e-mail to anyone you reach through this site, it does not make you a client of any lawyer. See a lawyer to get complete, correct, and up-to-date legal advice.

ILAW Only Has a General Summary of the Law. It is not meant to fully explain topics. Do not assume what you read on ILAW applies to your specific case. Also, the law may vary from state to state. What you find on this website may not apply where you live or to court actions filed in other states.

The Law Often Changes. Content on this site was correct when it was written. Check the date on each page. Do not assume what you see here is still correct when you read it.

Links. This website has links to other Internet sites. We have these links so you can find help on legal matters from the justice community. Other sites are responsible for all content on their sites.

E-mail. Using ILAW or sending e-mail through this website does NOT make you a client of any person or program you reach through this site. When you use e-mail, you risk having someone else access part or all of your message.

Click here for the Iowa Legal Aid Internet Privacy Policy.

Click here for the Iowa Legal Aid Public and Client Complaint Procedures.

As You Look at this Website, Remember it is Not a Substitute for Legal Advice.

The Iowa Legal Aid Website is a project of Iowa Legal Aid, the Volunteer Lawyer Projects of the Iowa State Bar and Polk County Bar Associations, and HELP Legal Assistance

Comunity Legal Education booklets Iowa Legal Aid printed material is available to clients and the public. Click here for a publications order form.