Kansas City has a Tenant Bill of Rights. How does it work, and what does it mean for you?
READ MORE
‘Landlords, we’re coming for you’
Some may question their tactics, but KC Tenants and its founder are making their mark.
Expand All
Are you renting a home or apartment in Kansas City? The city guarantees you certain rights. Here is what you need to know.
In 2019, the City Council passed the Tenant Bill of Rights, advocated for by KC Tenants.
If you want all the details, this is the full Bill of Rights, and this is the city’s longer policy on tenant and landlord relationships, but here are the main points of the seven rights for tenants:
The right to safe and accessible housing. This includes things like a right to heat and hot water, and accommodations if you have a disability.
The right to freedom from discrimination and retaliation. This means a landlord can’t threaten to evict you or retaliate in another way if you make a complaint or request a repair.
The right to fair compensation and restorative justice. This means your landlord can’t force you out of your home without going through the legal court process, and they can’t wrongfully withhold your security deposit.
The right to organize and bargain. This means a landlord can’t retaliate against you by raising your rent or threatening to evict you if you join or form a tenant union. It also means that if you ask for a necessary repair and your landlord doesn’t make it within a certain period of time, you can do it yourself and deduct the cost of that from your rent.
The right to safe, healthy, accessible and truly affordable housing. This means that when you move into an apartment, the landlord needs to tell you about past issues with the building and an estimate of how much utilities will cost. It also means that Kansas City will help you find a new place to live if the conditions of your apartment aren’t safe.
The right to privacy and self-determination. This means that a landlord needs to give you notice before they enter your apartment, and that you have a right to be in direct communication with your landlord who owns the property or the property manager.
The right to justice and access to fair, equitable treatment under the law. This means that you can only be evicted through the official court process, and you have a right to see this Tenant Bill of Rights when you move into a new spot.
This all sounds great, right? But there’s a bit of a catch that we reported earlier this year. In order for those rights to carry much weight for renters, the city needs to enforce them.
BOOST IN CASH TO HELP TENANTS
In this year’s budget, Kansas City dedicated more than a million dollars to its Office of the Tenant (OTA), which is tasked with responding to tenant complaints and upholding these rights.
That’s nearly triple the initial $300,000 the office started out with, which was enough to fund just one advocate who was responsible for fielding all tenant complaints throughout the city.
“WE’RE NO BETTER OFF THAN WE WERE THREE YEARS AGO”
The added funding should make it more possible for the city to fulfill its mandate to protect these tenant rights, but some of the organizers who pushed to create the Tenant Bill of Rights say that that’s not totally the case yet, and that enforcement has still been lacking.
Jonathan Duncan, one of the leaders with KC Tenants, said that the office isn’t working how it is supposed to yet, even with the additional money. He said KC Tenants has had members call the OTA in search of help and haven’t received any assistance.
So far, Duncan said, “It’s a promise not delivered.”
RESOURCES AND WHO TO CALL
If you are a tenant and need help with rent, asserting your rights or navigating a challenging situation with your landlord, there are people you can call.
In Kansas City, tenants can contact the Health Department’s Healthy Homes Inspection Program at 816-513-6347 or by emailing Healthy.Homes@kcmo.org to file a complaint. You can also call 311, which is the city’s hotline for reporting issues.
KC Tenants, the citywide tenant union, also provides resources for tenants in need. The hotline number is 816-533-5435.
You can call Legal Aid of Western Missouri at 816-474-6750, the Heartland Center for Jobs & Freedom at 816-278-1344 and the UMKC School of Law Tenant Assistance Initiative at 816-343-8709.
Do you have more questions about your rights as a renter in Kansas City? Ask us at kcq@kcstar.com.
This story was originally published January 30, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
