How to become a landlord in Montana

Before a lease is agreed, tell the tenant in writing if you know the home was used as a methamphetamine or fentanyl lab, or was contaminated by use of those drugs, and has not been cleaned up to state standards by a certified contractor. If you know the building has mold, or has been tested for mold, disclose that at or before signing (MCA 75-10-1305; MCA 70-16-703(2)).

• The drug lab notice must be given before the lease is agreed. If a certified contractor documented the cleanup, you may tell the tenant that instead (MCA 75-10-1305(1); MCA 75-10-1305(2); MCA 75-10-1305(3)).
• If you know the building was tested for mold, give the tenant a copy of the results if you have them and evidence of any later mitigation or treatment (MCA 70-16-703(2)).
• Montana provides an optional mold disclosure statement for the tenant to sign; a landlord who gives it and complies with the testing and known mold disclosure duties is not liable in an action based on mold in the building (MCA 70-16-703(1); MCA 70-16-703(3)).
• Disclose in writing who manages the home and who receives notices for the owner (MCA 70-24-301).See Owner and manager disclosure on the Montana page
• If you require a deposit, give a signed move-in condition statement (MCA 70-25-206).See Move-in condition statement on the Montana page
• Any rules for the property must be in writing and given to each tenant, and a later rule that substantially changes the deal takes effect only after 30 days' written notice for a month-to-month tenancy (7 days for week to week) (MCA 70-24-311(2); MCA 70-24-311(3)).
• A lease or rule may not stop a tenant or a tenant's guest from possessing on the premises a firearm they may legally possess, but you may prohibit discharging a firearm there except in self-defense (MCA 70-24-110).

At or before the start of the tenancy, tell the tenant in writing the name and address of the person authorized to manage the home and of the owner, or a person authorized to act for the owner to accept service of process and receive notices and demands (MCA 70-24-301(1)).

• Keep the information current and in writing; the duty binds any later landlord, owner or manager (MCA 70-24-301(2)).
• A person who fails to disclose becomes the landlord's agent for receiving service and notices and for performing the landlord's duties, including spending rent collected for that purpose (MCA 70-24-301(3)).

No section of the Montana Residential Landlord and Tenant Act or the security deposit chapter requires you to disclose a flood zone or flood history to a tenant (MCA Title 70, chapter 24; MCA 70-25-101 to 70-25-206).

• Known mold and known drug lab contamination do require disclosure (MCA 70-16-703(2); MCA 75-10-1305).See Required disclosures on the Montana page

Install an approved smoke detector and an approved carbon monoxide detector in each unit under your control, and verify both are in good working order when the lease begins. The tenant then keeps them in good working order (MCA 70-24-303(1)(g)).

• An approved detector bears a label from an approved testing agency; the carbon monoxide detector follows Department of Labor and Industry rules and the smoke detector Department of Justice rules (MCA 70-24-303(1)(g)).
• You are not liable for damages caused by the failure of a required detector (MCA 70-24-303(5)).

The Montana Act sets no rekeying or lock-change duty for landlords. A tenant may not remove, replace or add a lock you did not supply without your written permission, and must give you a key to any lock the tenant adds (MCA 70-24-312(5)).

• If the tenant changes or adds a lock without giving you a key, you may give a 24-hour notice to correct or seek a court order, and then a 3-day notice to terminate (MCA 70-24-424(2)).

Montana does not cap the amount of a security deposit. A security deposit is money or its equivalent given to secure the rent or payment for damage and cleaning, and any fee or charge for cleaning and damages is presumed to be a security deposit, whatever you call it (MCA 70-25-101 to 70-25-206).

• If the lease or a side agreement requires the tenant to give you a deposit and keep it in place for part or all of the term, the deposit is presumed to be a security deposit (MCA 70-25-101(4)).
• A lease term that conflicts with the security deposit chapter is invalid, and a tenant cannot waive the chapter (MCA 70-25-103).
• The chapter covers rentals of dwellings under the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act and mobile home lots under Title 70, chapter 33 (MCA 70-25-102).

Montana's security deposit chapter does not require you to keep deposits in a separate or trust account and does not require you to pay the tenant interest on them (MCA 70-25-101 to 70-25-206).

• The chapter controls what you may deduct and when the balance is due, not where the money is kept (MCA 70-25-201; MCA 70-25-202).See Returning the deposit on the Montana page

If you require a security deposit, you must give each tenant, when the lease is signed or the tenancy is created, a separate written statement of the home's present condition, signed by you or your agent (MCA 70-25-206).

• The statement must clearly describe the condition you know of, or should have known of after a reasonable inspection, and must say so if the home has never been rented before (MCA 70-25-206(2)).
• If the tenant asks in writing, give them a copy of the list of damage and cleaning charges you gave the previous tenant (MCA 70-25-206(1)).
• Without the statement, or the previous tenant's list when requested, you cannot recover anything for damage or cleaning unless you prove by clear and convincing evidence that the damage happened during this tenancy and was caused by the tenant or the tenant's family, licensees or invitees (MCA 70-25-206(3)).

A property manager of four or more dwelling units who collects an application fee must refund it within a reasonable time if the applicant does not enter a signed rental agreement or an agreement given the same effect by law. Only the permitted costs may be deducted (MCA 37-56-109; MCA 70-24-204).

• At collection, give written notice allocating the fee among specific service costs. Retain only disclosed costs for services actually performed before approval or rejection; these are out-of-pocket expenses, excluding the manager's own time or effort. Refund the rest (MCA 37-56-109(2), (4)).
• The manager bears the burden of proving the services. Wrongfully withheld or deducted fees can be recovered in a civil action, with attorney fees at the court's discretion. Keep the allocation, service invoices and refund calculation together (MCA 37-56-109(3)).
• A deposit that an agreement requires a prospective tenant to give and keep in place for part or all of the lease term is presumed to be a security deposit, so the deposit return rules apply to it (MCA 70-25-101(4)).See Returning the deposit on the Montana page
• If you accept rent or a deposit from a person who intends to occupy the home, you are considered to have consented to their possession and to have created a landlord-tenant relationship (MCA 70-24-302(2)).