THE BAIS HAVAAD HALACHA JOURNAL: Volume 5776 Issue XXXX Balak maintaining a rental property Who is responsible for the maintenance and fees: landlord or tenant? Rav Boruch Rabanowitz, Dayan Bais Din Nesivos Chaim, Yerushalayim

Modern lease language will usually provide for maintenance and repairs of a property. The landlord and tenant make a formal agreement with a signed contract that states which repairs are the landlord’s obligation and which are the tenant’s area of responsibility. What if the landlord and tenant have no formal agreement? Or, if there are repairs or maintenance issues which are not included in the contract? How does Bais Din determine who is responsible to pay for the repairs?