The Minnesota renter’s credit/refund is a state property tax refund for tenants. This refund assists renters with the tax burden they pay directly to their landlord because of the property taxes imposed on rental housing.

Landlords were required to provide Certificate Rent Paid (CRP) forms to tenants no later than this past Tuesday, January 31, 2012. If you rented at any point in 2011 and have not received a CRP from your landlord, you should make another attempt to request the CRP form (for example, write a letter to the landlord). If the landlord fails to provide a CRP by March 1st, you can contact the Minnesota Department of Revenue to request a Rent Paid Affidavit, which will allow you to submit your information and a request for your refund. If you have questions about how to apply for the refund, call the Department of Revenue tax help line: 651-296-3781 (metro) or 1-800-652-9094 (elsewhere in Minnesota).

The renter’s credit is a constant target of cuts by the Minnesota Legislature. Last year, tenants spoke up to protect the credit renters received in August 2011, as well as to fight back cuts to the 2012 credit. Instead of seeing drastic cuts (one bill proposed to slash it by 46%!), the legislature approved a 13% reduction in the credit for refunds in 2012.  According to the Minnesota Budget Project, an estimated 297,000 Minnesota households will lose an average of $87 because of this cut, and about 7,300 Minnesota households will lose their entire credit.

Join tenants, advocates, and HOME Line to ensure the legislature protects the future of the renter’s credit by returning it to a more equitable rate. Contact Tracey (612-728-5770 x108) or Eric (612-728-5770 x119) to learn how to help.

A reminder that HOME Line is offering a series of CLE webinars and trainings over the next few months. You can view more information and/or register for any training or webinar here on our website or by choosing an option below:

• Thursday, 2/16/12, 1:30-4pm: Tenant/landlord law training for landlords & managers (Plymouth)
• Thursday, 2/23/12, noon-1pm: 1 credit CLE Webinar on “Basics of Handling a Landlord-Tenant Eviction Action”
• Thursday, 3/29/12, noon-1pm: 1 credit CLE Webinar on “What Landlords and Tenants Should Know About Bedbugs in Residential Housing – Their Biology and the Law”
• Thursday, 4/26/12, noon-1pm: 1 credit CLE Webinar on “Basics of Estate Planning/Preparing for Death and Worse”

Thanks to all who joined us for our 20th anniversary party!

If you missed it, you can learn about our first 20 years here.
And you can help us accomplish more for Minnesota renters during our next 20 years.

HOME Line’s Board of Directors invites you for an evening to review the accomplishments of our first 20 years and to cheer on the next 20 years of HOME Line’s outstanding tenant hotline and organizing work. Our 20 year report is available for download here.

Join us for wine, hors d’oeuvres, chocolate, and live music at the HOME Line office. Larry McDonough will be performing from 5:30-7:00 PM.

Please RSVP to enter the door prize drawing – you must be present to win! RSVP to Deb: 612-728-5770 x109 or email.

HOME Line provides free legal, organizing, education and advocacy services so that tenants throughout Minnesota can solve their own rental housing problems.

HOME Line’s Board of Directors: Chair—Katherine Kelly, Secretary—Lynda Hymes, Treasurer—Sam Glover, Becky Fink, Genevieve Gaboriault, Margaret Kaplan, Pat Longs, and Karin Todd.

“Basics in Estate Planning/Preparing for Death and Worse,”
Ruth Y. Ostrom, Esq.

This CLE webinar will cover the “simple” estate (married with or without children) by outlining terms, issues, and the basics of probate/estate planning, including “end of life” planning for Minnesota residents.

The CLE webinar is sponsored by HOME Line and will take place from Noon-1pm on Thursday, April 26, 2012.  The cost for the webinar is $20.  The webinar is approved for 1 CLE credit.

Those who register attend by internet webinar (a system requirement test to see if you can access the webinar is available here) and can submit written questions via the webinar Q&A text chat system.  The CLE will be broadcasted live.

Learn more & register…

“Basics in Estate Planning/Preparing for Death and Worse,”

This presentation is directed towards individuals whose estates are valued at less than $1 million.  It  reviews the “simple” estate (married with or without children), basic terms, issues and sets forth the basics of probate/estate planning, including “end of life” planning for Minnesota residents. General CLE outline:

1. The Estate
   a. valuation
   b. probate vs. non-probate assets
2. Basic Will
   a. per stirpes
   b. minor children
3. Power of Attorney
   a. short form vs. long form
   b. what it can and cannot do
4. Healthcare Directive
5. Healthcare Agent
6. TODD/POD (Transfer/Pay on Death designations)
   a. what it does
   b. when to use it

Ruth Y. Ostrom is a sole practitioner in downtown Minneapolis.  She practices in the area of employment law, probate, and guardianship/conservatorships, including appellate work.  She advises small employers regarding employee handbooks, employee discipline and discharge.  She also represents employees in wrongful termination cases, including discrimination and use of sick leave.  In her probate practice, she helps clients with estate planning as well as representing them in probate court.  She also represents both petitioners and respondents in guardianship/conservatorship proceedings.  Ruth is a 1993 graduate of the University of Minnesota Law School.  She has presented seminars in all her areas of practice.

Click below to register and pay online (you do not need a PayPal account—there is an option on the bottom right to pay with a credit card):

“What Landlords and Tenants Should Know About Bedbugs in Residential Housing – Their Biology and the Law”
Douglass E. Turner, Hanbery & Carney, P.A.

This CLE webinar will cover bedbugs in the context of the multi-family housing industry with an emphasis on causes of action and prosecution of bedbug cases by Tenants and defenses of bedbug lawsuits by Landlords.

The CLE webinar is sponsored by HOME Line and will take place from Noon-1pm on Thursday, March 29, 2012.  The cost for the webinar is $20.  The course has been approved for 1 CLE credit.

Those who register attend by internet webinar (a system requirement test to see if you can access the webinar is available here) and can submit written questions via the webinar Q&A text chat system.  The CLE will be broadcasted live.

Learn more & register…

“What Landlords and Tenants Should Know About Bedbugs in Residential Housing – Their Biology and the Law”

Bedbugs have made resurgence in their invasion of multi-family living, the hotel industry, social and public gathering locations, dorms, hospitals, movie theaters, shelters, summer camps, cruise ships, dry cleaners. Bedbug cases end up in court in the eviction context and in other civil litigation under a range of theories of recovery. Within the last 10-15 years bedbug cases have exploded in the multi-family context and there have been a number of cases brought by guests against hotels/motels for bedbugs. In the hotel cases, guest’s claims appear to be more broad and include claims such as fraud, negligent infliction of emotional distress, loss of consortium, assault, and battery. The damage claims by hotel guests are more exhaustive than in the multi-family context and have also included personal property damage, pain and suffering, and claims for punitive damages

In the multi-family context, damages appear to be limited to personal property damage and rent abatement. This CLE webinar will focus on the multi-family housing industry with an emphasis on causes of action and prosecution of bedbug cases by Tenants and defenses of bedbug lawsuits by Landlords.

Douglass E. Turner is a partner at Hanbery & Carney, P.A. He graduated from William Mitchell College of Law in 1997; admitted to the Minnesota state bar in 1997 and Minnesota U.S. District Court in 1997. In private practice since 1997 opening the Law Office of Douglass E. Turner, PSC and continuing as a sole practitioner until 2005 practicing in the areas of landlord/property management representation, defending fair housing complaints and discrimination cases, evictions; and representing persons in other real estate litigation matters and real estate tax appeal matters. Partner at Hanbery & Carney, P.A. since September 2005 continuing in the area of landlord/property management representation; litigation; property tax appeals.

Click below to register and pay online (you do not need a PayPal account—there is an option on the bottom right to pay with a credit card):

HOME Line is now providing low-cost legal services for renters in Minneapolis. For as little as $25, renters from Minneapolis can consult in-person or over the phone with an experienced tenant landlord attorney on rental issues that affect them.

We are offering these services in response to the closing of Minneapolis Housing Services (612-673-3003) effective December 31, 2011. Ideally, we would have enough financial support to eventually serve Minneapolis with the same free services we currently offer throughout the state. HOME Line hopes to bridge some of the gap that will be created when the Housing Services shut down permanently.

In addition to legal consultations, HOME Line offers several other legal services at reduced costs to all Minneapolis renters. We hope to meet the needs of those tenants who don’t qualify for Legal Aid (612-334-5970), but also don’t have enough income to afford their own attorneys. Minneapolis renters affected by landlord foreclosure will continue to receive free legal advice by calling our hotline: 612-728-5767 (mention the foreclosure in your message).

Minneapolis renters interested in low-cost legal consultations can learn more and sign up at homelinemn.org/minneapolis or call our hotline at 612-728-5767 and listen for the Minneapolis instructions.

“Basics of Handling a Landlord-Tenant Eviction Action”
Paul Birnberg, Senior Housing Attorney, HOME Line

Do you anticipate litigating an Eviction Action (what used to be called an Unlawful Detainer Action) either for the landlord or the tenant and haven’t handled such a case before or need to brush up on the applicable law?  Then this class is for you.

The CLE webinar is sponsored by HOME Line and will take place from Noon-1pm on Thursday, February 23, 2012.  The cost for the webinar is $20.  The webinar is approved for 1 CLE credit.

Learn more and register…

This CLE will cover the requirements placed on the plaintiff landlord in these cases, starting with service of process and working through the steps along the way toward eviction. The course will be taught largely from the perspective of the tenant’s attorney, since if the landlord’s attorney knows the various available defenses – procedural and substantive – she will be prepared to decide if she has a winning case to begin with and will avoid the dreaded traps for the unwary. Except in passing the CLE will not cover issues peculiar to subsidized housing and will not cover some of the more esoteric defenses, but should prepare the attendee to handle the vast majority of non-subsidized eviction cases.

Paul Birnberg, HOME Line’s Senior Housing Attorney, will be presenting this CLE. He graduated from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1992 and has been associated with HOME Line since 1993. He was one of four drafters of Minn. Stat. Chap. 504B (Landlord-Tenant laws), has given a number of CLEs on landlord tenant law, chaired two day-long Minnesota-Institute-of-Legal Education-sponsored CLEs on the subject, is an active member of the Hennepin County Bench and Bar Landlord-Tenant Committee, and past chair of the Hennepin County Landlord-Tenant Committee.

The CLE webinar is sponsored by HOME Line and will take place from Noon-1pm on Thursday, February 23, 2011.  The cost for the webinar is $20.  The webinar is approved for 1 CLE credit.

Those who register attend by internet webinar (a system requirement test to see if you can access the webinar is available here) and can submit written questions via the webinar Q&A text chat system.  The CLE will be broadcasted live.

Click below to register and pay online (you do not need a PayPal account—there is an option on the bottom right to pay with a credit card):

Thanks to all of our donors during yesterday’s Give to the Max Day!  You helped us reach our goal AND we hit our full $20,000 matching grant from the F.R. Bigelow Foundation!  With your ongoing support we will continue to provide excellent services for renters across Minnesota.

If you missed yesterday’s Give to the Max day, it’s not too late to support HOME Line!  Click Here to donate.

• 11,000 renters will get free rental advice through our tenant hotline
• We’ll help renters recover and save over $2.5 million.
• 850 renters will be prevented from being evicted.
• 900 renters will get assistance after their landlords went into foreclosure.
• Our Tenant Organizing will help preserve 489 affordable housing units for low-income renters who depend on affordable housing
• Our advocacy work will save renters over $160 million dollars this year after stopping large proposed cuts to the renters credit.
• HOME Line will train over 2,000 low-income renters, high school students, police, social workers, and landlords in tenant landlord law.

The speeches, “What Every Landlord Should Know: Avoiding Honest (and costly) Mistakes” will focus on key issues that cause problems between landlords and tenants.  Additionally, learn about several new laws that took effect in the last two years. Three training locations & dates are available:

• Thursday, January 12th: 1:30 to 4:00 p.m.
  City of Shoreview Maintenance Center
  4615 Victoria St N, Shoreview MN 55126
• Thursday, January 19th from 1:00 to 3:30 p.m.
  Powderhorn Park Community Center
  3400 15th Ave. S.
  Minneapolis, MN 55407 
• Thursday, February 16th from 1:30 to 4:00 p.m.
  Plymouth City Hall, Medicine Lake Room
  3400 Plymouth Blvd.
  Plymouth, MN 55447

Click below for more information & to register for either training.

Along with the new laws, topics to be covered will include:

• Fair Housing Complaints- What Starts Them?
• The Application Process
• Leases
• Caretakers/On-site Staff
• Bedbugs
• Evictions
• Security Deposits
• When Can a Landlord Enter an Apartment?
• Rent Increases
• How to Give a Notice to Vacate

HOME Line attorneys have given speeches to landlord groups throughout Minnesota, covering a wide variety of landlord/tenant law topics. HOME Line is now offering a two-hour training conducted by Managing Attorney, Michael Vraa. Mike has personally spoken to 44 different groups of landlords in his 14 years of experience as an attorney working exclusively on landlord/tenant law.

“I was very skeptical that this wasn’t going to be much more than a very basic landlord class.  Boy was I wrong!  This class was informative and interesting…I recommend that every landlord take this class. It was invaluable.”

-Scott Ficek, Real Estate Agent

“In my practice, I frequently represent residential Landlords and receive phone calls from prospective clients asking, ‘What do I need to know about being a Landlord?’  My answer these days: Read HOME Line’s How to be the Smartest Renter on Your Block.”

-Jason T. Hutchinson, Attorney at Law

The cost is $45 per attendee.  Register early (by the Wednesday prior to the training) and pay only $40.

Our book on Minnesota tenant landlord/law, How to be the Smartest Renter on Your Block will available for $15 if purchased in advance, and can be picked up at the training. To purchase in advance, you will have an option during registration/check-out via the form below.

Please fill out the registration form below and when you submit it, it will bring you to an option to pay online.  If registering multiple attendees, please chose the appropriate number of attendees. If you choose to pay online for multiple attendees, you must choose that each person pays $40 training fee or each pays $55 for the training & a copy of our book.

cforms contact form by delicious:days

If a management company or other agency would like to hire a HOME Line attorney to give a speech at your office, contact Julie Martinez at 612-728-5770 (x121) or at juliem@homelinemn.org

Beginning November 1, HOME Line is providing low-cost legal services for renters in Minneapolis. For as little as $25, renters from Minneapolis will be able to consult in-person or over the phone with an experienced tenant landlord attorney on rental issues that affect them.

This service is being offered in response to the announced closing of Minneapolis Housing Services (612-673-3003) on December 31, 2011. Ideally, we would have enough financial support to eventually serve Minneapolis with the same free services we currently offer throughout the state. HOME Line hopes to bridge some of the gap that will be created when the Housing Services shut down permanently.

HOME Line will offer legal consultations and several other legal services at reduced costs, available to all Minneapolis renters. We hope to meet the needs of those tenants who don’t qualify for Legal Aid (612-334-5970), but also don’t have enough income to afford their own attorneys. Minneapolis renters affected by landlord foreclosure will continue to receive free legal advice by calling our hotline: 612-728-5767 (mention the foreclosure in your message).

Minneapolis renters interested in low-cost legal consultations can learn more and sign up at homelinemn.org/minneapolis or call our hotline at 612-728-5767 and listen for the Minneapolis instructions.