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My apartment is for sale by its owner, who I'm currently renting from. The owner uses a management company and I deal with that company to pay rent, have things fixed, etc. I've never seen or talked to the apartment owner. The owner is hiring a realtor to help sell the apartment (to someone else; we are leaving after our lease.) This realtor visited and said they'd like to show the apartment over the next few months, before our lease ends, and implied that there could be many showings.

My contract is very simple. There's no provision for the management company to enter the property even with notice, though I assume there's some law that allows them to do so.

My question is, do I have to let the realtor in with notice? What if they're with the manager? If they wish to do open houses and frequent tours (which they've implied they'd like to), do I have any rights other than obtaining 24 hour notice? I reiterate that there's nothing about this in my very simple renter's contract.

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2 Answers 2

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Yes, but not without notice

KS Stat § 58-2557 (2015)

58-2557. Landlord's right to enter; limitations. (a) The landlord shall have the right to enter the dwelling unit at reasonable hours, after reasonable notice to the tenant, in order to ... exhibit the dwelling unit to prospective or actual purchasers, ...

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  • Thanks for the simple answer. The section you cited is pretty small with minimal clauses. Does this mean that the realtor (with the landlord) could visit several times per day until they sell the unit? Can I demand that the landlord be with the realtor, when he shows the apartment? As of now it sounds like the realtor expects to come on his own.
    – Ken - Enough about Monica
    Commented Apr 30, 2021 at 21:43
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    Is several times a day reasonable? If you’re at work and they only come then - probably. The realtor IS the landlord due to being the landlord’s agent - it’s highly unusual for a landlord to attend a showing.
    – Dale M ♦
    Commented Apr 30, 2021 at 21:45
  • The cited law supports this answer, and does not support the answer by @Studoku which is quite simply incorrect.
    – David Siegel
    Commented Apr 30, 2021 at 23:08
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    @HH the key concept in the law is "reasonable". If the is a dispute it will come down to what a judge or jury thinks is reasonable under the circumstances. Common practice in the industry can also be considered in determining what is reasonable.
    – David Siegel
    Commented Apr 30, 2021 at 23:12
  • There would be a reasonable suspicion if there are multiple showings per day, multiple days a week, that it is not for selling the apartment, but for harassing the tenant. I'd suspect that doing six viewings at six different times is not reasonable, when all six potential buyers could be invited at the same time.
    – gnasher729
    Commented May 3, 2021 at 16:41
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A tenant has the right to quiet enjoyment of the property. This does not need to be specified in the contract.

This means that even if the landlord or representative gives notice, this could potentially violate that.

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    While the above is, to the best of my understanding, true in general common law, it seems to be incorrect under the specific Kansas statute cited by Dale. (KS Stat § 58-2557 (2015)) There are probably similar provisions in the laws elsewhere, and in many cases a lease will cover such issues (although it doesn't seem to in this case). You may wish to edit this answer.
    – David Siegel
    Commented Apr 30, 2021 at 22:01
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    The answer you gave seems to be simply incorrect, as revealed by the law cited in the answer by Dale. Do you plan to correct the answer you gave? Dale's intentions are irrelevant.
    – David Siegel
    Commented Apr 30, 2021 at 23:05
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    The other answer cites a specific law which says "The landlord shall have the right to enter the dwelling unit at reasonable hours, after reasonable notice to the tenant,..." This answer cites the common-law right of "quiet enjoyment" and says that "even if the landlord or representative gives notice" that right might be violated, ignoring the specific and overriding right in the statute. It also does not cite any source on what constitutes "quiet enjoyment".
    – David Siegel
    Commented May 1, 2021 at 21:16
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    the notice requirement does not violate quiet enjoyment, but it limits it to every time but for when notice is given.
    – Trish
    Commented May 2, 2021 at 8:35
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    This answer is true and correct, but completely unhelpful. The OP understands that it may or may not violate a right that they have. They need to know when and whether it does or doesn't, and this answer just says that it might or might not.
    – David Schwartz
    Commented May 5, 2021 at 12:14

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