Support & Resources for Cleveland Tenants
Free guidance on evictions, repairs, rent issues, and tenant rights in Ohio
How We Help
Facing Eviction?
Learn what to expect and what options you have.
Unsafe Living Conditions?
What to do if your landlord won’t fix serious problems.
Tenant Rights in Ohio
Understand what landlords can and can’t do.
Local Help in Cleveland
Connect with legal aid and housing resources.
Local Resources and Partners
You don’t have to handle this alone. These organizations can help for free or low cost.
Latest Posts
If you’re renting in Cleveland and hear that your landlord is selling the building, it’s normal to feel anxious. Does your lease still count? Can the new owner raise the rent or make you move? Do you have to allow showings? These are some of the most common questions tenants ask when their landlord sells their property or unit.
Does Your Lease Still Apply If the Property Is Sold?
In Ohio, a lease does not disappear just because the landlord sells the property. When ownership changes, the new owner automatically steps into the role of landlord and must honor the existing lease terms.
If you have a written lease, it remains valid until it expires. This means:
- Rent amount stays the same
- Lease length stays the same
- Rules and responsibilities stay the same
For month-to-month tenants, the lease still transfers, but the new owner may choose to end it later with proper notice. Many tenants mistakenly believe a sale means they must immediately move. This is not true under Ohio law.
Do You Have to Allow Inspections?
Ohio law requires landlords to give reasonable notice before entering a rental unit. While “reasonable” isn’t precisely defined, 24 hours notice is the standard used in Cleveland housing courts, and what is typically written into lease agreements. You can’t unreasonably refuse access, but you also don’t have to accept constant, last-minute disruptions. If desired, you may want to request showings be grouped into specific days or times.
However, some landlords choose alternatives to listing on the open market, especially when:
- The property is tenant-occupied
- Repairs are needed
- The owner wants to sell “as-is”
- The landlord wants to avoid repeated showings
In these cases, owners may explore selling their property to cash home buyers who specialize in purchasing properties as-is, sometimes even with tenants in place. Fortunately, you won’t have to worry about constant showings if your landlord is taking this route to sell.
…What Happens if Your Landlord Sells the Property?Read More »
Renting in Cleveland can be a mixed experience. While many neighborhoods offer affordable housing compared to other major cities, tenants still face serious challenges: delayed repairs, unsafe living conditions, sudden rent increases, and the feeling that complaints disappear into a void once they’re sent to a landlord or property manager. If you’ve ever thought, “This wouldn’t be happening if we had more leverage,” you’re already thinking along the lines of a tenant union.
A tenant union is a group of renters who organize together to advocate for better housing conditions, fair treatment, and stronger tenant protections. Instead of dealing with landlords one by one, tenants act collectively—giving them more power, visibility, and legal protection. Across the U.S., tenant unions have helped secure repairs, stop unfair evictions, and even influence housing policy. For Cleveland tenants, where older housing stock and absentee landlords are common, tenant unions can be an especially powerful tool.
This guide explains what a tenant union is, how it works, what it can realistically achieve, and how renters in Cleveland can start or join one. Whether you rent an apartment, duplex, or single-family home, understanding tenant unions can help you protect your housing and your rights.
Understanding Tenant Unions
What Is a Tenant Union?
A tenant union is an organized group of renters who work together to address shared housing issues. These issues often include maintenance problems, unsafe conditions, rent increases, security deposits, lease changes, and eviction threats. Unlike informal group chats or complaints, a tenant union has structure, leadership, and agreed-upon goals.
Tenant unions can exist at different levels:
- Building-level unions (tenants in one apartment complex)
- Neighborhood unions (renters across multiple buildings)
- Citywide unions (advocating for policy change and enforcement)
In Cleveland, building-level tenant unions are the most common due to renters sharing the same landlord or property management company.
A Brief History of Tenant Organizing
Tenant unions are not new. They emerged in U.S. cities during periods of rapid urbanization when renters faced overcrowding, unsafe housing, and unchecked landlord power. Organizing gave tenants a way to demand repairs, stop illegal evictions, and push local governments to enforce housing codes.
Today’s tenant unions combine that history with modern tools, including, email lists, social media, legal aid partnerships, and coordinated campaigns, to create sustained pressure for change.
Why Tenant Unions Matter Today
Housing costs are rising faster than wages, and many renters feel increasingly vulnerable. Tenant unions help rebalance power by turning isolated renters into an organized group with a shared voice. In cities like Cleveland, where housing code enforcement can be inconsistent, tenant unions often succeed where individual complaints fail.
…
If you’re a tenant in Cleveland, Ohio and have faced an eviction, you’re likely feeling frustrated and worried about what it means for your future housing opportunities. Evictions become part of the court’s public record, and many landlords use these records when screening applicants, making it harder to secure a new lease even years later. But is there a way to remove an eviction from your record in Cleveland? The simple answer is… sometimes, but it’s not automatic and the law doesn’t guarantee it.
This guide will walk you through how eviction records work in Ohio, what “removal” really means under the law, how tenants can petition to seal or expunge an eviction record in Cleveland, and practical steps you can take now to protect your housing opportunities. Whether your eviction was dismissed, resulted in a judgment, or happened years ago, this guide explains your options and empowers you with knowledge to take action.
What Happens When an Eviction Is Filed in Cleveland
Eviction Records Become Public
Once a landlord files an eviction, that case becomes part of the public record in Cleveland, regardless of outcome. Prospective landlords, background-screening companies, and tenant-screening services can often access these records, which may make it difficult to find new housing. We have an article available if you’d like to learn about the Ohio Eviction Timeline.
Evictions and Your Credit History
Evictions can also influence credit reports. Some tenant-screening agencies pull court filings and may list eviction cases on background reports for years. While eviction filings aren’t criminal records, they can still act as red flags for landlords looking for low-risk tenants.
Common Misconceptions
Many tenants believe that if they won an eviction case, the record disappears. However, in most Ohio courts, the filing itself still exists on public record even after a dismissal.
…Can an Eviction Be Removed from Your Record in Cleveland?Read More »
Living in a rental where something important is broken can wear you down fast. A leaking ceiling, broken heater, or unsafe wiring does more than cause inconvenience. It can affect your health, safety, and finances. If you’re struggling to get your landlord to make repairs, you may feel stuck between wanting to keep the peace and needing your home to be livable.
This guide walks you through what to do if your landlord refuses to fix problems. You will learn what repairs landlords are legally required to handle, how to make a repair request that gets results, and what options are available when your landlord ignores you.
What Your Landlord Is Required to Do
Landlords have legal responsibilities even if a lease does not spell them out clearly. In Ohio, landlords must provide housing that meets basic health and safety standards. This is often referred to as the implied warranty of habitability.
This means your landlord must keep essential systems working. Heat, hot water, plumbing, electricity, weatherproofing, and structural safety are not optional upgrades. They’re legal requirements. Issues like mold, pest infestations, broken locks, or faulty wiring can also fall under habitability laws if they affect safety or health.
Step by Step Path to Getting Repairs Made
The first and most important step is written communication. Verbal requests are easy to ignore and hard to prove. Send your landlord a written repair request by email, certified mail, or a tenant portal if one exists. Clearly describe the issue, when it started, and how it affects your ability to live safely in the unit. Photos and videos are extremely helpful.
After sending the request, give your landlord a reasonable amount of time to respond. For non emergency repairs, this is usually between seven and thirty days. For emergencies like no heat in winter or serious plumbing leaks, the timeline can be much shorter.
Keep records of everything. Save emails, letters, text messages, and repair requests. Write down dates and times. This documentation becomes powerful evidence if you need to take further action. Many tenants fail not because they’re wrong, but because they can’t prove what happened.
…