USA – ALABAMA Law and Practice Contributed by: Adam J. Sigman, Crystal H. Walls, Nathan Stotser, Katie Sinclair and Courtney Bradshaw, Dentons
For a residential lease, the landlord is required to “keep all common areas of the premises in a clean and safe condition” , along with other requirements for the leased premises’ working order and condition (Section 35-9A-204). 6.10 Payment of Utilities and Telecommunications Net commercial leases often include utilities and telecommunications services serving an entire property (not just an individual tenant) in the oper - ating expenses that are charged to tenants on a pro rata basis, while gross commercial leases may include the costs of such services, utilities and telecommunications in the rent charged to the tenant. If such utilities or services are sepa - rately metered and service only a single tenant’s leased premises, that tenant is often responsible for the payment for such utilities or services. 6.11 Payment of Property Taxes The tenant is not obligated to pay real estate tax - es and assessments unless the lease provides for the tenant to pay or contribute to such costs. 6.12 Insurance Issues Payment of insurance premiums insuring leased real estate is typically done by a landlord, but such costs are often passed through to tenants as an operating expense in net commercial leases. Insurance coverages vary by property, but many commercial landlords carry general liability, casu - alty, flood and fire insurance, as well as coverage for bodily injury, property damage, lost rents, etc. 6.13 Restrictions on the Use of Real Estate Landlords may limit the way commercial tenants use leased real estate and often prohibit tenants from using the leased premises for certain exclu - sive uses negotiated with other parties. Applica - ble zoning laws and private restrictive covenants
in the property’s chain of title may impose further restrictions on tenant uses. 6.14 Tenant’s Ability to Alter and Improve Real Estate The terms of a lease will dictate whether a ten - ant is permitted to alter or add improvements. Often, tenants may receive a tenant improve - ment allowance to induce signing the lease, requiring that a landlord either installs certain improvements on the premises or reimburses the tenant for its costs. Often, a lease requires a tenant to obtain the landlord’s written approval for materials, plans, contractors, etc, involved in such improvements before starting the construction or installation of such improvements. Furthermore, trade fixtures may generally be removed by a tenant, though the tenant may be held liable if they damage the underlying real property in the process of remov - al. See LaFarge Bldg Materials, Inc v Stribling, 880 So 2d 415, 419 and 424 (Alabama 2003). 6.15 Specific Regulations The Alabama Uniform Residential Landlord Tenant Act (Section 35-9A-101 et seq) governs any rental agreement ( “all agreements, written or oral, and valid rules and regulations adopted under Section 35-9A-302 embodying the terms and conditions concerning the use and occu - pancy of a dwelling unit and premises” ) related to the rental of any dwelling unit (a “structure or the part of a structure, including a manufactured home, that is rented as a home, residence or sleeping place by one or more persons” ) to a tenant ( “a person entitled under a rental agree- ment to occupy a dwelling unit to the exclusion of others” ) Section 35-9A-141. This statute includes additional rules and regula - tions for both landlords and tenants in the resi-
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