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Solberg v. Majerle Management7/18/2005
Bell, C.J., Raker, Wilner, Cathell, Harrell, Battaglia, Greene, JJ.
This is a breach-of-lease action in which the District Court, and on appeal the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, ruled for the landlord. The action ultimately was grounded on what the landlord argued was, and the Circuit Court found to be, an unjustified refusal by the tenants to permit inspections of the leased premises. The tenants, who are disabled, contended that the landlord was required by both the Federal Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. § 3601 et seq.) and the lease to make reasonable accommodations in light of their disabilities and that her agent failed to do so. Although there was a clear procedural glitch at the Circuit Court level, the relevant issue before us is essentially a factual one - whether there is substantial evidence in the record to support the Circuit Court's conclusion that the landlord did, indeed, attempt to make reasonable accommodations and that the tenants' refusal to permit scheduled inspections by the landlord's agent constituted a breach of the lease. We shall affirm.
BACKGROUND
In September, 1999, Deborah Sossen and Erick Solberg, petitioners here, entered into a 24-month lease for a single-family dwelling at 10017 Brookmoor Drive, in Silver Spring, Maryland. The lease was evidenced by a Dwelling House Lease and a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Section 8 Lease Addendum. For our purposes, two provisions of the lease are particularly relevant. Section 13 required the tenants to allow the landlord or her agent to enter the premises for the purpose of inspection at any reasonable time.
Section 27, which by its terms prevailed over any conflicting provisions in the lease, recited that the landlord had received "official medical testimony regarding tenants' requirement for special adaptations to accommodate to their handicapping conditions" and understood that they were on the Department of Agriculture's pesticide sensitive list. Based on that documentation, the landlord agreed to allow "reasonable accommodations and modifications for Tenants' disabilities." In that regard, the landlord agreed to create "the least chemical impact/load to Tenants' health," and that " ersons entering unit for repairs will adhere to disability guidelines as per medical advice and Tenant instructions unless for emergency repairs to prevent damage to property." (Emphasis added). Section 27 precluded the landlord from terminating the lease except for certain causes, including " erious or repeated violations of the terms and conditions of the lease."
The landlord was an individual who lived in Colorado, and, until June, 2001, she relied on her sister to manage the property. It is not clear whether any inspections of the property took place pursuant to § 13 during that period of time. In June, 2001, the landlord entered into a property management agreement with Majerle Management, Inc., in which she appointed Majerle as her agent to manage the property. The agreement required Majerle to make inspections of the property as it felt necessary, "but approximately twice annually," and to "report matters concerning the condition of the Premises to said Owner." On June 22, 2001, Mr. Majerle informed the tenants in writing that his company had been employed as the landlord's agent. In that letter, he advised:
"I will personally manage your home and will conduct routine matters including periodic inspections. The first inspection is scheduled for July 11 between 3:15 and 4:15 PM. These inspections are conducted semi-annually, during normal business hours and you must be present. If this date or time is not acceptable, you may call to reschedule. Otherwi
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