HB 524 Summary

• Prohibits landlords from evicting tenants or causing removal from dwelling units when the landlord's failure to comply with habitability standards significantly impairs the premises, provided the tenant continues paying rent equal to the fair rental value or agreed rent (whichever is less).

• Limits tenant rent liability to the fair rental value of the premises from the date of significant habitability impairment, establishing that tenants cannot be forced to pay full rent for uninhabitable units.

• Restores landlord's ability to recover possession only upon termination of the rental agreement in accordance with law or restoration of the premises to habitable condition, whichever occurs first.

• Establishes damages of two months' rent plus court costs and reasonable attorney's fees for tenants who are wrongfully evicted or dispossessed in violation of retaliation protections under Section 521-74.

• Takes effect July 1, 2023.