What You Need To Know

• Many rental properties in Ohio are bought by large out-of-state corporations


• This causes trouble for Ohio tenants, especially when it comes to knowing who to contact for issues 


• Organizations like Columbus Legal Aid try to help tenants that have been wronged by their out-of-state landlords

Rentcafe.com said that rentals make up 55% of the housing market in Columbus and 58% in Cleveland. Jyoshu Tsushima, an attorney with Columbus Legal Aid, detailed the main difficulty that renters have with their out-of-state landlords.

“Probably the biggest complaint that we hear from tenants that we represent is that it’s often hard to figure out who they’re supposed to be talking to,” he said.

Tsushima said that rental property managers are usually the ones directly connecting with tenants, but that the corporate organizations are the ones making decisions, so it has been confusing for people to know who to contact with issues.

“The corporate structure doesn’t allow them to be quite as flexible or engaged with the tenants in a way that a lot of the local landlords are able to or willing to do,” he said. 

Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown has advocated for the out-of-state landlords that neglect and mistreat their tenants to be held accountable. California Representative Ro Khanna introduced the “Stop the Wall Street Landlords Act,” which would make it less appealing for out-of-state landlords to buy properties. Tsushima said he hopes local government and legal aids can work together to help resolve these issues.

“One, make sure that landlords are compliant with their obligations and two, making sure that if they’re not compliant with their obligations there is some form of enforcement,” he said. 

Tsushima also suggested that tenants hold their landlords accountable by keeping credible documentation of their home’s issues.