The Wisconsin Supreme Court has accepted Koble for review!
By: Kirsten Fagerland Pezewski, Pezewski Law Offices, S.C.
February 16, 2025
On February 12, 2025, the Wisconsin Supreme Court accepted the matter of Koble Investments v. Elicia Marquardt, 2022AP000182, for review. It has been a long wait to see whether this case would be reviewed. The Petition for Review was filed by attorneys for Koble Investments on May 23, 2024.
After the filing of the Petition for Review, Rental Property Association of Wisconsin, Inc., and its partner organizations (Wisconsin Realtors Association, Apartment Association of Northeast Wisconsin, Inc., Fox Valley Apartment Association, Inc., and Kenosha Landlord Association, Inc.) filed an amicus (friend of the court) brief, together with a supplement to the original brief. The amicus brief was filed with the Court on June 6, 2024.
The amicus brief argued to the court that the damages awarded in the Koble case by the Court of Appeals were not correct because the Court of Appeals:
· Incorrectly applied the Wisconsin Consumer Act to residential leases
· Ignored the periodic tenancy that existed despite the allegedly voided lease
· Incorrectly held that the tenant’s rent payments were a pecuniary loss
· Failed to require the tenant to show a causal connection between the violation and purported harm
The purpose of the amicus brief was to explain to the Supreme Court why it should grant the landlord’s petition for review, and the Court has granted the petition for review. Now, the Court of Appeals decision will be reviewed, and the Wisconsin Supreme Court will have the opportunity to change or modify the law made by the decision of the Court of Appeals.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has set a briefing schedule for the parties. Koble’s brief is due March 14, 2025, and the tenant’s attorney’s brief is due 20 days after the Koble brief. Koble will have 10 days to file a brief in reply. When briefs are filed, the Court will most likely set this matter for oral arguments. The RPA does not expect a decision is likely to be issued prior to August of 2025.
RPA and its partner organizations are considering filing additional amicus briefs.
Sharing an event from the Havenwoods Neighborhood Partnership
Event Details:
Date: Thursday, February 20, 2025
⏰ Time: 9:30 AM – 11:30 AM
Location: Wisconsin Country Club, 6200 W Good Hope Rd, Milwaukee, WI 53223
Cost: $10 per person includes continential breakfast
REGISTER HERE
Monthly virtual information sessions for housing providers will be held on the 2nd Wednesday of each month from 10 a.m. - 11 a.m. CST.
Details on the next session:
Date: Wednesday, February 12, 2025
Prefer to call-in only (no video)?
Message from HACM Regarding Backlog
We are aware that there is a backlog of work, and we have assembled a team to address this backlog. We plan to have all late annual re-examinations addressed by May 31, 2025, and the Housing Assistance Payments made by HACM on behalf of your HCV tenant(s) will continue during this period and not be affected. We thank you in advance for your patience during this time as we work diligently to get the backlog cleared.
New Call Center
To improve customer service and efficiency, a new Call Center has been implemented for the HCV Program that includes more options for assistance and a ticketing system for tracking inquiries. Not only can HCV participants and housing providers call the HCV Program office at 414-286-5650 to speak with a HACM representative during standard business hours (Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), but they can also email hcvsupport@hacm.org to create a ticket that will be routed to the appropriate staff for assistance.
Housing providers can continue to contact Stephen Fendt, Outreach Coordinator, directly with questions and concerns.
However, please send all time-sensitive materials (i.e., 30-day quit or pay notices, rent increases, RTAs for new tenants) to hcvsupport@hacm.org for processing and refer any of your HCV tenants to the Call Center for support with recertification, income adjustments, etc.
Inspection Scheduling
A new inspection scheduling process has been established to provide additional notice for upcoming appointments. In addition to the biennial inspection appointment letter sent to you via U.S. Mail, you will now also receive several automated calls prior to the inspector's arrival at the unit — 2 weeks, 24 hours and 1 hour.
The phone number called will be the number we have on file for your account, so please make sure you keep that number updated through the Landlord Portal.
You're invited to attend a roundtable discussion for owners and managers of rental housing in Wauwatosa:
Agenda:
To register email Opportunity@fairhousingwisconsin.com
or call 414-278-1240.
Zoom link for virtual attendance will be provided upon request.
The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) released their list of the top 10 consumer complaints of 2024.
At the top of the top 10 were landlord-tenant issues.
Caleb Kulich, Public Information Officer for DATCP, writes:
With 2,525 complaints filed in 2024, landlord-tenant issues remained DATCP’s number one consumer complaint category. The most common disputes between landlords and tenants reported to DATCP include failure to maintain the premises, security deposit returns, unauthorized entry, mold and infestation, inadequate disclosures, and unsatisfactory service.
Read the Full Article on DATCP's Website
Tue, Feb 18, 2025
10:00 AM - 11:00 AM CST
Read the Full Article on Tristan's Blog
By statute, there are several types of notices that a landlord can serve on a tenant if the tenant commits a breach of their Residential Rental Agreement or when the landlord wishes to terminate the tenancy. If your Residential Rental Agreement with the tenant specifies something different, you would want to use the longer notice period.
Most of these notices can be used in periodic tenancies (such as a month-to-month tenancy) as well as a lease for the term (such as a 12-month lease) but under different circumstances. Please be aware that some notices can only be used in periodic tenancies, while others can only be used in leases for term.
Most of the notice types cannot be used in a lease for over one year unless the landlord and tenant agree in writing, usually in the Rental Agreement, that specifies that the landlord can serve either a 5-day or 14-day Notice, which we refer to as the “saving language.”
Information Provided by: Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee
CVR Begins Management of HACM's Section 8 Program
As you may have read in the October 31, 2024 announcement, and in an effort to increase efficiencies and improve the overall experience for stakeholders of the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program, the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee has contracted with CVR Associates, Inc. to administer the HCV Program, effective January 2, 2025. That said, there will be a few changes implemented immediately.
HACM OFFICE
The HCV Program will continue to operate out of its current location (5011 W. Lisbon Ave.) and maintain the same general phone number (414-286-5650). However, please note:
To ensure a smooth transition, the office will be open for document drop-off only (no in-person assistance) starting Thursday, January 2 and will re-open for full service on Monday, January 13.
New Hours of Operation: Monday – Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
The office will close in observance of the following 2025 Holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Washington’s Birthday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, Day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve (1/2), Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve (1/2).
INSPECTIONS
Rest assured, we are committed to providing efficient and professional inspection services and CVR inspectors will continue to adhere to all federal, state and local housing quality standards. For inspection assistance or questions, please continue to contact the Inspections Department directly at 414-286-5658 or section8inspection@hacm.org.
What's New
To improve customer service, automated emails from 'no-reply@hcvinspect.com' and phone calls from 414-710-2547 will now be sent to remind you of inspection appointments and results. In addition, a new Inspection Portal (hacm.hcvinspect.com) will launch on February 1 that will allow you to check the status of your inspection and review notices online (no need to call, email or come into the office).
In addition, if it is determined that a failed inspection is the responsibility of the property owner/manager, HACM will abate the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP). Meaning, the property owner/manager will no longer receive payment from HACM until the deficiencies have been corrected and the unit passes a re-inspection.
The abatement goes into effect on the first day of the month following the expiration of the corrective period.
Note: The property owner/manager is not entitled to receive Housing Assistance Payments for any period that the unit is in abatement, nor will they receive retroactive repayments for any HAP withheld.
During abatement, the tenant is still responsible for their portion of the rent. However, because the abatement is in accordance with the HAP Contract (the agreement between the property owner/manager and HACM), the family is not liable for this unpaid portion of the rent and therefore, the property owner/manager may not “recover” any abated HAP from the tenant. Furthermore, federal regulations prohibit using HAP abatement as grounds for evicting a tenant.
For units remaining in abatement for 90 days, HACM will terminate the HAP Contract and issue moving papers to the tenant, providing a 30-day notice to both.
HOUSING ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS
In order to streamline operations, HACM will no longer issue paper checks for Housing Assistance Payments as of July 2025. Therefore, if you are a property owner/manager and have yet to set up Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) to receive payments, please make sure you complete and submit the EFT Request form to HACM no later than May 31, 2025.
In addition, the HCV Program has adopted a new payment processing schedule (click here to view the 2025 calendar). As such, Housing Assistance Payments will be issued on the 1st of every month with adjustments or pro-rated payments issued on the 15th as needed. Note: If the 1st or 15th falls on a weekend or holiday, the payment date will be adjusted accordingly.
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