Virginia Code 55.1-1209: Confidentiality of tenant records.
A. No landlord or managing agent shall release information about a tenant or prospective tenant in the possession of the landlord or managing agent to a third party unless:
Terms Used In Virginia Code 55.1-1209
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- in writing: include any representation of words, letters, symbols, numbers, or figures, whether (i) printed or inscribed on a tangible medium or (ii) stored in an electronic or other medium and retrievable in a perceivable form and whether an electronic signature authorized by Virginia Code 1-257
- Landlord: means the owner, lessor, or sublessor of the dwelling unit or the building of which such dwelling unit is a part. See Virginia Code 55.1-1200
- Managing agent: means the person authorized by the landlord to act as the property manager on behalf of the landlord pursuant to the written property management agreement. See Virginia Code 55.1-1200
- Notice: means notice given in writing by either regular mail or hand delivery, with the sender retaining sufficient proof of having given such notice in the form of a certificate of service confirming such mailing prepared by the sender. See Virginia Code 55.1-1200
- Person: means any individual, group of individuals, corporation, partnership, business trust, association, or other legal entity, or any combination thereof. See Virginia Code 55.1-1200
- Premises: means a dwelling unit and the structure of which it is a part, facilities and appurtenances contained therein, and grounds, areas, and facilities held out for the use of tenants generally or whose use is promised to the tenant. See Virginia Code 55.1-1200
- Rent: means all money, other than a security deposit, owed or paid to the landlord under the rental agreement, including prepaid rent paid more than one month in advance of the rent due date. See Virginia Code 55.1-1200
- State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-245
- Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
- Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
- Tenant: means a person entitled only under the terms of a rental agreement to occupy a dwelling unit to the exclusion of others and includes a roomer. See Virginia Code 55.1-1200
- Tenant records: means all information, including financial, maintenance, and other records about a tenant or prospective tenant, whether such information is in written or electronic form or any other medium. See Virginia Code 55.1-1200
- United States: includes the 50 states, the District of Columbia the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-255
1. The tenant or prospective tenant has given prior written consent;
2. The information is a matter of public record as defined in § 2.2-3701;
3. The information is a summary of the tenant’s rent payment record, including the amount of the tenant’s periodic rent payment;
4. The information is a copy of a material noncompliance notice that has not been remedied or a termination notice given to the tenant under § 55.1-1245 and the tenant did not remain in the premises after such notice was given;
5. The information is requested by a local, state, or federal law-enforcement or public safety official in the performance of his duties;
6. The information is requested pursuant to a subpoena in a civil case;
7. The information is requested by a local commissioner of the revenue in accordance with § 58.1-3901;
8. The information is requested by a contract purchaser of the landlord’s property, provided that the contract purchaser agrees in writing to maintain the confidentiality of such information;
9. The information is requested by a lender of the landlord for financing or refinancing of the property;
10. The information is requested by the commanding officer, military housing officer, or military attorney of the tenant;
11. The third party is the landlord’s attorney or the landlord’s collection agency;
12. The information is otherwise provided in the case of an emergency;
13. The information is requested by the landlord to be provided to the managing agent or a successor to the managing agent; or
14. The information is requested by an employee or independent contractor of the United States to obtain census information pursuant to federal law.
B. Any information received by a landlord pursuant to § 55.1-1203 shall remain a confidential tenant record and shall not be released to any person except in response to a subpoena.
C. A tenant may designate a third party to receive duplicate copies of a summons that has been issued pursuant to § 8.01-126 and of written notices from the landlord relating to the tenancy. Where such a third party has been designated by the tenant, the landlord shall mail the duplicate copy of any summons issued pursuant to § 8.01-126 or notice to the designated third party at the same time the summons or notice is mailed to or served upon the tenant. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to grant standing to any third party designated by the tenant to challenge actions of the landlord in which notice was mailed pursuant to this subsection. The failure of the landlord to give notice to a third party designated by the tenant shall not affect the validity of any judgment entered against the tenant.
D. A landlord or managing agent may enter into an agreement with a third-party service provider to maintain tenant records in electronic form or other medium. In such case, the landlord and managing agent shall not be liable under this section in the event of a breach of the electronic data of such third-party service provider, except in the case of gross negligence or intentional act. Nothing in this section shall be construed to require a landlord or managing agent to indemnify such third-party service provider.
E. A tenant may request a copy of his tenant records in paper or electronic form. If the rental agreement so provides, a landlord may charge a tenant requesting more than one copy of his records the actual costs of preparing copies of such records. However, if the landlord makes available tenant records to each tenant by electronic portal, the tenant shall not be required to pay for access to such portal.
1985, c. 567, § 55-248.9:1; 2000, c. 760; 2003, c. 426; 2006, cc. 491, 667; 2008, c. 489; 2010, c. 550; 2015, c. 596; 2016, c. 744; 2018, c. 221; 2019, c. 712; 2020, c. 388.