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By Julie Yoshioka Daily Bruin Contributor As students search for apartments, legal experts caution that along with rent prices, room sizes and parking spaces, prospective tenants should also understand the agreements they make when they sign a lease.

"It is very important for students to read anything they are asked to sign," said Liz Kemper, director of UCLA's Student Legal Services.

Issues such as sublease agreements, move-out procedures and work order requests make up a few topics that may arise.

"If the landlord makes any verbal agreements, be sure to get it in writing because otherwise it will be virtually impossible to prove," Kemper said.

"It's legally very effective to have a paper trail because you have a document to support your claim later on," she continued.

Upon signing a lease, tenants and landlords should establish policies concerning rental fees, late charges, pets and parties, according to the 1992 handbook "California Tenants: Your Rights and Responsibilities.".

Kemper also recommends making a list of problems ­ such as stains on the carpet ­ that tenants may have upon moving into the apartment, and submitting this list to the landlord.

California law states that "a rental unit must be fit to live in, or habitable." This means that tenants must take reasonable care of their units and common areas.

Landlords, however, must repair conditions that affect their tenants under the implied warranty of habitability.

The warranty requires that a landlord maintain basic requirements such as repairing leaks in roofs and walls, water systems, lights and wiring, sewer systems, plumbing and gas.

Still, it does not require the landlord to clean up or repair damages the tenants have caused.

If a tenant needs apartment repairs, he or she should notify the landlord by telephone and through written request.

"We usually just call our manager," said Georgia Dranier, a third-year English student. "It usually gets fixed within a week."

A written request, however, can be beneficial.

"It can be less intimidating. The tenants don't have to deal with the landlord face to face if they are uncomfortable," Kemper said.

The amount of time in which the request should be met depends on the individual situation.

According to the "California Tenants" handbook, the law usually considers 30 days reasonable, but if the damage ­ such as broken heater during a cold season ­ causes the rental unit to be unfit for living, a shorter amount of time is obviously necessary.

Many students find that

apartment managers expedite the repairs, though.

"I haven't had any problems with repairs not being completed," said Bo Leung, a third-year business economics student. "We put in a request to fix the stove, and it was repaired in a few days."

If the landlord does not complete the repair, tenants have two options: the repair and deduct remedy or the rent withholding method.

The repair and deduct method allows the tenants to make the repairs on their own and deduct the charges from the rent.

This applies to situations concerning health and safety, such as a leaking roof, no running hot water, a gas leak or a defective sewer system.

California law supports the rent-withholding method that allows tenants to stop paying rent if the landlord doesn't repair conditions which make the unit uninhabitable.

The handbook also recommends that tenants who wish to use this method contact an attorney prior to taking action.

Student Legal Services can also help in this process. Kemper lists services such as writing a demand letter to the landlord to recover compensation, or assisting in suing the landlord in small claims court.

Nonetheless, approaching the landlord with a problem should be simple as long as tenants are civil.

"(Tenants) should be professional and courteous," said Kemper. "People respond well to that."

In Kelton Plaza Apartments, for example, tenants place work orders at the manager's office. If tenants need emergency repairs, however, managers may be paged.

The issue of repairs also brings up the subject of privacy. California law permits the landlord to enter a unit in an emergency, and to both make repairs and show the unit to potential renters with prior notice to the tenants.

The law considers prior notice as at least 24 hours prior to entering, unless it is an emergency. In addition, the landlord can only enter during he general business hours of 8 a.m. to5 p.m.

In addition to repair guidelines, many apartments have policies prohibiting subleasing an apartment without prior approval of the manager.

"Students should be reminded that subletters are not responsible for damages," said Ashok Desai, manager of Kelton Plaza Apartments. "It is a sketchy line and a legal issue."

Kelton Plaza Apartments, like many Westwood apartment complexes, must approve of subletters before they move in. Otherwise the original tenants may be evicted and lose their deposit.

Desai described problematic situations such as disruptive subletters who disrespect the apartment, or even refuse to leave once the original tenants return.

Since the original tenants are the ones on the lease, they are responsible for any problems that might occur. In a situation where a subletter refuses to leave, the original tenant must move out.

When tenants sign the lease, they are both "jointly and severally liable for full rent and damage," meaning that each roommate is held responsible, Kemper said.

For such reasons, she emphasizes choosing roommates wisely.

"If one leaves, the other is left holding the bag," Kemper said.

The situation may also occur when one roommate no longer wants to live with another. "You have no right to kick someone out," Kemper said.

She urges students to fill out roommate agreements in writing.

"This helps to determine expectations and to prevent problems," she said.

Many find that such agreements help eliminate arguments.

"We have a chart with four different chores," Dranier said. "Each week, someone is responsible for vacuuming, taking care of the kitchen, taking out the trash or tidying up the living room."

This allows one roommate out of the five to have a week off during each rotation, Dranier added.

Whether dealing with repair issues or rent problems, Kemper said, "Students should recognize that they may have a long relationship with their landlords, and that they should do their best to maintain a good relationship."