Legal Definitions - active waste

Active waste, also known as commissive waste, refers to damage or destruction to a property caused by a tenant's or occupant's deliberate actions or reckless behavior, rather than simply neglecting maintenance. It involves an affirmative act that harms the property, diminishing its value or altering its character without permission.

Here are some examples illustrating active waste:

• Scenario: A tenant, without obtaining the landlord's consent, decides to remove a non-load-bearing wall in their rented apartment to create a larger living area. While the wall might not be structural, its removal requires significant repairs to the floor, ceiling, and adjacent walls, and alters the original layout of the property.

  Explanation: This constitutes active waste because the tenant engaged in a deliberate act (removing a wall) that caused physical damage and a significant alteration to the property, reducing its value or requiring costly restoration to its original state.

• Scenario: A tenant installs a large, heavy hot tub on an upper-story wooden deck that was not designed to support such weight. Over time, the excessive weight and water leakage from the hot tub cause the deck to sag, rot, and become structurally unsound, requiring extensive and expensive repairs.

  Explanation: This is an example of active waste because the tenant's affirmative action of installing the hot tub in an inappropriate location directly led to significant structural damage to the property, beyond normal wear and tear.

• Scenario: A tenant, upon moving out of a commercial space, removes the custom-built reception desk, built-in shelving units, and specialized lighting fixtures that were permanently installed and part of the property when they leased it.

  Explanation: This demonstrates active waste because the tenant actively detached and removed fixtures that were considered part of the real property, thereby diminishing its value and utility for the landlord or subsequent tenants.