I have a neighbor (across the street) that's having some trouble. Her house & mine are owned by the same person (company). (Yes, we both rent for now.) She just moved in recently (only been there a few months), & the sideing on the house is blowing off (after she was already moved in). It's been over a month now a it's still not fixed.

Last night (about 10 til 11:00), she came over wanting to know what she could do about some recently fallen sideing that was hanging on by a corner & banging the side of the house. (She's elderly, recently devorced, & doesn't know anything about simple repairs. Past hubby always did everything, so she is basicly up a creek if we weren't here to help (& educate) her.) Even the back door light was hanging by the wires (in the rain). We temporarely duck taped some of the sideing down (so it wouldn't hit the house), & put the light back up haveing to tape it also. She has had a fire truck wake her at 2 in the morning because a smoke alarm went off without reason. None of this has been fixed in at least a months time if not a month & a half. And the fireman even reported the light problem to the owner (fire hazzard). One would think they'ed want to keep their investment in working order. It's not her responsibility to fix any of this. And she can't get it fixed herself & take it off the rent without consent.

Here's the question; Is there any national or state organization that will make the owners make repairs? Is there anyone/place that can help her get at least some of these things fixed?

Thanks

animalfarms (central IN)

-- animalfarms (jawjlewis@netzero.net), October 06, 2001

Answers

First, read the lease! (If you have one) Did she agree to be responsible for repairs? If there is no lease or no clause for repair: Put everything in writing, with lots of photographs as much detail as possible with a list of all essential repairs that must be done (not cosmetic) and send registered return receipt to the landlord. Make it clear (without threatening) that these issues must be addressed for safe inhabitation of the house, and that you expect a reply within 7 business days. If you do not hear anything or you get a negative response send copies of everthing to your local building inspector and any other town/county/state agencies that deal with housing. Good luck and hang in. You are to an advantage that she is elderly (senior issue) and even better if it's approaching winter where you are. It is practicly impossible to evict in the winter months.

-- Kathy (catfish201@hotmail.com), October 06, 2001.

Many states have Landlord/Tenant laws which specify the duties and responsibility of both parties. However, most also only apply to a landlord renting out four or more units. My recommendation would be for her to go to Legal Aid to know her status as a renter. She may be able to deposit her rent into a special account until the Landlord makes the required repairs.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), October 06, 2001.

Take pictures of everything. Better yet video it if you have a cam corder and do as the above posted.Document the phone calls to landlord,etc.

-- tracy (murfette@stargate.net), October 06, 2001.

Does your state have any renter organizations (they may even be online)? The larger cities will definitely have them. Or the AARP might help since you indicate she is an older person.

I don't think any landlord wants tenants to fix anything--talk about a liability problem for the landlord!--other than changing a lightbulb or similar procedure. In any case what you mentioned are severe enough problems that in some states she could legally withhold rent until the stuff is fixed.

The "four or fewer units" mentioned does not apply to safety issues such as you mentioned. A landlord always has the duty and responsibility to make sure that premises are habitable--not beautiful with new stuff, but everything in working order and safe to use.

If you can get to a library, see if they have any of the Nolo Press books on landlord/tenant issues (separate books for each). Also, their website I think www.nolopress.com or www.nolo.com has a wealth of info as well.

-- GT (nospam@nospam.com), October 06, 2001.

Animalfarms,

You tell one side of the story quite well, unfortunately the story most likely has two sides.

What usually happens is that a person rents a house that is what we might call tacky, in the business. The house shows some wear, and may need some fixing. The house however is cheap, and is generally rented in the as is condition. That sounds like about what has happened here.

Then as soon as the tenant gets settled everything in the world needs to be fixed, even though it is as it was when the house was rented, and was cheap. It's unsafe, it does not meet code, it's this and it's that, and some of it may be justified.

Most states have landlord/tenant sections in the state laws. You could probably do a search on line and read the laws for your state. In addition the local governments may also have some laws that apply. The local health department can direct you to the proper source for such laws. Now things that are unsafe need to be fixed no question about that.

There is an old saying "you can't make a silk purse out of an old sows ear". That applies here, but is only partly true. If you or your neighbor desire to rent an old run down property, cheap that is one thing, but if you desire that that the landlord then make everything new again that is quite another. You proposed concept of "MAKE" the landlord do this or that, will not get you very far. I suggest that if your neighbor wants a nicer place to live that she go rent a nicer place, rather than try to make the landlord make the place nice. Of course if she demands more quality it is quit likely that it will cost her more money, so she will need to be prepared to pay more.

If the property is terribly unsafe why live there anyway? If it is unlivable, and she complains to the health department, or code enforcement folks, then she will probably succeed in causing the property to be condemned; and she will have to move.

A real popular solution here would be for her to buy her own house, and then she could make all the improvements that she likes.

-- Ed Copp (OH) (edcopp@yahoo.com), October 06, 2001.

This may seem simple but I had a time when I was younger and renting and my refrigerator quit working.I made several calls to my landlord with no result,so I did not send my rent in for that month. boy it wasnt even 2 days late and who do u think was trying to get a hold of me-the Landlord and the next day I had a working frig.When they want their money they will get on it.I have done this type of thing twice while I was renting and it worked both times. Good luck

-- David Smith (duckthis1@maqs.net), October 06, 2001.

Having at different times in my life been on each side of the fence and being a fellow Hoosier here's my two cents worth. Before you do anything else make certain the lease doesn't provide for the renter to make repairs. Assuming that's not the case, prepare a polite and succinct letter listing what needs to be repaired. Try some wording like this; "I understand how busy you must be since you've not been able to even return my calls. Given that's the case, I'll be happy to arrange to have the listed repairs done and deduct the cost from the upcoming rent(s). If I don't hear from you withing ten days of the date of this letter, I'll assume that's what you want and proceed accordingly. Please respond in writing so we make sure we avoid any misunderstandings."

Make a copy and send the original certified mail return receipt requested so there will be no doubt you sent it. You'll get a card back with the recipient's signature on it or get the letter back unclaimed. If it is returned, keep it and make sure it remains unopened. Either way, you win. Then, if they do the work she'll be happy. If they don't do the work or contact her within the specified time she can contract the work done and deduct it from her rent and she'll be happy.

If that's too strong and direct for her, she could try to see if your town has a neighborhood code enforcement unit. We have one here and it's sole charge is to inspect properties to determine if they meet building codes. If you do have such an organization, contact them. If you're not sure, contact your county building department or the mayor's office to determine who might be the proper contact and go from there.

Personally, I'd go with the letter in that it's direct and I think even your landlord will have a degree of appreciation for that rather than invoking a third party right away. It also shows you know what you're doing and are laying good groundwork if this degenerates into litigation. I hope this helps.

-- Gary in Indiana (gk6854@aol.com), October 06, 2001.

Sounds to me like there are some safety issues here so the landlord should only be given five business days to reply and rectify the problem. In most states there are landlord/tenant laws or "blue laws" to protect both the landlord and the tenant. If repairs are not a part of your rental agreement, written or verbal, then you should write the nice letter explaining the problem and the safety issues and request that the landlord rectify the problem in so many days. Here in SD we can request five business days. Also state that if the problem is not taken care of within those days, you will have the problem fixed (your safety is at stake) and deduct the cost of repairs off of your next months rent. I agree with sending the letter certified mail return receipt requested. That way you have proof that you tried to take care of the problem. If you get no reply, have the problems fixed and take the cost off of next months rent or two if needed. Stick to your guns and let the landlord know that you are concerned for your safety and the safety of your possessions. Also, for a backup, research your state's landlord/tenant laws (most are on the internet) and be ready to state your case. If you aren't up to it, hire legal help. This is not legal advise so make sure you check it out on your own. Good luck.

-- JoAnn in SD (jonehls@excite.com), October 06, 2001.

First, the house is half of a double thats only about 6 years old. Thats not old enough to be unsafe upon moving in (one thing just made something else worse). Most of the problem is the sideing thats off (letting whats under it rot with time), however it's almost 1/4 of a side. She payes about $900 a month (new houseing built on old farm fields), & her lease is almost identical to mine. I know she doesn't have to make the repairs herself, so she can't just do it without their permission (dispite both me & her repetedly asking them to fix it (Yes we asked nicely)). And yes, if the rent was late (happened only once to me by mistake) we got a call the 2nd day. Almost all damage was caused by (or started with) a storm. The sideing knocked down the back porch light so it hung by it's exposed wires.

I had a back door that wouldn't latch, therefore it wouldn't lock. I was putting a chair under the door knob at night. It took two weeks of calling before he would call be back (will only give out a pager number), & then it was another two weeks before someone came to fix the door. I've worked on rental houses (a little of everything) in the past. If he just told me to fix it myself it would have save me time & him money. And all the repair man did was knock some of the would out of the latch hole (lowering it) with a hammer & chizel (borrowed from me).

Several times his excuse for not calling before (for at least two or more weeks) in responce to his pager, was he was out of town. I find it hard that someone could be out of town for that long, that often. Besides, there is more then one person acting to collect rent or make repairs. Yet neither one would call back. Since he doesn't seem to want to fix anything or let us get it done (billing him or takeing it out of the rent), I hope like h*** we are bugging him to death. She has taken pictures of the damage (a week ago).

Who or where would she be able to report him (at lease get it on record) if he doesn't TRY to make repairs?

animalfarms

-- animalfarms (jawjlewis@netzero.net), October 07, 2001.

What does your lease say about repairs? If it's just one of those generic leases from Staples or Office Depot, it'll probably just say something nonspecific about the landlord being responsible for keeping the place habitable.

There are specific Landlord/Tenant statutes that you can find in your local library - but they can sometimes be difficult for the layman to understand b/c of the legal jargon. I'd still get ahold of them & make some copies to take home & read. The more you read them, the more they make sense once you get the jist of the gobbledygook legalese. You can make a copy for your illustrious landlord & highlight the laws he/she is breaking, to just sort of clue him/her in on the fact that you're not just another Run-Of-The-Mill Tenant who's not aware of his/her rights that he/she can jerk around. Maybe that'd be enough to get the ball rolling.

One basic thing in your favor is that it IS the landlord's responsibility to make sure the residence he/she's renting is safe & habitable. Your local government should have standards that rental properties must conform to - find these & get a copy of them. (You could also highlight the problems & send THAT to said Landlord, to clue him/her in . . .)

Another thing to do whenever you rent, is to be SURE to make a list of alllllllll the problems in the rental place - SIGNED BY BOTH you AND the landlord BEFORE you move in. That protects both of you. Get the necessary stuff fixed & amend the list as needed prior to moving in. This will especially protect you from a dishonest landlord not giving your security deposit back & trying to hold you responsible for something that was already broken/in disrepair/etc.

Legally, you can withhold your rent till your landlord fixes serious problems. But you have to do it a certain way. You can't just not pay & then, when he/she bugs you for it, say "Fix X, Y & Z or don't get your rent." B/c then I'm guessing he/she would show you his/her compliance by serving you w/ an Eviction notice.

[SIDENOTE - if you ARE served w/ an Eviction Notice, be sure it's a LEGAL Eviction Notice filed w/ the court. Landlords can NOT just stick a note on your door that's scribbled on the back of a dry cleaning receipt telling you to get out in X # of days. Eviction Notices are legal documents filed w/ the court & served upon you either via Certified Mail or a Process Server!]

(at least under FL & MI legal procedure)

ANYWAY - You need to submit a formal complaint to your local court & deposit your rent check into an equity account. This doesn't have to be any fancy schmancy legal document. You can do something as simple as writing it out on notebook paper - something to the tune of: I, So & So, the Tenant am renting XYZ Residence from Joe Schmoe, the Landlord & am depositing my rent money for the month of X into an equity account (court will tell you how to do this) until the following is repaired:" & list all the problems. Sign & date it in front of 2 witnesses & a notary public; file the original w/ the courthouse, send a copy of the FILED document (they'll stamp it at the courthouse & give you a courtdate) via registered mail to Joe Schmoe. He will then have until that courtdate to either make the repairs or file a response.

Good luck!

Regards, Sarah from MI X-Paralegal-Turned-Goat-Farmer

-- Sarah Sanders (chilechile@hotmail.com), October 07, 2001.

Animalfarms,

In most states the owner has to give you more than a phone number so that you can send proper paperwork to him/her/it. Go to your public records office and find out who owns the properties and send your letters directly to them. If the name is unfamiliar (not mentioned on the lease), explain everything from the beginning. The property may have been sold (usually you have to honor leases to the end of the lease period) and the new owner may honestly not know what's going on, so you might have to give them the benefit of the doubt. If it is a PO Box, then the police can find out a street address to legally serve them papers at if necessary.

Also, if they are playing games with who is supposed to be collecting the rent (as in not notifying you in writing or at the very least personally introducing you to them) you could also say, "hey, how do I know this person is legit?"

Also, are you on a lease or a month-to-month? If the latter, they could just give you a 30-day notice and still be okay legally (not be held for a "spite" action). A 3-day eviction would be seen differently by a court, but you still have to prove that it was directly in response to your efforts to get the proper repairs done.

As to the repairs--the electric is important (dangerous) and a door that doesn't lock is a real safety issue. Those are things that should be fixed ASAP. The siding, well, as long as the house is not leaking or is otherwise letting the weather in, is more a cosmetic thing, and maybe they are waiting on an insurance payment.

Depending upon the dollar amount, and your state limits, you don't necessarily need a lawyer, you could go to small claims court with this stuff. As long as you are honest and keep good records, it should not affect your ability to rent a new place. However, just as renters have a grapevine, I imagine landlords do too.

-- GT (nospam@nospam.com), October 07, 2001.