Property managers won’t do repairs

By Tenant

I just moved into an apartment 3 weeks ago. I was pleased with the apartment even though it wasn’t in the greatest of condition, because I am a pretty laid-back renter. A few stains on the carpet and cuts on the countertop didn’t bother me. Then, Sunday, 5 days ago, I came home from a day out of town to find a huge leaking crack in my ceiling. There’s an apartment above mine, I believe that the leak is from their AC. I immediately called the rental office and talked to a maintenance person, who said they would be out on Monday. No one came on Monday, and I’ve called every day since (it’s now Friday afternoon). The ceiling is sagging, it drips a lot when the upstairs neighbors are home, and the crack is getting bigger. It’s about 18 inches long and I’m running out of buckets to catch the drips. How long is it reasonable to wait before lodging a complaint? Can I withhold rent until they fix the ceiling and the leak? Are they in breach of contract (I’ve heard a lot about the "implied warranty of habitability")? I’ve found out that this property management company has a horrible reputation, and tons of buildings, so I’m sure they have a lot of experience dealing with irate tenants. I’ve also had sudden asthma attacks since I moved in, which I *never* had before. I’m wondering if mold is growing in the ceiling and causing my illness, because it looks like the ceiling has been patched before.

Edited on: Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010 3:30 am

5 Responses to “Property managers won’t do repairs”

My response: (We welcome stories, examples, explanations, answers and a touch of your personality)
 

Mr. Landlord

August 25th, 2008 11:29 am

I would say that your landlord or property manager needs no more than 3 days to resolve that type of problem. You’re more patient that most of my renters. I’ve had renters complain because it took me 4 hours to come over and fix a leak similar to what your apartments leak. The law in almost all states says that repairs should be made in a timely manner… Your repair should’ve been fixed by now. I would file a complaint, that’s just dumb!


Rachel

August 27th, 2008 12:43 pm

Hi Megan, I just want to make it clear that you should not with-hold rent payments, it will be a breach of your rental contract. There are required steps to with-hold rent and it varies per state. But in order to with-hold rent for repairs you will will need to check the laws for your state. If you file a complaint the agent handling the case will know exactly what your rights are.


anonymous

August 31st, 2008 6:50 am

You say they have a horrible reputation, have you left feed back on there RPA landlord report? As renters we need to stick together by reporting bad landlords to the RPA. It helps us know who not to rent from. I hope I don’t accidentally rent from these guys! Please report them, it will only help them to start taking some responsibility for their actions.


K&K

August 31st, 2010 10:03 am

I signed a year lease with my apartments on a 24hr look and lease we were not shown the apt until 2 hrs before we signed the lease because of some “touch-up” work. We started to notice 3 or 4, 1ft X 1 1/2ft damp discolored patches on the ceiling in different rooms in the apt. the first week we had a constant drip of water draining from the apt upstairs. the apt maintence patched the hole and killed the mold. 3 weeks later we have 2 of the same holes, one in our hallway coming from the ac unit above us and 1 in the guest bathroom along the lighting fixture. there are many large 1/4″ cracks that go up and across some of our walls and the cracks in the ceilings have gotten substantialy worse seeing as upstairs neighbors have moved in. what can i do? we have been waiting 3 weeks for a repair and have shown pictures and data logs to our property owner and still nothing!!!! plz help we need to get someone bigger than us on these people what do you suggest


A Renter

November 2nd, 2010 10:30 am

You need to check with the laws regarding your state. Generally typing in google the name of your state and landlord tenant law … will bring up the laws of your state.

In any case document! Take pictures of the ceilings and the water bucket. It’s better if you take a video! Take a video of it leaking. Also put your repairs into writing.

It’s a he said she said when it comes down to it, unless it’s in writing. Send the list of repairs needed, via certified mail with return receipt to your landlord. You’ll get a card back in the mail stating what day they signed for it. Also you can present them with a copy of the letter in person. But the most important thing is having this letter sent certified mail, in case you go to court and have to prove it.

Look up the 1985 tenant/landlord law as well. Those are guidelines for the entire usa and generally included in the state laws.

In some states (like mine), you can withhold rent once you’ve sent a certified letter. In others you have to have it put in an escrow account. So it’s very important you read the laws of your state. If you can’t find them, let us know and I’m sure one of us can find it on the internet.

Good luck!


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