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What recourse do I have?

By Season

I just moved into my place the 3rd of October and am currently writing my second formal repair notice to give to my landlord.  The longer I live there, the more things I find wrong: 

Was not cleaned properly after the last tenant (mildew along shower stall, spiderwebs, bugs, stained, worn carpeting that I was told would be replaced–to her credit, she reduced my rent by $30 a month for the carpeting, garbage under the bathroom counter, an oven so dirty it set off the smoke alarm twice the first time I used it, etc).

No weather stripping around the door, which doesn’t fit in the frame well–obvious cold drafts, insects coming in.  She had a friend put foam stripping around the door last night that is already coming off today.   The same friend took a look at the mess under the bathroom counter and said there might be a mouse problem–there was a chewed up soap box and a mouse trap under there.  He glued a piece of wood under the counter that still leaves a small space between it and the ground on the left hand side and a large space on the right side of the counter—basically, various things could crawl over or under the board.

There’s a garbage disposal that doesn’t work–has never worked, she told me—that was leaking water under the sink.  I mentioned it to her two days ago and now the sink doesn’t drain at all.  I can’t do dishes nor use the sink for more than a few seconds without it backing up. 

She had me put down a $600 nonrefundable security deposit.  I did not know at the time that it’s illegal to call something nonrefundable a deposit.  On various places of the lease where it states that the security deposit is refundable she wrote "NA."  Do I have grounds to break the 6-month lease without penalties and to demand my security deposit back?  I’m particularily upset because she inially defended the nonrefundable deposit by saying that after a renter had left, she tears up the carpeting, everything would be tip top shape, etc.  I’m just confused as to what my options are at this point.  I’ve been taking pictures and documenting things.  I’ve been there less than a week though, and I’m worried what will come up a month from now since the place has been so poorly maintained.

Thanks for any help or advice!

Season 

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Edited on: Friday, October 8th, 2010 5:20 pm
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2 Responses to “What recourse do I have?”

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

Jerry Taylor

October 9th, 2010 2:07 am

So you rented an apartment based on a promise that the landlord would clean and repair the unit, but hasn’t. Right?

The first question I have is this:

Did you get this in writing? Did the landlord sign a statement or addendum specifically stating that they would replace carpet, paint, clean, repair etc.?

IF they did then they are in breach of agreement which would allow you to terminate your lease without penalty. However, if the agreement was verbal and there is no evidence to validate the agreement, then you might be stuck.

Once you sign a lease agreement you are virtually accepting the unit in the condition it is in. Any guarantees or promises NEED to be in writing in order to be enforceable. If these arrangements to repair your apartment are written (even via email, or text message) then you have rights to get out of your lease. Verbal agreements on the other hand are fairly worthless, why? Because there is no proof. There is no way to prove what anyone said or agreed to. If it goes to court, it will probably be thrown out.

Even if the repairs promised by your landlord are verbal, you can still possibly break your lease but only if the unit is uninhabitable or unsafe. If the repairs are so bad that the unit isn’t habitable, then you can claim a breach of implied warranty of habitability which would require the landlord to let you out of the lease and refund your deposit.

Jerry Taylor

October 9th, 2010 2:12 am

I forgot to respond to the Non refundable deposit question.

Non refundable deposits are illegal in some states, however most allow this practice. Deposits can be non-refundable if it is agreed upon and disclosed up-front. Rentals are regulated by contract law meaning that whatever you agreed upon is legal unless there is some specific law that negates certain conditions such as disallowing “non-refundable deposits” or a maximum amount or percentage that can be non-refundable.

Its best to never sign a contract unless you are 100% okay with the terms set. Don’t assume that there will be a law that will supersede the lease terms, because even if there is a law, it would still require a lawsuit or legal help to enforce.

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