Okay geezz NOW what should I do? (Keene: wood floors, extended stay)

[Tarastomsgirl]

So as most of you know my pipes froze twice already this winter, so last month my gas bill was $250 (for month of NOV) we figured okay its pretty high and all but gas is high so whatever just got our new bill for the month of Dec $600 . Heat gage wasn't even touched.. We get the gas company out here, and talk to our landlord letting him know that pretty much we're not paying that amount to heat a small 1 bed 1 bath apartment. So we get the gas company out here thinking all the pipes and things in the unit need to be cleaned. The landlord said he ment to ask us about the heating 2 months ago but forgot, of course. While he's up there he calls us up to let us know why our bill is so high.... Our ceiling has NO insulation.. none at all.. we have straight wood floors on top of our ceiling.. Not only that there are some holes in the wood so we can see through in like remote corners of the attic and thats letting out all the heat in the house!!

We don't have the money to just up and move. Its an odd situation because we're kinda the "outsiders" you know, and don't wanna start bad blood, everyone knows everyone and if we go around and start reporting him we'll word gets around FAST. And esp with my husband at the PD, our landlords is friend with some of the other cops, so I don't want people turning , cause it will happen, it already has to another guy there who moved here for another state. What are my options here? What would you do in my situation if you didn't know / have any connections in town . Do you suck it up and ask for money off rent to cover extra charges etc.. Also my landlord is a licensed home inspector so we go report him to the city, well he's chummy with these people already from his line of work so word will get back to him before we finish filling out the paperwork and I'm afraid of residual effects...

[daniellefort]

oh wow. that's terrible. Have you asked your landlord about a break on the rent yet? I mean he's probably going to say something along the lines that you should have looked what you were renting a bit closer but i too wouldn't have thought of looking to make sure the roof was insulated. (we just found out this week that we don't have insulation on our roof either here in FL so now we know why it's either too hot or cold in here but we own the house) again, did not think of looking to make sure the roof had insulation. I don't really know what other option you have except maybe try to negotiate your rent payment this month even if you just have to play catch up with rent down the road.

[rmcewan]

That's insane! What's in the attic? Can you just throw some roll insulation up there? I mean, you can buy a 50sq ft roll of R19 insulation for $24 from home depot. That's less than $250 to do 500 sq ft. (you really need R30+ for an attic though). If you have single-pane windows - have you taped them?

[Tarastomsgirl]

Well we're gonna ask him to lower the rent $200 to make up for the gas bill or pay the bill one or the other, cause its not quite fair and yah not for nothing but I SHOULDN'T have to be looking under floor boards to see if there is insulation in the ceiling, thats not my job. I assumed when I rented this place it was habitable..I dunno what he's gonna do with the attic cause its HUGE its the entire size of our house, and has 10 ft. cathedrial ceilings, and the walls in the attic are not insulated either. just wood. So I dunno he's got to do something though. I really should have done month to month.. learned my lesson.. Got taken advantage of.. Should have caught on when he kept saying he hates people who take advantage of others.

[gyppy]

$600 a month to heat a 1-bedroom apartment is completely nuts. Your landlord needs reduce your rent appropriately for the remainder of the lease.

Is there any stipulation in your lease about the landlord maintaining "habitable" or "livable" conditions for renters? Because an un-insulated attic in New England is ridiculous. Even if he insulates, you're still going to have a pretty high gas bill. It's obvious he has not maintained this property AT ALL. The fact that he is a home inspector is and makes it even worse because he can't plead ignorance. Can't say I'm surprised, though.

Ask for money off your rent every month until the gas bill is "reasonable" for a 1 bedroom place. ($200 or less a month?)

Sorry this happened to you!

[DareToDream]

Originally Posted by Tarastomsgirl

So as most of you know my pipes froze twice already this winter, so last month my gas bill was $250 (for month of NOV) we figured okay its pretty high and all but gas is high so whatever just got our new bill for the month of Dec $600 . Heat gage wasn't even touched.. We get the gas company out here, and talk to our landlord letting him know that pretty much we're not paying that amount to heat a small 1 bed 1 bath apartment. So we get the gas company out here thinking all the pipes and things in the unit need to be cleaned. The landlord said he ment to ask us about the heating 2 months ago but forgot, of course. While he's up there he calls us up to let us know why our bill is so high.... Our ceiling has NO insulation.. none at all.. we have straight wood floors on top of our ceiling.. Not only that there are some holes in the wood so we can see through in like remote corners of the attic and thats letting out all the heat in the house!!

We don't have the money to just up and move. Its an odd situation because we're kinda the "outsiders" you know, and don't wanna start bad blood, everyone knows everyone and if we go around and start reporting him we'll word gets around FAST. And esp with my husband at the PD, our landlords is friend with some of the other cops, so I don't want people turning , cause it will happen, it already has to another guy there who moved here for another state. What are my options here? What would you do in my situation if you didn't know / have any connections in town . Do you suck it up and ask for money off rent to cover extra charges etc.. Also my landlord is a licensed home inspector so we go report him to the city, well he's chummy with these people already from his line of work so word will get back to him before we finish filling out the paperwork and I'm afraid of residual effects...

Hi Tara - A couple of thoughts come to mind. You have documentation and pictures of your pipes freezing, the electric things "melting" right? I would also see if I could get into the attic and take pictures to prove there is no insulation which makes heating the place next to impossible and just plain not right that you have to pay for the heat.

If I was in your shoes, I would go maybe to the next town closest to you and take your lease and your documentation, bills, etc. with you and see a real estate lawyer about breaking your lease. This way the word doesn't get back to anyone in your town, etc., and you would be able to find out if the conditions in which you are living are really "habitable."

If you can break the lease without the owing the landlord money, can you go back to Florida early and stay with family until you have money for a place there? I know you don't want to be separated from your husband, but if he wanted to stay to "get his time in" with the PD, maybe he could find a room for rent or even an extended stay place that might be cheaper than what you pay for rent, utilities, etc. Granted, you two would be apart for 6 months, but in the long run it may be the lesser of the two evils.

[vter]

Are you sure your landlord is "in" with the town employees? It may be worth a call to the local building dept.

[bryfry]

What a moron. Licensed home inspector? For what kind of home? A rabbit warren? When he bought this place or decided to rent out, he absolutely knew that the attic was un-insulated. He is just a cheap s-o-b and you got the crappy end of the stick. I would threaten to break the lease for improper living conditions and make him adjust it to cover the loss over the course of the year. What are you going to do for the next three months? The gas bill will be just as high during those periods unless that attic is insulated and sealed. This man has willfully held back information regarding the living conditions there. If you had known the attic was not insulated, I'm sure you would have hesitated in signing a lease unless it was rectified. Positively shameful.

[Valerie C]

FYI for Bryfry and any else who may be considering moving to New Hampshire. Home Inspectors are NOT licensed, nope they sure aren't! I could decide that I'd like to be a home inspector, get myself a sign and a yellow pages ad and BAM I'm a home inspector!

Mass. does license all home inspectors, and we all know that there are MANY incompetent home inspectors there. Saying someone is licensed, so that makes them a good inspector is like saying all licensed drivers are competent (NOT!)

Sorry for hijacking the thread, but just wanted to make that point...

Originally Posted by bryfry

What a moron. Licensed home inspector? For what kind of home?

[vsaksena]

Originally Posted by Tarastomsgirl

So as most of you know my pipes froze twice already this winter, so last month my gas bill was $250 (for month of NOV) we figured okay its pretty high and all but gas is high so whatever just got our new bill for the month of Dec $600 .

$600 heating cost for a 1BR/BTH is just atrocious. I have lived in Keene for 7 yrs now, & I haven't ever paid that much (lived in a condo I was renting) live in a house 3.4K sq ft now (costs approx $250/month) in addition to running propane on a 3 seasons (16x14; no foundation below & nothing above, which costs me approx $100/month...), & our family is similar to yours, just my wife & I.

So going back to my original question, what were the heating bills running prior to you renting?