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We moved into a rental house on February 1, 2013. The very day we moved in, water started to pour out of the first floor ceiling, rendering the family room and kitchen unusable, not to mention saturating moving boxes galore. The property manager said it looked like a busted pipe and told us to go to a hotel for a few nights and we would get reimbursed. So, we took our 3 teenagers, and got 2 hotel rooms for 2 nights. The PM had his brother in-law come to do the repairs. Said he was a contractor and it would be done in 2 days. Well, the ceiling fell, and the brother in-law was really only available to work on it on the weekends, as a side job. For more than a week we had no use of our kitchen and had to eat every meal out. When it was all said and done, we submitting receipts totaling more than $700, for which he said we would get reimbursed.
Fast forward to the 4th of June, which was when we last heard from the PM. Over the last 4 months, when he has returned our emails, (which he rarely does), it has been excuse after excuse. Now he is saying that the insurance money wasn't sent to him and it must have gone to the homeowner. He was trying to track it down. A month ago he claimed this brother in-law hadn't been paid yet either.
My question is, What can/will happen if we pay July's rent less the money owed and include a letter stating the obvious as to why? It will then be 5 months and really, I feel like we're being jerked around. Thoughts?
You will have to look at NC law. Some states only allow withholding rent for only a few specific reasons and you have to have permission from the court before you do. In your case, North Carolina law does not allow tenants to withhold rent payments in this or any other way, with two exceptions: when the landlord consents to it in writing or when a judge or civil magistrate allows you to withhold rent pursuant to a court order.
Whatever you do, pay your rent in full and on time. Some states do allow you to withhold rent, but you have to go thru the courts. Read your state's landlord/tenant law (in the sticky at the top of this page) It will tell you what you need to know.
We moved into a rental house on February 1, 2013.
The very day we moved in, water started to pour out of the first floor ceiling...
...told us to go to a hotel for a few nights and we would get reimbursed.
we submitting receipts totaling more than $700
Fast forward to the 4th of June, which was when we last heard from the PM.
it has been excuse after excuse.
I feel like we're being jerked around. Thoughts?
You are being jerked around.
From this day forward... ONLY IN WRITING.
Real paper and real ink and real envelopes and real stamps. Certified.
Quote:
What can/will happen if we pay July's rent less the money owed...
This is where it gets sticky.
Without going to Court and having a Judge involved you can't just not pay.
So... ASK one last time in writing for the $700 immediately **and as promised**.
TELL him what you expect to happen and when (7 days?) you expect to see the check.
Nonpayment of full rent is grounds for eviction in NC.
"Tenants may not unilaterally withhold rent payments in order to force a landlord to fulfill his/her duties under a lease unless there is a prior court order allowing you to do so. Partial payment of the rent is a breach of the lease and could subject you to eviction. If your landlord refuses to make needed repairs, you should seek legal advice."
I'd send a letter by certified mail recounting the whole situation, reminding him of his promise, and giving him 10 business days to reimburse me. I'd attach a photocopy of the receipt. Then I'd take him to small claims court if he didn't pay me by the deadline.
I'd send a letter by certified mail recounting the whole situation, reminding him of his promise, and giving him 10 business days to reimburse me. I'd attach a photocopy of the receipt. Then I'd take him to small claims court if he didn't pay me by the deadline.
I agree. The law may not side with you as far as the cost of the hotel and meals. Your lease may say that you are supposed to have renters insurance for such instances.
However, the law will probably say that you don't have to pay rent for the days the place is uninhabitable. So, what's a week's rent worth? I'd go with whichever is worth more in your demand letter to the landlord LOL!
Then, if you have to go to court, present both options to the judge, and tell him you don't know what the law is, but you figure you should be reimbursed one way or the other. He'll figure it out and award you what's legal.
Oh Barli you poor thing! An almost identical thing happened to DH & I at our last rental house in NC (the roof over the kitchen got a major leak and turned our entire kitchen into Lake Michigan).
Unfortunately, for us, aside from getting the roof fixed (the cosmetic damage to the kitchen and ceiling was never fixed, our landlord was akin to a slumlord, we only stayed because we were saving to buy a house and the rent there was below market value) we never got any reimbursement for that issue, or any of the other issues that arose that we ended up severely inconvenienced by, or out of pocket because of.
Like others have said, in NC, withholding rent is case for eviction, and to DH & I that wasn't worth the risk. To get reimbursement, it sounds like your only option is to go the legal route if the landlord and property manager will still not comply. I also agree with the suggestions to start doing everything in writing, and sending the requests via certified mail so that you've got more explicit proof of your attempts to receive the reimbursement.
Good luck to you and keep us posted as to how it goes!
P.S. Have your neighbors started to become more friendly at least? (per your post a number of months back)
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