Landlord not responding to repair requests (Howe: apartments, renter, condo)

[rjj42]

I live in a 1 bdrm condo in the Galleria area that I rent from a private landlord.
I had a broken light fixture right outside the main door of the apartment before I moved in 6 months ago. I'd noticed it while I was moving in but didn't mention it since I was travelling a lot for work and out of town.
However, I brought it to the attention of the landlord sometime in June that I wanted it replaced and she sent me an email (June 26th, 8:57PM) (after me sending several texts and a voicemail) saying that she is looking for a replacement. So far nothing has happened. I have been messaging her several times this week to no avail. I left a voicemail today morning to which I haven't gotten a response yet.

My question is: Is there someone I can complain to? The problem is that I signed a two year lease because I got a reduction in my monthly rent and my lease goes on till September of 2016. I don't want to get evicted or get into a big fight, but at the same time I feel like she is taking advantage of me being gentle and not yelling or raising my voice when I should have.

One thing I did notice when searching online was that all my requests were through text messages and the only written communication I have was the email dated June 26th.
Any advice would be very much appreciated.

[marksmu]

Its a broken light, its not a big deal. Its cosmetic, does not sound like a safety issue, and its not affecting the habitability...certainly does not sound like you are not being taken advantage of.

Most landlords will fix things important quickly like AC or broken appliance, and cosmetic or non-important things like a light fixture on a slower time table. If you already have reduced rent just be thankful and carry on. Its not your house, so its not affecting your pocketbook.

[diggity101]

If it's the only outside light, that could definltey be a safety issue when arriving home after dark.

Didn't Farb get sued back in the day for not having enough safety lighting at his apartments?

[rjj42]

Originally Posted by marksmu

Its a broken light, its not a big deal. Its cosmetic, does not sound like a safety issue, and its not affecting the habitability...certainly does not sound like you are not being taken advantage of.

Most landlords will fix things important quickly like AC or broken appliance, and cosmetic or non-important things like a light fixture on a slower time table. If you already have reduced rent just be thankful and carry on. Its not your house, so its not affecting your pocketbook.

I agree its not my house and its not necessarily a safety issue.
The thing that bothers me the most is that when I have someone over to my place, the first thing they see is a broken light at the entrance. It looks shoddy.

[testmo]

In an email, so something you can easily print, offer to buy and replace the light yourself for a deduction of that amount in your next rent. Keep the original receipt and submit a copy to her with the decreased rent. of course she'd have to agree with it first.

Send her a photo of the light you select for her approval and agreement on price.

She may just be too busy to do it herself

I had to do this for interior doors believe it or not a long time ago in a slummy college rental

[Texas Ag 93]

In the past when we have rented single family homes from private landlords, we have always replaced or repaired minor things ourselves and then sent the owner a receipt for reimbursement.

We always mentioned to them in advance, and they never had a problem with it. A good property owner does not like to have things broken and in disrepair. Of course, not everyone is a good owner.....

[trbstang]

Originally Posted by Texas Ag 93

In the past when we have rented single family homes from private landlords, we have always replaced or repaired minor things ourselves and then sent the owner a receipt for reimbursement.

We always mentioned to them in advance, and they never had a problem with it. A good property owner does not like to have things broken and in disrepair. Of course, not everyone is a good owner.....

Same thing we did when we rented for 2 years. The owner was very appreciative of what we did since he did not have to send a handyman out. He usually just told me to knock $50 off the rent and send him the receipts for his record. I ended up replacing and painting two pieces of rotted wood trim at different times and I replaced a light fixture. I spent like $50 total on supplies, and "made" $100 for my labor.

[rjj42]

Originally Posted by trbstang

Same thing we did when we rented for 2 years. The owner was very appreciative of what we did since he did not have to send a handyman out. He usually just told me to knock $50 off the rent and send him the receipts for his record. I ended up replacing and painting two pieces of rotted wood trim at different times and I replaced a light fixture. I spent like $50 total on supplies, and "made" $100 for my labor.

Ok, it looks like that might be the route to go then. Just offer to do the repair yourself in return for a reduction in rent for the next month. I don't mind doing that really. But its frustrating when multiple calls, texts, voicemails are not even acknowledged, much less responded to.Anyway, thanks for the tips everyone.

[Texas Ag 93]

Originally Posted by rjj42

Ok, it looks like that might be the route to go then. Just offer to do the repair yourself in return for a reduction in rent for the next month. I don't mind doing that really. But its frustrating when multiple calls, texts, voicemails are not even acknowledged, much less responded to.Anyway, thanks for the tips everyone.

The only caveat to doing what trbstang and I have done in the past is that it presumes you have a landlord that wants to fix things and is willing to spend the money to do so. In our case, we did, and my husband is extremely handy and was able to fix things without having to call someone else to do it. The landlords appreciated that.

We basically rented houses and treated them as we would have treated our own property. No deferred maintenance, no letting things get in disrepair. In the case of the second home we rented, the owner was a military officer on assignment in DC and used a Property Management Company. That company had a list of rules and responsibilities a mile long, and most things, including landscaping etc were the renter's responsibility, not the owners. This tended to attract the kind of renter that they knew would take care of the properties.