Santa Monica Landlord refuses to fix oven

[1200RT]

Originally Posted by Cyanna

The landlord will find some reason as to why the whole apartment needs to be repainted, professionally cleaned and probably a carpet cleaning as well.

This is what infuriates me about leasing companies/landlords. These things should be part of the property owner's financial responsibilities, UNLESS the tenant is extremely at fault for causing damage to the unit.

[Cyanna]

Originally Posted by 1200RT

This is what infuriates me about leasing companies/landlords. These things should be part of the property owner's financial responsibilities, UNLESS the tenant is extremely at fault for causing damage to the unit.

Just let me set the record straight for everyone, since many people have the wrong idea about apartment managers. The managers do not make the rules, raise the rents or determine how much is kept from a security deposit. The majority of us do our best to keep the costs low for the vacating tenant, unless they have made a real mess of the place through deliberate lack of care. We can give our opinion to the property owner, but it is out of our hands after that. It's a dirty business, and the managers are treated as badly as the tenants, trust me. Its one of the many reasons why I am getting out of it completely.

[1200RT]

Thats fair - "dirty business" seems like a reasonable description.

[Cyanna]

Originally Posted by 1200RT

Thats fair - "dirty business" seems like a reasonable description.

Let me be even fairer - once I leave this business in October I will be happy to do ANYTHING else...cleaning toilets, yard work, street sweeping. At least that is good, HONEST work. Seriously, this has been a major learning experience for me and I plan to use my knowledge to help others avoid getting into a bad rental situation. Consider it a public service

[Domsey]

Originally Posted by Cyanna

The landlord will find some reason as to why the whole apartment needs to be repainted, professionally cleaned and probably a carpet cleaning as well.

Question: isn't this part of the normal wear & tear process which can't be deducted from the security deposit? That was my impression, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

[Cyanna]

Originally Posted by Domsey

Question: isn't this part of the normal wear & tear process which can't be deducted from the security deposit? That was my impression, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

The "Wear & Tear" process is generally dependant on the length of stay of the tenant. The longer the tenant lives in the apartment the less costs there are taken out, due to standard wear and tear due to daily living. Of course, some companies may follow different procedures. When a tenant moves I generally recommend that they not waste their money on cleaning the carpet themselves because the owner will still call in their own professional cleaners, with the excuse that the tenant didn't use the "right" carpet cleaning chemicals for a multi-housing residence. With the market being as bad as it is now a landlord/owner is going to try and keep as much as they can to cover the shortfall while the unit remains vacant.

Honestly, once I am out of here I will be sharing info that I cannot share right now.

[Ultrarunner]

Our policy is to make safety related repairs ASAP... if the tenant caused the problem... we still make the repair and bill the tenant.

Just about all utilities will do courtesy safety inspections... it may take awhile... but, they will come.

Most problems I've encountered with gas cook-tops are the result of dirty burners from spilled food...

Had one unit where the stove wouldn't work several times the first week... turns out the renters 12 year old daughter was charged with keeping the stove clean and she would scrub everything with Ajax and in the process plug some of the orifices... once the cause was discovered... there were no more stove problems.