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Not sure about rural areas, but if you were sold use of a fenced yard (gated property) and there is now a breech in security because of it, the LL needs to fix it. I don't know if that's considered habitability in your area. Here, it would be if the negligence resulted in a robbery, for instance, because safety is considered under the habitability umbrella. (like if your back door doesn't fit under the building&safety codes for main entryway door locks, and the fence is what's keeping out burglars, etc...)
In any event, the place came with a fenced yard, which is at least an amenity. I suppose you could try to argue to a judge for rent abatement for each month you don't have a fence, but I couldn't say what kind of feedback a judge in your area would give to you on such a claim. In this city, I've heard of people successfully suing their LLs for rent abatement for inconsequential inconveniences like the pool being out of order for several months, or the gas fireplaces being broken, or the dishwashers, elevators, community laundry machines etc... Non-habitability issues, but still breech of contract. The premises and amenities are part of the contract; services you pay for included in your rent.
I guess my question is, what if he tells me he doesn't believe it needs to be repaired since it's not the house. That's where my question about "premises" comes in.
Save all the "what ifs" and just let him know what happened ...
Thanks for the tips everyone. I will just be letting him know what happened and will just ask him to be willing to repair the fence. I worry about everything after I get his answer.
Another wrinkle to the story. I emailed him last night and received a response that he was camping in Wyoming and wouldn't be back for a week. I'm not very familiar with large downed trees and the trouble they can cause. Will it be ok to leave it there a week or more? I don't want an ecosystem of strange creatures starting where the roots came up.
You mentioned a dog. Do you have a dog and can it escape due to the damaged fence? If you rented with a fence to contain a dog and now it doesn't, he needs to respond and make repairs immediately...
I will just be letting him know what happened and will just ask him to be willing to repair the fence.
Be far more positive or at least don't be negative.
Start with the assumption that he'll want to take responsibility for his property promptly.
Wait until he says or does something contrary to get freaked
Quote:
Hi Al,
Hope you're enjoying the fishing in Wyoming.
Did you hear about the heavy rains we had yesterday?
Well, they took out that 80 foot oak you worked on and about 40 feet of fence.
(see the attached picture)
Looking forward to seeing you or at least your insurance guy soon.
Will it be ok to leave it there a week or more? I don't want an ecosystem of strange creatures starting where the roots came up.
Yes it will be fine.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Donn2390
You mentioned a dog. Do you have a dog and can it escape due to the damaged fence? If you rented with a fence to contain a dog and now it doesn't, he needs to respond and make repairs immediately...
I highly doubt there's a clause in the lease (and there's certainly no state statute) which says that the leased premises comes with a fenced yard specifically guaranteed for containment of a dog or any other animal. Even when such as a gas or electrical repair is concerned which falls under the emergency umbrella, the landlord is only required under most state laws to fix same "within a reasonable time period".
I know nothing of legalities, but I will say this - assume you do not renew because of the now lack of fence, he's going to have to fix it to re-rent it when you leave. I think it would be a hard sell to a potential new tenant - an "almost fenced in" yard. So whether he fixes it now, or in 9 months, he's going to have to fix it. You could tactfully and politely mention that if he doesn't seem too eager. But he will have to get rid of the tree. It's not an emergency or immediate dangerous hazard, but it is an eyesore, and I'm sure the neighbors don't want it in their yard any longer than needed either.
You need to have that tree inspected immediately. A similar thing happened to me - huge branch fell, a tree sized branch. Barely missed the house. Took out the fence. The LL didn't remove it for 2 months because it was $1,000 for a tree service to remove it (it was 1500 lbs of branch). When they took it out, they inspected the tree it fell off of, and the tree was dead. There was another branch hanging directly over my bedroom that would have fallen any day. I had to fight to get her to remove that, I ended up having to pay for it myself ($2500!) and take it off the rent.
BTW - She never got the fence repaired. I have a dog as well and what I did was go to Home Depot and buy fencing like this to patch up the broken areas:
It wasn't pretty, but was a cheap way to keep the dog from escaping.
My LL finally got back to me this morning in regards to the tree. The email was a request for pictures. (Which I sent) He did not address my request to have the tree removed one way or the other. He did however say that "it should ease my mind that a fallen tree takes many, many months to rot".
I emailed him back with pictures and simply said "we need to have the tree removed. let me know when we can arrange this."
I'm going to stay patient until he responds to my request with either a yes or a no. However, I have been in sales for almost 10 years. I know what it means when people try to plant seeds in the conversation like he did in his original email.
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