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Old 01-02-2014, 11:11 AM
 
Location: Raleigh
13,649 posts, read 12,298,450 times
Reputation: 20079

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You're in a tough spot, and it might be that you have to make some tough choices one way or another. I hate to say it, but if you have renters insurance, the roof caving in might be the best thing for you (and her) to get into a hotel.
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Old 01-02-2014, 12:16 PM
 
Location: Free From The Oppressive State
30,175 posts, read 23,571,360 times
Reputation: 38474
Get me the hell out of here! Get. Me. The. Hell. OUT!

The general contractor came over, the one that was supposed to break ice off the roof. He came in to inspect the kitchen, so he could determine where the problem was coming from.

1) If I turn on my kitchen light, I could set my entire house on fire because of the leaks around the fixture.

2) He told me that the landlord has no interest in actually fixing the problem, she just wants to patch the problem.

3) When I told him that I'm trying to come up with money to get out of here, he asked me if I wanted to give him head in exchange for cash.

GET ME THE **** OUT OF HERE!
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Old 01-02-2014, 12:27 PM
 
Location: West Virginia
13,914 posts, read 39,143,483 times
Reputation: 10242
HES A JERK! I would report him!

Unless the electric on your side is connected to the other apts what you do should Not effect them. IF it is then they should be told for safety reasons. Patching where it comes it will Only work IF the patch is in the right spot. Water hits the roof on one place that Looks like its bad BUT water travels to another place & gets inside anyway. My bf had this problem on an old building he finally had to stop patching & replace the whole roof.

Anyway its time to call the inspector & building codes folks to get in on this. Its up to her to fix or not BUT as the other poster said they can make her pay for your move! 1st months rent deposit inc pet deposits & help moving. Be cheaper for her & Keeps her for making it look good & some one else going thru this!
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Old 01-02-2014, 03:39 PM
 
Location: southwest TN
8,568 posts, read 18,050,404 times
Reputation: 16702
NSFM, contact Legal Aid or a housing court, if any. Get your things out ASAP - I know you don't have the money, but maybe some friends can store your things - even if it's a few friends with a few things.

If you can't get Legal Aid to help - you can also contact your local Bar Association and ask if there's a lawyer who would take this case pro bono (free). You are probably going to need a lawyer to get the landlord to compensate you for your move.

As for the contractor, report him to whatever boards, the BBB and call the police to report him for soliciting! File a report.
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Old 01-02-2014, 03:56 PM
 
Location: Silicon Valley
18,813 posts, read 32,322,822 times
Reputation: 38565
You know, what about offering the landlady a proposal. Why don't you offer to move out and not pursue anything legal against her, for x amount of money. This isn't blackmail. It's okay to negotiate a deal in exchange for not suing.

If you try this, I wouldn't threaten with the building inspector. Just say you won't pursue any legal recourse, if she gives you move-out money now. And tell her it will be much easier for her to fix the problem with you gone, as well as give her the opportunity to wait until spring, if she decides to leave it vacant.

You can be nice about it, and nicely say you just can't live like this and you don't see how she can get it fixed in the middle of winter, and your only other recourse is to sue her so you can afford the move, and that the courts will at least say that she has to abate your rent until it's fixed - or you move out. And, she must realize, it's not legal to rent it in this condition...

If she doesn't go for it within x days, then call in the guards!
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Old 01-03-2014, 03:13 AM
 
Location: Florida
23,155 posts, read 26,083,358 times
Reputation: 27893
This is not a long term solution but will give your LL time, until better weather, to get the roof and insulation problem fixed properly and give you time to get your resources together to move, if you so choose.
If she gets somebody to remove what is most likely an ice jam on the edge of the roof and install a heat tape it should prevent it from forming again during the next snow.
Depending on just how the ceiling leak(s) is , it may just be one leak that is traveling and may not be serious enough to cause the ceiling to collapse.
BTDT.
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Old 01-03-2014, 03:20 AM
 
10,746 posts, read 25,907,923 times
Reputation: 16024
Quote:
Originally Posted by Three Wolves In Snow View Post
Ok...so, if it was warm during the summer, and there was water in the house, the mold could start to grow, but now that it's been freezing it would die?

Is that what you are saying? I hope so!! That would be very nice to cross off of my list of worries.

It doesn't work that way....we had a stupid landlord send someone out to 'break the ice' off the roof and the moron used an ax. He ended up putting holes in the roof and of course, it leaked.....leaked right down into the walls and came out under the baseboards...we didn't know there was a leak until a) we were sick as dogs hacking up our lungs and drs couldn't figure it out and b) the water was seeping 4ft from the wall (there was a long, deep couch on that wall). It was black mold...we were sick for almost a year!

When we called the landlord she sent someone to 'suck' up the water...thankfully they told her they can't just suck it up..it's been there for a long time and the carpet, padding, and drywall needs replacing...she was ticked and didnt' want to do it. We gave her 48 hrs notice, called the Village Counsel (they came down on her big time), and moved. She ended up gutting the whole front side of the house, reroofing the house and paying big money to have the mold removed.
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Old 01-03-2014, 09:23 AM
 
Location: Free From The Oppressive State
30,175 posts, read 23,571,360 times
Reputation: 38474
I'm so tired of this already and it's only been a few days. That ceiling is going to cave in soon. Everyone keeps telling me to go through all this legal stuff, and that sounds great in print, in reality, it's exhausting. I have other things that take up my time right now, (working three different places), and all I want is to just leave from here. That's it.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Katie1 View Post
HES A JERK! I would report him!

Unless the electric on your side is connected to the other apts what you do should Not effect them. IF it is then they should be told for safety reasons. Patching where it comes it will Only work IF the patch is in the right spot. Water hits the roof on one place that Looks like its bad BUT water travels to another place & gets inside anyway. My bf had this problem on an old building he finally had to stop patching & replace the whole roof.

Anyway its time to call the inspector & building codes folks to get in on this. Its up to her to fix or not BUT as the other poster said they can make her pay for your move! 1st months rent deposit inc pet deposits & help moving. Be cheaper for her & Keeps her for making it look good & some one else going thru this!
I'm not taking my chances with the light. I just open the fridge for light at night. I talked to her yesterday, told her about that, and all she said was, "Don't you have another light you can put up on a counter?"

Seriously...I understand trying to save a buck or two but enough is enough! FIX. THIS.

Quote:
Originally Posted by NY Annie View Post
NSFM, contact Legal Aid or a housing court, if any. Get your things out ASAP - I know you don't have the money, but maybe some friends can store your things - even if it's a few friends with a few things.

If you can't get Legal Aid to help - you can also contact your local Bar Association and ask if there's a lawyer who would take this case pro bono (free). You are probably going to need a lawyer to get the landlord to compensate you for your move.

As for the contractor, report him to whatever boards, the BBB and call the police to report him for soliciting! File a report.
I did tell her about the pig. I asked in the Maine forum who to contact but apparently they don't think that is Maine related...ok? I mean, wouldn't the Maine people KNOW where in Maine to call?

Anyway, I don't know if I will call police. They don't give a crap anyway, so what good would it do? I told her. If I want to file with BBB, what proof do I have? It's a "he said/she said" thing. I have no proof. I know he said it, HE knows he said it, but people like to lie and deny when they get caught.

Quote:
Originally Posted by NoMoreSnowForMe View Post
You know, what about offering the landlady a proposal. Why don't you offer to move out and not pursue anything legal against her, for x amount of money. This isn't blackmail. It's okay to negotiate a deal in exchange for not suing.

If you try this, I wouldn't threaten with the building inspector. Just say you won't pursue any legal recourse, if she gives you move-out money now. And tell her it will be much easier for her to fix the problem with you gone, as well as give her the opportunity to wait until spring, if she decides to leave it vacant.

You can be nice about it, and nicely say you just can't live like this and you don't see how she can get it fixed in the middle of winter, and your only other recourse is to sue her so you can afford the move, and that the courts will at least say that she has to abate your rent until it's fixed - or you move out. And, she must realize, it's not legal to rent it in this condition...

If she doesn't go for it within x days, then call in the guards!
I know for a fact she won't go for that. If she fails to fix this, and she's running out of time with my patience, then I will go the city inspector. When I talked to her on the phone last night I did mention that. She started to say something about it and caught herself..."No, I don't need an inspector out there, who knows what....I don't need an inspector..." Yah, exactly lady, who knows what he will find, you are absolutely right. I am saving that little card until I find out exactly what my rights are, which thus far, I have received no reply.

Quote:
Originally Posted by old_cold View Post
This is not a long term solution but will give your LL time, until better weather, to get the roof and insulation problem fixed properly and give you time to get your resources together to move, if you so choose.
If she gets somebody to remove what is most likely an ice jam on the edge of the roof and install a heat tape it should prevent it from forming again during the next snow.
Depending on just how the ceiling leak(s) is , it may just be one leak that is traveling and may not be serious enough to cause the ceiling to collapse.
BTDT.
That's what she was talking about doing is having someone come out and break the ice off. Pig contractor was supposed to do that yesterday, but he did not do anything. All he did was look at the side of the house, come in and look at the kitchen, and then act like a pig before I got him out the door. He didn't do squat. She said she will try to find someone else. Seriously, I'm getting irritated. But she said someone told her to remove the ice, and then each time it snows, have someone come out and remove the snow. No mention of heat tape. But it's almost what you are suggesting. That doesn't fix the problem with the ceiling though.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kim in FL View Post
It doesn't work that way....we had a stupid landlord send someone out to 'break the ice' off the roof and the moron used an ax. He ended up putting holes in the roof and of course, it leaked.....leaked right down into the walls and came out under the baseboards...we didn't know there was a leak until a) we were sick as dogs hacking up our lungs and drs couldn't figure it out and b) the water was seeping 4ft from the wall (there was a long, deep couch on that wall). It was black mold...we were sick for almost a year!

When we called the landlord she sent someone to 'suck' up the water...thankfully they told her they can't just suck it up..it's been there for a long time and the carpet, padding, and drywall needs replacing...she was ticked and didnt' want to do it. We gave her 48 hrs notice, called the Village Counsel (they came down on her big time), and moved. She ended up gutting the whole front side of the house, reroofing the house and paying big money to have the mold removed.
Well, here is what I found about mold:

Quote:
It should be noted that the temperature below which no growth occurs is not synonymous with the temperature at which the potential for growth is destroyed. Many molds can survive periods of several months at sub-zero temperatures, but are less tolerant of alternating below-freezing and above-freezing temperatures.
Mold 1

We do go back and forth between freezing, below freezing, and above freezing. So...is there mold here or not? I have no idea! If it's possible, I'm pretty darn sure there's a ton of it here. If it's not possible, then the only thing saving her IS the temps. Which, again, does not point to her really showing that she cares all that much about her tenants because she does everything cheaply.

I did find out that the roofers did exactly as I thought they did. Maybe I don't know much about structure and housing, but I know people's actions. I was positive that all they had done was put new shingles on the roof. She finally admitted that was all they had done. I fricken KNEW it. She didn't repair jack spit in September.

I'm trying to find the happy medium between being reasonable and not being a push over. I'm also thinking of self preservation. If this place is deemed unsuitable, how the heck do I find a new place to live with no money to do it? Oh, it's easy to say, "sue her", do you have any idea how long that takes? It doesn't take place the very next day, and you get the money the very next day. What do I do in the meantime? So that's all in those thoughts, as well, when I try to decide when enough is enough.
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Old 01-03-2014, 09:45 AM
 
Location: Raleigh
13,649 posts, read 12,298,450 times
Reputation: 20079
Quote:
Originally Posted by Three Wolves In Snow View Post
I
I'm trying to find the happy medium between being reasonable and not being a push over. I'm also thinking of self preservation. If this place is deemed unsuitable, how the heck do I find a new place to live with no money to do it? Oh, it's easy to say, "sue her", do you have any idea how long that takes? It doesn't take place the very next day, and you get the money the very next day. What do I do in the meantime? So that's all in those thoughts, as well, when I try to decide when enough is enough.
Seriously, you are being a pushover. If meaningful fixes don't come through in the next three days, call the inspector. Your LL needs to get this handled IINSPY. Your landlord doesn't sound motivated to fix it, and why would she? She doesn't live there, doesn't particularly care to be in the business, has it on the market, and likely just wants to be rid of it.

As far as mold, your probably fine for the time being, it being so cold. But come spring, worry.
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Old 01-03-2014, 10:23 AM
 
Location: West Virginia
13,914 posts, read 39,143,483 times
Reputation: 10242
I not sure what to say anymore. You had great advice by most poster... ok maybe not by me LOL But I know that I would Move. She has to give you at least your deposit. I don't know what pets you have & different areas have different rules on pets. But I do know you could apply for apts & IF you cant afford the rents apply to the local apts that go by income. I know when my son lost his home HUD apts got us a 2 bedroom apt within a few weeks. We were considered in an emergency situation. So there IS help out there. Some times you have to swallow your pride an go ask for it. Welfare will also help you with housing & even local churches. You keep saying your LL is nice ...sounds to me like she using you! Bet she wouldn't hesitate to take you to court an evict you if you with held the rent! But you wont report her or take her to court.
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