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I understand you're concerned about your health and possible mold, but mold does not grow in freezing temperatures. Mold spores need consistent warmth to grow. That's the good news.
I understand you're concerned about your health and possible mold, but mold does not grow in freezing temperatures. Mold spores need consistent warmth to grow. That's the good news.
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.
Any chance a call to the health or building department in your city would get the landlord moving?
I want to give her the chance to try to fix this. Like I said, it's only been yesterday and today, and today is a holiday. I am trying to be reasonable even though I'm not happy about the situation.
As much damage as there is now she wont be able to just Fix it! A LOT is going to need Ripped off reframed & a whole new insulation & roof installed. Its a Huge project. That place NEEDS to be condemned!!
PS: I love seeing wintry photos replete with icicles as I look outside on a lovely sunny day with temps in the 80s, the skies a lovely blue and the waters below a shade of azure as the next crop of bananas ripen. Sorry.
It may not have moved the OP to consider a trip to visit you, but it sure did remind me how much I love your island - and would love to hop a boat and come on down! Alas, a repair job here and a health issue is keeping up closer to home. We will get back there soon! Keep a few bananas around for me!
When is your lease up? It might be easier to move in the spring versus trying to force the landlord to do things your way, when the place is For Sale and the landlord might not have money to spend on fixup. Sounds like the door is going to be fixed since she already sent someone over. The next step will be the leak. But I doubt you can force the landlord to reinsulate the entire exterior wall. And mold...well that can take months and months to deal with...if it even exists. But why bother if you are just a renter and if you know the landlord is selling and doesn't want to spend any money on the place. This is easily solved by moving as soon as spring comes if your lease has expired by then.
When is your lease up? It might be easier to move in the spring versus trying to force the landlord to do things your way, when the place is For Sale and the landlord might not have money to spend on fixup. Sounds like the door is going to be fixed since she already sent someone over. The next step will be the leak. But I doubt you can force the landlord to reinsulate the entire exterior wall. And mold...well that can take months and months to deal with...if it even exists. But why bother if you are just a renter and if you know the landlord is selling and doesn't want to spend any money on the place. This is easily solved by moving as soon as spring comes if your lease has expired by then.
Well, Katie got me thinking, and I think she's right. For this to get fixed the right way, it's going to take extensive work. If the ceiling does not collapse, (it's dripping fast today, and a new leak appeared, making it six total now), to get it fixed properly means I will have to move anyway.
I don't have the money to move, is the problem. I did put up a GoFundMe thing at the egging of some of my friends. I don't know if anyone will give a crap about what I am dealing with right now, and I may not get one red cent of help, but at least I tried. Until I have a way to get out of here, I have to deal with it, or whatever happens because it wasn't done right.
Don't know what state you are in. Moose narrows it down, but...
In CA, if you contact the building inspectors who inspect and then say your rental is uninhabitable, what is supposed to happen next is they give the LL a time frame to get it fixed. They also require the LL to put you up in a hotel until it's fixed. If the LL doesn't fix it, the LL is responsible for relocation costs for you.
So, contact the city/county/state folk regarding the above. This is not in landlord/tenant law, but is in the local building code law, as I recall. Looked this up during a sewer problem at my daughter's rental. Ended up not being an issue, as the sewer problem got fixed, but I did look up the law at that time.
The landlord/tenant law will say you can break your lease if the place is uninhabitable. Then, I believe you'd have to try and sue the LL for your costs. Whereas, with the laws I'm talking about, it's right in the statutes that the LL is responsible - don't have to sue. If I remember right, there's just a hearing before a judge, where the inspector gets the judge to sign off on his/her decision.
I wouldn't hold my breath that your LL would have the kind of money to fix it right, right now. If you can find the laws I'm talking about, you may be able to get her to pay your moving costs, though. If there's any way you can get out before the Great Flood when it warms up all that ice in the walls, I think you better do it.
So sorry for the hassle. I rented a cabin in WA state when I was 18 with my boyfriend Rodney (not kidding). The ceiling above our bed crashed down on us during one rainy night lol! Fortunately, there were 2 bedrooms. We moved into the other one. The rent was cheap :-)
Don't know what state you are in. Moose narrows it down, but...
In CA, if you contact the building inspectors who inspect and then say your rental is uninhabitable, what is supposed to happen next is they give the LL a time frame to get it fixed. They also require the LL to put you up in a hotel until it's fixed. If the LL doesn't fix it, the LL is responsible for relocation costs for you.
So, contact the city/county/state folk regarding the above. This is not in landlord/tenant law, but is in the local building code law, as I recall. Looked this up during a sewer problem at my daughter's rental. Ended up not being an issue, as the sewer problem got fixed, but I did look up the law at that time.
The landlord/tenant law will say you can break your lease if the place is uninhabitable. Then, I believe you'd have to try and sue the LL for your costs. Whereas, with the laws I'm talking about, it's right in the statutes that the LL is responsible - don't have to sue. If I remember right, there's just a hearing before a judge, where the inspector gets the judge to sign off on his/her decision.
I wouldn't hold my breath that your LL would have the kind of money to fix it right, right now. If you can find the laws I'm talking about, you may be able to get her to pay your moving costs, though. If there's any way you can get out before the Great Flood when it warms up all that ice in the walls, I think you better do it.
So sorry for the hassle. I rented a cabin in WA state when I was 18 with my boyfriend Rodney (not kidding). The ceiling above our bed crashed down on us during one rainy night lol! Fortunately, there were 2 bedrooms. We moved into the other one. The rent was cheap :-)
You're right, I really don't believe she has the money to get this fixed up properly. So what will happen if I bring it to authorities, and she doesn't? What will happen to her and her house, and the other tenants who live here?
I hate being in this position! I hate it! I feel like I will ruin people. I don't want to cause problems for people. I just want to live, peacefully. I just want the house to be stable. I know it's not my fault that it isn't....God I hate this!!
All I want to do is move. That's all I want to do right now. Just move. I don't know how that will happen, I don't have the means to do so...seriously, I'm a whole bag of feelings right now.
She was supposed to have people come over today to break the ice off of the roof...but I haven't heard from them yet. It's almost 1pm where I am. When do they intend on getting here? It gets dark by around 4pm.
I believe everyone is correct: she doesn't have the money to fix it, it's going to take a lot more than just patches, it's going to be a problem as it apparently has been, and I'm the one who is going to suffer for it in the immediate future.
If those people do not come today....then yes, I will have to suck it up and start playing hardball....which is something I am really not good at doing. An earlier poster is right, in these types of situations, I am too nice. Ugh.
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