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Old 02-17-2015, 05:36 PM
 
50 posts, read 67,498 times
Reputation: 35

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We moved into this apartment in October, I should have seen all of the red flags but we were in a pretty desperate situation ( my previous landlord decided he wanted to move back into his old apartment and we had to move). My area is really expensive and when we saw this apartment for a price we could afford we decided to take it and clean it up ourselves. Once it started to get cold we had an issue with the heat , where they were simply not turning it on. After calling several times and the owners being forced to come out during the night to turn on the heat they have been somewhat better with the heat. I say somewhat because there are times when they put the heat extremely high ( we don't bother them when they do that ) and there are other times that they have it extremely low. But as long as its on we don't complain.


Fast forward to last week.The front door of the building does not close properly, there are times that it stays open. There have been a few instances that I walk in and find like 2 or 3 guys hanging out in the hallway. Last week as my husband and i were in the kitchen. We kept hearing the front door opening ( we live on the first floor) when we looked through the peep hole we saw that there were about 4 guys going to the basement, we later found out that these guys are hanging out in the basement smoking weed. We called the owners to inform them of this, they told us to just called the cops. so we called the police and of course they left but 4 days later the guys were entering the building, again we spoke to the owner and explained that the problem is that the front door does not close properly and that it needs to be fixed. The owners answer was "whats the use of me fixing it if they are going to break it again" and in a nutshell said that they will not fix it.

Now today the heat was off for most of the day, and i go to take a shower and the water was ice cold. I call the owner to advise about the water and she says " oh i will call someone to go tomorrow" I say but shouldn't you come first to see what the problem is , and i also asked if the boiler had anything to do with the hot water because the heat is off as well , and she stayed quiet. 45 minutes later that owner comes and says "oh the PSEG guy turned off the hot water this morning and never turned it on.

I have asked other tenants who have been living in the building for a longer time about the owners, and they tell me that this is on going with the owners. Most of them have just resulted to buying space heaters because of the heat situation, and they even boil water when there is no hot water . I just dont understand , am i the only one that has a problem paying rent for something and not receiving it?
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Old 02-17-2015, 05:46 PM
 
Location: St Thomas, US Virgin Islands
24,665 posts, read 69,567,744 times
Reputation: 26727
The first thing you need to do is go to the first "sticky" on this forum and find a link to your state landlord tenant laws. Read what constitutes "uninhabitability" (i.e. heat has to be maintained at a certain temperature), how to address maintenance issues (in writing) and what to do if the issues aren't dealt with in timely fashion (notifying authorities, "rent for repairs", etc.) Each state has its own rules which are basically similar but they'll put you on the right path.

First things first.
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Old 02-17-2015, 06:04 PM
 
27,206 posts, read 46,641,661 times
Reputation: 15661
You need to prepare a written history of calls, email exchanges and call the cops each time the guys are there.

If the issues are not handled you can break the lease without any legal issues but you will need to give proper notice of issues and a door not locking well can be solved and is not a reason to break the lease and neither the next day service although it may be inconvenient and not very nice for a LL to reply this way.


If the owners fail to act on important items related to your States law and what reasonably can be expected from a LL then you can break the lease and you should get your security deposit back. If you are not reasonable but your expectations are too high then you are liable for breaking the lease.
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Old 02-17-2015, 06:48 PM
 
50 posts, read 67,498 times
Reputation: 35
Quote:
Originally Posted by STT Resident View Post
The first thing you need to do is go to the first "sticky" on this forum and find a link to your state landlord tenant laws. Read what constitutes "uninhabitability" (i.e. heat has to be maintained at a certain temperature), how to address maintenance issues (in writing) and what to do if the issues aren't dealt with in timely fashion (notifying authorities, "rent for repairs", etc.) Each state has its own rules which are basically similar but they'll put you on the right path.

First things first.
Oopps ! I completely skipped over that thread I will definetely take a look at it.


I just wish that I didn't have to go through this. I hate to be that tenant to have to be a "problem" . I wish to just pay my rent and live comfortably in my apartment without these types of problems.

I hate to compare but I never had these types of problems in NY. In NJ on the other hand I am surprised/disgusted by what these landlords get away with.
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Old 02-17-2015, 06:57 PM
 
Location: Silicon Valley
18,813 posts, read 32,382,398 times
Reputation: 38573
For $25 you can join the New Jersey Tenant Union and they will answer your questions and guide you in what you should do:

http://njto.org/

I think it would be worth the money. Their site says if you end up needing a lawyer, they can refer you to lawyers who specialize in representing NJ tenants, too.

Good luck.
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Old 02-17-2015, 06:58 PM
 
Location: St Thomas, US Virgin Islands
24,665 posts, read 69,567,744 times
Reputation: 26727
Nobody wants to go through it but one never knows!

Knowing what the state requires of both landlords and tenants is a step in the right direction in keeping the problems to minimum. Many landlords aren't too savvy about their legal obligations but you can often nip things in the bud with a pleasant, business-like request in writing when you know the basics. Good luck!
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Old 02-18-2015, 04:45 PM
 
Location: North Idaho
32,564 posts, read 47,729,085 times
Reputation: 78076
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bubito1724 View Post
.......we were in a pretty desperate situation ......... My area is really expensive and when we saw this apartment for a price we could afford we decided to take it and clean it up ourselves. ........
I think that the overall big issue here is that you can't afford rent in your area. Unfortunately, you can't get champagne if you only have the budget for Brown Derby beer. Cheap rent gets you a cheap place to live.

All requests for repairs that you make should be in writing and with proof of delivery. Hang on to your documentation in case you need it later.

You can call whoever is in charge of housing complaints in your area and file a complaint. The heat is an issue that they should deal with. The front door, maybe not so much.

Maybe if you can't afford a better place (which would be the ideal situation, but if it doesn't work, then it doesn't work) you could look into repairing the front door by yourself. If it is just the latch it might only be $20 to fix it. You shouldn't have to repair it, but if the landlord won't, then repairing it yourself might be preferable to living with criminals waltzing in at all hours.
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Old 02-19-2015, 01:16 AM
 
Location: Silicon Valley
18,813 posts, read 32,382,398 times
Reputation: 38573
Quote:
Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke View Post
I think that the overall big issue here is that you can't afford rent in your area....
No, the issue is the maintenance problems.

Reasonable maintenance is required and expected in any neighborhood in any price range.
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