Failure to Maintain – Units, Common Space, Personal Property
Both you and your landlord have various duties that you each must perform under the terms of your lease agreement. You must pay rent and follow the other restrictions that the lease imposes on you. Otherwise, you can risk eviction from the premises. The landlord has an obligation to maintain the property and make repairs as necessary. If they fail to do so, you may be relieved from your obligation to pay the full rent on the property. You may even file a lawsuit against the landlord for failing to maintain the property.
If you believe that your rights as a tenant are being violated, you should contact a real estate attorney today. Your real estate lawyer can review the lease, the law, and your own situation to determine whether you can take action. If you are having difficulty communicating with the landlord on your own, your real estate lawyer can speak to them on your behalf in the hopes of resolving the problem. Your real estate lawyer can represent you in any legal proceeding against the landlord or when they are trying to evict you for nonpayment of rent.
The Landlord Owes You Certain Obligations Under Your Lease and the Law
When you lease a residence from a landlord, they take on various duties and obligations that they owe you. A landlord has a duty to perform maintenance on the unit and common space, just like you have your own obligation to pay rent. A lease is a contract between you and the landlord. Not only are there clauses in the agreement that impose legal obligations on the landlord, but there are also specific provisions in the law about what a landlord must do and your tenant rights and remedies when the landlord fails to do what is legally required.
While you must pay rent, your obligations are not as absolute as you think. There is a certain element of quid pro quo between you and the landlord. Your rent payments are in exchange for what your landlord must do in their own role. Remember that a landlord must provide you with habitable premises. That obligation covers both your individual unit and the common areas on the property. The unit must be safe and livable.
Your Landlord’s Specific Obligations to You
If you report maintenance issues to the landlord, they must make repairs if the defects fall under their general duties. Broadly speaking, the landlord must meet the following basic requirements:
- They must provide you with a unit that has structural integrity
- You must have heat, hot water, and electricity in your unit
- There must be adequate sanitation in the unit, and there should not be any environmental hazards
- There must be adequate physical safety, including protection on the windows when necessary and working locks
- The building must be up to applicable fire codes
The Landlord Cannot Provide You with Uninhabitable Premises
Generally, the landlord has an obligation to address anything that may make a unit uninhabitable. This requirement can also extend to the common areas. For example, if there is a severe threat to your personal security, either in your unit or in the common areas, you may consider the premises uninhabitable. These principles certainly apply when there is a danger in your individual unit, such as an insect infestation or a fire risk.
So long as you are living on their premises and you are current on your rent, they must provide you with habitable premises. If they have placed you in a dangerous position and they refuse to make the repairs as necessary, you can take legal action of your own. You may also use self-help measures to protect your own legal rights because you are not getting the benefit of the bargain of your lease.
You May Be Able to Withhold Rent or Move Out Entirely
Some conditions may allow you to withhold rent from the landlord if you believe they are not living up to their end of the lease by making the necessary repairs. First, you should make a maintenance request and explain the situation to your landlord. You should try to work with them to have them make the necessary repairs. Unfortunately, the landlord may not make these repairs immediately. They may not yet have the capacity, or they may just be slow. You cannot immediately refuse to pay rent without going to the landlord first.
Under the law, you must give your landlord prior notice if you intend to withhold rent due to their failure to make repairs. You must allow the landlord enough time to cure the defect before you take matters into your own hands. However, if the landlord still does not listen and make the necessary repairs, you can refuse to pay your rent until they do so.
You Have Different Options Depending on the State of the Property
What you can do depends on whether the unit is inhabitable. If the dangerous conditions render the unit uninhabitable, the law gives you the right to break the lease entirely. You can move out of the premises without paying the rent due under the lease agreement’s terms. If the unit is still inhabitable, you can remain in the unit, but you should not pay full rent in the meantime. The rent should be reduced by the proportion to the loss of rental value caused by the failure to cure the violation; for example, if you are paying $2,000 in monthly rent, and you believe that the unrepaired defect reduces the value of the rental by 25 percent, you should only pay $1500 in rent, and you should withhold $500.
You Take Risks When You Fail to Pay Rent or Move Out
Seeing that you have failed to pay full rent, the landlord may take legal action against you and begin to try to move to eviction. In the meantime, you must keep the past-due rent in a separate account. You may need to deposit it into the registry of the court while the legal proceedings are occurring. If the landlord sues you and you lose your case, you may need to pay any past due rent and payments that come due while your case is moving through the court system.
You are definitely taking a risk when you refuse to pay some or all of your rent. The landlord may not simply allow you to not pay rent, and they may view the situation differently than you. The landlord may not believe that any failure to make repairs leaves you with uninhabitable premises. Alternatively, they may think that they have already addressed the problem and that you are simply being difficult.
Nonetheless, you are not powerless when you are dealing with a landlord. The law can give you powerful remedies to hold them accountable when they refuse to uphold their basic obligations under the law and your lease agreement.
Still, refusing to pay your rent in full and vacating the premises are extreme responses. While you may be entirely justified in doing so, you also risk losing your case in court and being subject to penalties yourself. In other words, this measure is not one that you should take lightly. You should always speak to a real estate lawyer before you decide to use any self-help measures available to you under the law.
Try to Talk to Your Landlord, Either Yourself or Through a Real Estate Lawyer
In the meantime, you should try to work with your landlord to reach a resolution before you opt for such extreme measures. You might resolve the dispute without having to take measures into your own hands. This course of action will reduce your risk. You may have to wait a bit for the landlord to make repairs, but you can also avoid risky and contentious legal proceedings. It is always better to make a strong attempt to resolve disputes without litigation, but it takes a landlord who is willing to work with you.
Know Your Rights Under the Law
Tenants have certain protections under state law. If you have brought an issue to your landlord’s attention, and they are giving you the runaround, you have certain rights. However, knowing the scope and extent of your rights under the law is crucial. You may speak to your landlord. The most effective type of tenant is one who is well-informed. When you threaten to withhold rent, and you can cite the law to justify it, the landlord may be more likely to sit up and take notice of you. They may be less inclined to try to push you around and more willing to talk things through. The landlord also does not want to end up in court. Not only can their reputation be harmed, but they do not want a finding on the record that they breached the lease and you were not required to pay rent as a result.
Hiring a real estate lawyer can give you a better chance of obtaining the desired result. The landlord may feel that you are beneath them or that they have power over you. They may be more inclined to respond when they receive a letter or phone call from a real estate lawyer they know can hold them accountable for their breach of the lease.
You Can File a Lawsuit if You Have Injured By the Landlord’s Negligence
Suppose you have suffered an injury from the dangerous conditions in either your unit or the common area. In that case, you may even file a personal injury lawsuit to receive compensation for your injuries. A landlord can also be liable in a premises liability lawsuit if they have failed to maintain common areas. Both tenants and their guests may be injured in slip and fall accidents when a hazardous condition persists for an extended amount of time. In a slip and fall case, the landlord can be legally liable if they either:
- Created the dangerous conditions themselves
- Failed to remedy the hazard within a reasonable amount of time after the landlord knew or should have known about the dangerous condition
You may also file a lawsuit against the landlord for negligent security if you have suffered an injury in an attack on the property. The landlord can be liable if they failed to provide reasonable security when they knew or should have known of a danger on the property.
Here, an accident victim will file a premises liability lawsuit against the landlord. If they can prove that the landlord was negligent, the accident victim can be eligible for a substantial amount of financial compensation. You need evidence that shows that the landlord acted unreasonably under the circumstances before you can discuss the specifics of your compensation. If you win a premises liability lawsuit, you can receive both economic and non-economic damages for your injuries. If the landlord has acted egregiously, you may even be entitled to punitive damages when the jury wants to send them a strong message. Juries may react angrily when they encounter a landlord who took advantage of their own power and consciously disregarded their obligations under the law.
Contact a Real Estate Attorney Now
If you find yourself in a difficult position with your landlord and are not seeing sufficient changes or getting answers, it is time to speak to The Lopez Law Group, a team of experienced real estate attorneys. Your attorney can give you legal advice and educate you about your rights under state law. They can advise you on the proper course of action and advocate on your behalf.
In your consultation, you will bring your lease agreement and any communications with your landlord or evidence of your concerns with your living arrangements. The lawyer will review everything and advise on legal options, which can immediately provide peace of mind. If you need to take legal action, the real estate attorney can handle every aspect of the process, from writing a demand letter to your landlord to taking the case to court when necessary.