If you are a home renter, then the day will eventually come when you need to get in contact with your landlord for home repairs. However, just because your faucet is leaking, or the commode is malfunctioning doesn’t mean that your landlord is going to drop everything and rush to your aid. There are rules and regulations that require property owners and landlords to respond to tenants quickly, but that doesn’t mean they always do…
Dealing with a lazy and negligent landlord can be maddening and inconvenient, especially when you need the okay from them regarding the issues within the property. If you’re having a difficult time dealing with your landlord or your landlords’ negligence to fix problems inside your rental home, then you’re in luck! Mr. Flush Plumbing in Augusta, Georgia provides a few helpful tips and tricks to motivating your landlord to take action inside the rental property.
Put your landlord requests in writing
If you have a landlord, then the first rule any home-renter should know is to put your requests and complaints in writing, especially for a big repair job. For the most validated form of writing requests and complaints, be sure to used certified mail so that your landlord cannot claim they lost your letter or that your email was sent to the spam folder. It is important to put all of your requests and complaints to your landlord in writing so that you have a paper trail in the event that you end up taking them to court.
Sometimes, submitting a written request to your landlord will get their attention quickly and motivate them to fix the property as soon as possible. However, some leases have provisions on how the landlord prefers to be contacted so be sure to check yours and connect with them accordingly. If you have submitted multiple written requests and complaints to your landlord and they still refuse to take action, your paper trail will work in your favor in any legal dispute down the road.
Tip your landlord
I know that this one seems unfair and useless… I mean why would you tip someone to do their job. Landlords are people too, so being motivated by money and tips is a great way to move your rental property to the top of the landlord’s to-do list.
Tipping your landlord could also get your repair done better, not just completed. Let’s say your toilet is overflowing and not working properly. Since you tipped your landlord recently, they might consider buying a new commode for the rental property and not find a used, cheaper alternative online…
Take your landlord to court
This one is a last case scenario option. No one should be clamoring and looking for a reason to go to court but dealing with a negligent landlord who refuses to make repairs to the rental property you are in is unacceptable.
If you are having serious problems getting in touch with your landlord and having them come to the rental property and fix the broken equipment, appliance or issue, you can file a Housing Part Proceeding which is where tenants can sue their landlords. If you’ve written everything down and have a paper trail, this can make taking your negligent landlord to court even easier for you.
Withhold the rent from your landlord
While you risk winding up in housing court, withholding rent is sometimes the best and maybe even the fastest way to really get a landlord’s attention. If you’ve been actively reaching out and sending requests to your landlord for repairs, you should be in good shape to withhold rent on a Warrant of Habitability Claim, which is a defense to non-payment of rent where conditions are dangerous to life, health or safety. For the safest bet, be sure to take pictures of the problems that your requests and complaints are referred to as these could come in handy if you are summoned to court.
Do it yourself
This option may seem straightforward and that’s because it is. If your landlord is negligent and refuses to take the necessary steps to improving their rental property, then get an estimate for repairing the problem, send it to your landlord and request the repair in writing. If your request continues to be ignored, pay for it yourself and deduct it from your next rent check. However, proceed with caution if you choose this step, because no landlord is going to be thrilled to see this.
No landlord will ever want you to do it yourself, because they can always get it done for cheaper, but if your landlord rejects your attempt at taking the cost of repairs out of your rent check, you could wind up in housing court.
With most ordinary repairs like painting, plastering or fixing a toilet, you don’t have a legal right to do it, but if you do it correctly and you document it, meaning you’ve written more than one letter demanding the repair get done and the landlord refuses to do it, and you decide to do it yourself, many courts will allow you to deduct that from the rent. If you do move forward with this option, copies of the bills and proof of payment are critical to your defense, along with documentation of the condition, notice to the landlord that the condition existed and that the landlord failed or refused to correct the condition.
Dealing with a negligent landlord
Dealing with a negligent landlord is excruciatingly difficult and something you shouldn’t have to worry about daily. Mr. Flush Plumbing in Augusta hopes that the five tips above helps you in finding the best way to deal with a negligent landlord and getting the necessary repairs completed inside your rental property. If you have plumbing problems or are looking for a reputable and experienced plumbing contractor near you, Mr. Flush in Augusta is here to provide you with the highest quality plumber services across the CSRA.
