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>Renting
Laws >Landlord
Noncompliance >Essential Services Essential
Services Your landlord is legally obligated to supply you with heat, running water, hot water, electric, gas, and other essential services, unless your lease states that you are responsible for certain Utilities. Keep in mind that there are often extenuating circumstances that prevent your landlord from supplying you with essential services. COMMUNICATE with your landlord and be sensitive if s/he is in a situation that prevents him/her from being prompt. On the other hand, keep in mind that these are called “Essential” Services for a reason. If your landlord is not supplying you with something this important you should expect a much faster response compared to a normal repair situation. If
Your Landlord is Neglectful, You
Can Pursue The Following Steps What
if loosing this Essential Service has caused me damage? What
if the loss of this Essential Service has made it hard to live in my
apartment? If your landlord does not supply the essential service s/he is supposed to, then You Can Pursue The Following Steps: 1. CALL your landlord and let her/him know about the problem. Try to get verbal commitments from the landlord about fixing the problem by a certain date. 2. Give him/her enough time to fix to the problem and/or reply to phone messages. Keep in mind that essential services should require more of a prompt response by the landlord (1 or 2 days at most). 3. Note when the landlord does not fulfill his/her promises. Keep a RECORD. 4. If s/he ignores you or does not fulfill promises, send a WRITTEN NOTICE to the landlord. Specify that s/he is violating city laws as well as your lease contract. Explain that you are going to take action to supply yourself with the essential service at the landlord’s expense. SIGN and DATE the notice and keep a copy for yourself. 5. Immediately after sending the written notice you can go ahead and take whatever actions are necessary to acquire the essential service you are not getting (e.g. call the water company and set up an account to get your water turned on). Make sure that you are obtaining reasonable amounts of heat, hot water, running water, electric, gas, or whatever the essential service may be during the period of the landlord’s noncompliance. 6. Finally, you legally may deduct the full cost of the essential service from your rent until the landlord supplies you with the promised service.
What
if loosing this Essential Service has caused me damage? If your landlord has not supplied you with essential services that s/he is supposed to and you have somehow been damaged as a result (financially or in some other way), you can sue the landlord and get paid back (including attorney’s fees).
What
if the loss of this Essential Service has made it hard to live in my
apartment? If your landlord has not supplied you with essential services that s/he is supposed to, and as a result the apartment has become unbearable to live in, you may obtain reasonable substitute housing during the period of the landlord’s noncompliance. In this case, you do not have to pay rent to the landlord during this time period.
You legally canNOT take any of the actions against your landlord listed above if:
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