One of the advantages to living in a rental unit is the presence
of a landlord. It's a nice treat not to have to worry about
finding a reliable handyman to make the needed repairs. As a
tenant, you hardly ever have to worry about being handed an
unreasonably large bill for fixing a leak, etc. Your landlord is
responsible for seeing that the repairs are made in your unit in
a timely fashion. You are responsible for turning in a proper
repair request in a timely fashion.
So what is a proper repair request? Firstly, it should ALWAYS be
on paper... and it's much better if you can turn them in to your
landlord typed instead of scrawled out in illegible chicken
scratch. In order to avoid future complications i.e.. Your
landlord saying “You never told me that needed to be fixed, and
now the kitchen's burned up! You are going to have to pay for
the damages to your unit!” you'll want to make a copy of the
repair request for yourself.
The Cleveland Tenant's Organization provides several form
letters for tenants to turn in to their landlords. These are
great examples of what the letter to your landlord should look
like. Click here for the repair request sample.
It's very important to make sure that the request has the time
and date on it. You might consider sending the request through
mail to guarantee that it ends up in the right hands. In any
case, the letter should be sent to the same address and person
that you send your rent checks to.
If the landlord contacts you and says the repairs will be made
on a certain date, you should follow up this agreement with a
letter of confirmation. That way, you'll have the written
promise for your records. Document exactly what the landlord
said would be done and when this will take place. Then both you
and the landlord should sign the letter. Like the request, give
one copy of this letter to your landlord, and keep one for
yourself.
Be reasonable in allowing the landlord time to make the repairs.
Keep in mind that you are not your landlord's only tenant.
Although it would be good customer service for the landlord to
respond quickly to each repair request, there is usually about a
thirty day period before minor repairs have to be made
(depending on the laws in your state). Major repairs which
directly endanger you or the other tenants in the rental
community should be taken care of immediately - usually within
three days (again, this depends on the laws in your state.)
If a reasonable amount of time has passed, and the landlord
still has made no effort to make repairs, follow up with a
written reminder to the landlord. The reminder should include
the dates the first repair request was sent along with the dates
and summaries of any other agreements the two of you made. If
the landlord still does not attempt to fix the problem, you will
have grounds to take this problem to small claims court or
possibly to hire a handyman yourself and deduct the costs for
repairs (usually up to $500.00) from your next month's rent. If
you are confronted with an uncooperative landlord, it is best to
seek an attorney, or to contact your local neighborhood
association for advice on what you should do next. Whatever you
do, make sure you keep the copies of every letter you sent to
your landlord close by.
dan the roommate man
www.roommateexpress.com
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