Appliance Problem

[colorgarden.livejournal.com]

One of my major appliances in my apartment broke a while back and the building owner and management company really dropped the ball on replacing it. They made mistakes all along the way and I had to police the whole process.

Upon the last problem (but before the appliance was finally here), I told the owner that I would take a certain amount of money off of my rent for next month for all of my trouble. They said that wasn't fair and that there was nothing they could have done (not true); I asked them what they think is fair, assuming they would ask me to subtract less, but they said that I deserve nothing. I have emails with this person in which they apologize for (and, therefore, acknowledge) their mistakes in this process.

Is there anything I can do? What will happen if I do take off a certain amount of money from my rent? Is there some sort of tenants' rights association or website I can consult for info?

Thanks, all!

Comments

[ron_newman]

This post may be of help; beyond that, check the other entries under legal. Good luck!

[ellf.livejournal.com]

You cannot withhold rent after the fact, generally, but you need to ask this question of a lawyer, not the Davis Square LJ community.

The rent withholding defense is controlled by Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 239, §8A. The essence of the defense is that if there are material code violations present in the apartment, not caused by you or anyone under your control, and that the landlord knows about these material code violations before you start to withhold your rent, you may do so. (based on information from http://www.mass.gov/courts/courtsandjudges/courts/housingcourt/housingquestions.html#25)

[closetalker11.livejournal.com]

The Legal Advocacy and Resource Center has a free legal hotline people can call to ask presumably quick questions like this one.

You can get more infor at www.larcma.org.

[clevernonsense.livejournal.com]

I believe in general tenants do not get financial compensation "for their troubles" - only to reimburse them for costs

[afty.livejournal.com]

There is some legal advice here:
http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/scas/state/tenant.htm

Look under the section titled "Tenants' Remedies."

[mrpet.livejournal.com]

Check with a lawyer, no really. If you don't put the right amount of rent in the mail the ladlord could state a breach of contract and start eviction. I do know that some appliances, like the main heater, are required. When I was in Detriot you could get the building temporarily comdemned so you didn't have to pay rent for those days without heat. The threat alone could get you to simply deduct it from the rent. If it's the stove then you may not be able to do anything since I belive the landlord just has to provide you with the ability to cook (a hotplate or microwave is sufficient) Other things like washers and dryers are nice to have and as such I really don't see what you can do for something like that,

Thanks!

[colorgarden.livejournal.com]

Thanks for everything, all -- I knew you guys could help. (Mr. Pet, I *wish* I had a washer and dryer to complain about!)

[elements.livejournal.com]

I think you need to have an inspector verify the severity of the problem before you can withhold rent, and that the concept is supposed to encourage the landlord to repair so they can then get the rent you withheld. But I do recall something about there being some remedy for tenants if they have had to put up with unoccupyability. However, depending on the appliance it may not qualify as not occupyable. Stoves for example are required (despite numerous Craigslist ads for studios without stoves!) but refrigerators aren't.

Whatever you do, DO NOT take money out of your rent without first talking to a lawyer because if you do, you may be exposing yourself to eviction for non-payment of rent (which would take them AGES to make actually happen, but could be damaging to your chances of getting compensation in the end, and it's not ideal to have an eviction on your record.