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I’ve been with little or no heat for the past few days and now im feeling under the weather can i a) ask for my rent to be reduced because the heats not working or B) should i miss work because of my illness which im positive was caused by the lack of heat
ask them to recompense me for lost wages
Might I suggest you buy a space heater? I think they go for about 30$.
I know nothing about landlord laws, but Halachicly it sounds like Gramma. Ask your LOR.
I think you should subtract from your rent the heat cost. I would do that… Stay warm and refuah shleima!
“Might I suggest you buy a space heater? I think they go for about 30$.”
Some cheap heaters are real fire hazerds, use with extream caution.
Assuming that you pay rent on time, my question to you is if you live in an apartment building and do others agree with the heat being an issue? Did you call the landlord or managing agent?
My mother is in an apartment building and her line is the coldest so we have a heater running very often. When i commented to the landlord he told me to deduct from the rent. He forgot about it and we just pay an electric bill of over $200 monthly all year.
It is upsetting but i saw in life that Hashem runs the world and takes care of all. Have a Refuah Shelaim!
Hope you resolve your issue.
P.S. In private homes most landlords converted so that each tenant pays their own heat. Sorry you are not our tenant because our tenants control the thermostat and we pay the bills. No, we have no vacancies currently.
What was your landlord’s answer when you brought it to his/her attention?
Lia, where are you located? put us on your waiting list……
DO NOT TAKE ANY UNILATERAL ACTION WITHOUT CONSULTING A COMPETENT LEGAL AUTHORITY. I’m not a lawyer, but I am in law school and I recently learned about this. You are probably entitled to relief, including possibly paying less rent b/c of your landlord’s breach of the warranty of habitability, but if you take action on your own, you could end up as the breacher and on the hook. Better to first bring up the complaint with the landlord, ask him to fix it and ask if you can deduct from this months rent. If he’s a decent human being, he’ll do the right thing. If not, talk to a lawyer who can advise you on the best way to proceed. Of course, lawyers are expensive, and it may just be worth it to let this slide. But whatever you do, don’t do it without first checking to make sure you don’t mess yourself up.
O.K. How long does it take to fix the heat? It is not a luxury to have heat. You must have it. Once it is fixed, ask to have your rent reduced for this month. I think it is only fair. Do be careful with space heaters. Some of them are dangerous to use. Layer up. Good luck.
The Goq, a few questions, please.
1. In which city and state are the premises located?
2. Is this an apartment in a multiple dwelling (i.e. a building with four or more apartments)?
3. Are you the tenant? If not, what is your status?
4. Do you have a thermometer? Can you tell us what the temperature is during the day as well as at night?
5. If, by chance, you are in New York City, did you make a complaint to 311? If outside NYC, did you complain to the local government?
6. Have you told your landlord your apartment is cold?
7. Before this incident, what was the usual temperature in the apartment during the day? At night?
dvorak, I am a lawyer and I suggest you sit this one out.
Of course, lawyers are expensive, and it may just be worth it to let this slide.
Actually, legal advice is a bargain compared to the consequences of not getting legal advice. Better yet, if OP is in New York City, there is lots of free legal advice available for tenants in Housing Court.
The GOG. Homeowner is asking all the right questions. I successfully sued my landlord (my local state assemblymans office provided legal support and representation in landlord tenant court) for a rent reduction due to a broken radiator (ie, no heat).
Yes. Landlord is responsible for heat, responsibilities depend on the dwelling. Yes you are entitled so some reduction, but it really depends on the situation. For starters, you must notify the landlord of the problem. Document this notification. Send it certified mail if necessary. If you dont notify the landlord, how do you expect him/her to take action! In NYC, call 311 who will put you in touch with the hotline where you can report all (no) heat related problems and they will also log your complaint and notify landlord. Get legal advice before doing anything else. May I suggest that if you choose to withold rent, you take the money and place it in an account that is separate from your regular account so if there is a court case and a judgment and you witheld too much, you will have easy access to the money. If you dont, you better be disciplined not to spend it.
Great deal on a very nice heater – 49.99 with a 10.00 rebate – free shipping if you have prime
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