The reason I refused to pay the rent was because our sewer line broke in August.We had sewage backed into our house for over 2 weeks.My yongest son has been very ill since August.He has severe abdominal pain,cramping,vomiting,diarreha,gas,loss of appetite, lethargy,and severe nausea.My sons illness and the sewage coincide at the same time frame.My son has went from being a very active 8 yr old boy who plays sports and enjoys life to a boy who has no energy and has to run to the bathroom because he has to vomit and because he has the diarreha.He is very pale and falls asleep all the time.Hes had many x-rays and blood tests done.He has seen a lot of different doctors and is still seeing more.He tries to go to school but he vomits at school and has the diarreha so bad that he may be there in body but he is not there mentally.He is not able to do alot of the activities at school becasue of the nausea, vomiting, diarreha, gas, and abdominal pain.Hes lost weight during all of this as well.
2006-10-23 17:04:43 · 13 answers · asked by Shelly R 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
Sewers belong to the town/city. I'm not sure you can hold the homeowner responsible for something he or she was essentially also a victim of. Once there is town sewage are property owners at all responsibile for anything beyond their own plumbing?
To the best of my understanding there may have to be more than one rent that is a few weeks late before eviction proceedings can be started, but that may depend on your state or on your rental agreement. You may have more rights if you have a lease than if you are a tenant at will. You need to find a lawyer who will give you a free initial consultation, and before you do you should make sure you have a copy of your rental agreement..
If your child is this sick for this long, by all means keep documentation of what transpires between you and the property owner or town or between you and the doctors, because you may want to sue someone later; in the meantime, though, I'd think you'd want to concentrate on finding out what is making your son sick and just pay your rent and deal with any of the other stuff later on. Why risk getting an eviction thing going on top of what you now have to worry about. There is the chance that your son's being sick could just have coincidental timing with the sewage problem, and if doctors find that out you won't be able to sue anyone because of this illness.
You need an attorney or at least to call your local legal services people. One question people will ask is why you didn't take your son and go live with relatives while the sewage was coming into the house. (Just a heads up on that point..)
Your son has symptoms of giardiasis, an intestinal infection caused by Giardia lamblia. I assume the doctors have tested him for that?
I'm surprised, too, if the diarrhea is that bad that the doctors haven't kept him in the hospital to make sure he doesn't dehydrate. Do you think you should bring your son to a larger hospital. Is there any way the doctors are well-meaning bumpkins?
Finally, to the best of my understanding if whoever was responsible for fixing the back-up problem fixed it I'm not sure you have a right to withhold rent. If I were you I'd just pay it and deal with money matters later on. You have your son to be worried about.
2006-10-23 17:37:40 · answer #1 · answered by WhiteLilac1 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Depending on what state that you live in ( I'm in PA) and what your lease says,YES. Most places that I have lived, the lease states that you cannot fail to pay the rent because the landlord was negligent on his duties. The best that you could do is report him for being a slumlord and go from there. You should check out your lease because you will probably be evicted if you don't pay that rent. If he does not fix the problem, and you can prove that he wasn't doing his job, a court may award you past rent and let you break your lease. That is only for a judge to decide though. The tenant cannot take it upon themselves to deduct money from the rent or not pay for such reasons.(I know that I have read that line in my lease) Find out where you can report him and make sure that you find out what your legal rights are. Make sure that you pay Oct. rent so that you don't have a whole new set of problems to face, such as eviction.
2006-10-23 17:22:42 · answer #2 · answered by star28mama 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
To answer your question... YES.. You can be evicted for not paying your rent. Put all of the rent money into your bank account and plan to go to court. Get a lawyer and fight it out in court. But be sure to have all rent in the bank and proof that you do have it to show in court. I would also get your son to a different doctor if he is STILL suffering from August! Get a second opinion and save ALL doctor bills and receipts to show in court also. Good Luck! Hope your son feels better! Ps. I hope you took pictures of the sewage problem or your story might not stand up in court if you don't have any proof.
2006-10-23 17:16:31 · answer #3 · answered by ~Emma's Mommy~ 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Get a copy of your lease, copies of your son's medical records and get a Lawyer, asap. (Legal Aid will help you, if you cannot afford one. Some areas also offer programs for tenants, but Legal Aid is a great place to start. Google or check your local phone book.) No, you can't refuse to pay rent, most likely, per your lease, so pay so that you won't get yourself into a legal quagmire. But you can sue the pants off of your landlord. Also, you can get advice on how to break your lease. There is no way that I would stay in a place that he or she owned. That is an irresponsible landlord and despicable human being to expect you to live like that.
Hope that everything turns out well.
2006-10-23 17:13:06 · answer #4 · answered by Jamir 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes. Pay the rent now or else he has a case against you. It may be logical to you to withhold it, but it is not legal.
Instead, immediately hire a lawyer to sue the pants off of your landlord for the rent you had to pay when the house was uninhabitable in August, plus every medical bill you've had since, plus any items of yours that were damaged in the sewage, plus damages for pain and suffering for you, your son, and the rest of the family.
2006-10-23 17:19:25 · answer #5 · answered by Answer 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
sorry to hear about your son, hope he gets well soon, but regardless, if you dont pay your rent your land lord can evict you, he fixed the problem,ask him to prorate your rent for the two weeks that you had sewage problems, maybe he will. If you can prove that your sons medical problems are related to the sewage problem check with a lawyer maybe you have a case against your landlord. Two weeks is a long time for that problem to be fixed
2006-10-23 17:28:18 · answer #6 · answered by jimmy fan101 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My Dear Lady, inform the landlord you are suing. I hope the sewar
pipe has been taken care of. Explain this to the doctor. I wouldnt worry about the rent, it sounds like a blessing to be evicted from such a place. The landlord should be reported to the authorities,
if they do nothing tell them you will report it to Bill Oreilly on Fox News, you have an inside source who wants this reported.
Then send the story to him, he might just report it. He hates all kinds of abuse to children. This is very bad...from the landlords point. Good luck and God Bless
2006-10-23 17:16:05 · answer #7 · answered by Rick D 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, you can. The only excuse would be if the landlord, after notice of an immediate hazard to health (which this is), neglected or refused to make timely repairs, in which case your choices would be: (a) declare the lease terminated, for breach of the implied warranty of habitability, and move out; (b) hire the repairs yourself, in which case you can pay up to two month's rent (depending on the state) for the repairs, and present the landlord with the receipted invoice in lieu of any deficiency of rent. I would have chosen plan (a).
2006-10-23 17:11:55 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
She's giving you an out. If the place is so bad, take it and run. You can't have it both ways. You either don't pay and move or pay and stay. Why is the plumbing backing up? If it is because of something you've put down that you shouldn't YOU need to pay to fix it, not her.
2016-05-22 03:44:21 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Get an Attorney immediately. It's not a bad idea to also contact your local Health Department, Social Services and the Landlord Tenant Commission. This is serious business, its not just about your home its about your babies. Get on the ball and get these bastards! Good luck.
2006-10-23 17:13:26 · answer #10 · answered by ~Mother Of Angels~ 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋