How do we legally withhold rent?

Question

Due to our landlord's unwillingness to efficiently fix (well, fix at all) issues in our apartment, my roommate and I are seriously considering withholding December's rent until these issues are fixed.
One is a septic tank that continuously leaks septic gases into our apartment. They've jerry-rigged it closed but the smell is still there.
The other is a huge hole in our kitchen ceiling caused by water splash-over from the upstairs neighbor's bathtub.
The landlord and his fix-it man have been informed repeatedly about both issues and have come to look at them.
Nothing has been done to fix it completely. So, what legal routes do we need to go through to inform him that we plan to legally withhold rent to force these repairs and how do we go about legally withholding rent? Thanks!

Answer 1

The only way I have ever seen rent legally withheld is by going through the court and opening an escrow bank account that you deposit the money into each month. The landlord cannot withdraw it until the conditions agreed to in court are met. As far as the septic, it is dangerous because it contains fumes that can contain methane gas. Call your local Health Department.

Answer 2

Send your landlord a registered letter in your own handwriting. Tell him that unless he fixes the problems within 30 days, you will withhold the rent to pay for repairs yourself.

Then, if he doesn't come around within that time period, open another account at your bank and put the rent money in escrow (have the bank explain that to you). Then make arrangements to have the problems repaired. You will pay the repairmen out of the escrow money with any balance left over given to the landlord.

You cannot simply withhold the rent on a verbal request. If you notify him in writing, make the rent payments into an escrow account and make arrangements for repairs, you will be fine and he can't evict you. If you don't have everything in writing and just stop paying rent, he will throw you out legally. Put it all in writing.....

Quite frankly, if it was me, I'd just move.

Answer 3

You need to Google the Landlord/Tenant laws for your state regarding repairs, rent witholding and repair & deduct.

Some states do not allow for rent withholding or repair and deduct at all, others have very specific steps that you must take before doing either.

You can always call housing code enforcement for habitability issues. They will look into the problems and force the landlord to make the repairs if needed.

Protect yourself and follow the law.

Answer 4

Witholding the rent may be a breach of your tenant at will agreement or lease.

First, you should consider what Terry or others are saying. Secondly, send a registered, certified letter to landlord specifically citing your complaints and requesting that he/she/they fix them immediately as they pose a health or safety hazard.

If you have a lawyer, cc a copy to him/her (Sometimes the landlord, just seeing the cc to your lawyer on the footnote of the letter will be enough to motivate him/her.

Also, the state in which you live may have specific health and housing laws to address these issues. Visit your state government web site and do a search.

Good Luck

Answer 5

I don't know of any state where you can legally withhold rent; in most states, not paying rent will be grounds for a judgement and eviction.

You need to get a lawyer and sue the landlord. Since sewage is involved, you can also get the city council health department involved.

Answer 6

There are a number of components in touch. a million) What city/County do you reside/hire in? 2) What forms of maintenance could desire to be accomplished? 3) How plenty time has surpassed on condition that landlord became into notified what maintenance could desire to be accomplished, etc.? My techniques: Google the owner/Tenant rules to your city/County, then if needed touch an lawyer who's keen to furnish a loose consultation on the issue. additionally, verify with the interior sight criminal help corporation and the State Bar place of work on your area, regularly circumstances the senior regulation scholars carry clinics and overview concerns and furnish suggestion/help for the two no charge or an exceptionally minimum value which includes $20. reckoning on the severity of the subject and the interior sight rules, some maintenance have time limits on them to be repaired. case in point, in my County, presently the water heater actually busted and water became into pouring out into the storage and each of the down the line in the community. In my area, a issue of this type must be repaired interior 24 hours or the tenant is rather allowed to apply funds to have it repaired and deduct it from the hire as a results of nature of the subject. although, as inconvenient because it rather is, if water tension in the kitchen faucet is coming merely above a delicate pass, that's not seen an emergency and the owner has sort of 30 days to repair it.

Answer 7

It depends on the laws of your state. Many states statutorily establish procedures for witholding -- which usually involve filing a petition with the court and paying the rental to the court clerk. Consult a local lawyer or a local tenant's rights web site if your city or state has one.

Answer 8

Did you sign a rental agreement? If yes, then you may have no rights, depending on the wording of the agreement. I was in a similar situation 10 years ago, went to a lawyer, and was told I could do nothing. I went an entire winter without heat and a whole year without a working stove. And I was powerless.