Re: Reasonable to request a rent reduction? - Landlord Forum thread 317600

Re: Reasonable to request a rent reduction? by Garry (Iowa) on April 16, 2014 @20:38

Can I jump in here for just a minute? I am assuming that the flooding was caused by heavy rains, which is an act of God. and neither the LL or T was negligent in any way. Neither the LL or T can declare the property "uninhabitable" That decision must come from a third party "official" that is a housing/building inspector for a city, county, or state in which the event happened. If that official says it's uninhabitable, then the T must move out, which could be for only a week or two, a month or two, or they may never reside there ever again. If the T moves out, they owe no rent to the LL, as they are now having to pay rent to a hotel or are staying with family or friends until they can move back in again. In this case, if the T remains in the home, but has reduced living space because of the flooding, the should pay a reduced amount of rent. However,after 30 days of living in a hotel, if it's again determined by a building inspector that habitability is a long ways out, the T can cancel the lease on his own, and go where chooses, The LL must let him take all of his possessions and also give back the T's deposit money. This is all because it was an act of God that caused the problem, with no negligence on any ones part.

[ Reply ] [ Return to forum ]

Re: Reasonable to request a rent reduction? by Stacey on April 17, 2014 @13:13	[ Reply ]

The flooding was not caused by rain, it was because the window wells in the basement have no drain system. So when the (very large) amount of snow on the ground (not in the well, it is a covered full size egress window) started to melt, the ground became oversaturated and the water began rising up into the well from underneath, coming into the room. There is a visible crack in the egress window unit as well (the unit is like this:http://bachmannconstruction.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Basement-egress-Window.jpg). My renters insurance is a standard policy and covers most causes of flooding in a basement such as appliance failure, plumbing pipe bursting, etc. However water seeping in through a window is not covered and that is standard from what I can find in my research. If there is a structural defect that allows the water in then the LL's HO insurance would have to cover the damage. Fortunately, as I said, I have no property damage.

Re: Reasonable to request a rent reduction? by Anonymous on April 17, 2014 @14:18	[ Reply ]

It sounds like you've decided that the landlord should reduce your rent, in addition to covering all the costs of repairs. What will you do if your landlord won't accommodate you? Many homes had damage this past winter, due to the extreme weather and large amount of snow we got. If I were your landlord, I would make repairs as soon as I could (which depends in part on being able to find a contractor who can do it ASAP, which is not always possible). I would not reduce your rent, and if you insisted, I would tell you that you're free to move.

Re: Reasonable to request a rent reduction? by Stacey on April 17, 2014 @15:40	[ Reply ]

I haven't decided if he should reduce it- that is why I asked here if it was a REASONABLE request. Of course I expect the LL to cover the cost of repairs. It is his house. That's why I am renting right now- I don't want the responsibilities of home ownership at this particular point in time. When I am ready for those, I will purchase a house and undertake the costs associated with that. The rent I am paying far exceeds what my mortgage would be on this house if I owned it. As I have stated, my LL is currently working to make the repairs ASAP, and only after we wrote a letter requesting said repairs did he start moving to do them. I am satisfied with his efforts at this time to get the repairs made properly and get the room back to a habitable status. However that does not negate the almost 3 weeks that the room has been unusable to us at a big inconvenience. I have never been in this situation before and so that is why I came here, to ask if it was reasonable to ask for and receive a rent reduction for the time the room is unusable. I don't plan to move or walk away from the home if the LL doesn't agree to the reduction because so long as he makes the repairs so the room is habitable again I'm not going to spend $$ (well over the cost of the reduction I am requesting) to move to prove a point. Thanks for your opinion.

Re: Reasonable to request a rent reduction?