Re: No gas - Landlord Forum thread 326476

Re: No gas by Anonymous on October 31, 2014 @06:33

I think a hotel may be your only option. No heat or hot water is a habitability issue...the rental is uninhabitable without them and the tenants should not stay there. You should not charge them rent for the period of the repair AND you should foot the bill for the hotel. This is not the tenant's fault and they should not be penalized in any way.

[ Reply ] [ Return to forum ]

Re: No gas by Garry (Iowa) on October 31, 2014 @09:42	[ Reply ]

I partly disagree with you. This is also not the LL's fault either. The LL should not collect any rent, but he should not be penalized by having to pay the the T's cost to tempararilly stay somewhere else, while not collecting any rent, too. The T could choose to stay with family or friends, or they could choose to stay in a $200/day suite. Which would YOU choose if the LL had to pay your bill. Also, this is an inconvienence, not a total destruction of the property that a fire or flood would cause. Compensation must be equitable for both parties.

Re: No gas by Anonymous on October 31, 2014 @10:08	[ Reply ]

We will have to disagree, then. This is not a natural disaster that caused the home to be uninhabitable. This is a malfunction of the landlord's property. "Compensation must be equitable for both parties." This is not a battle to be won. This is the opportunity to do the right thing by the tenants who are now inconvenienced through NO fault of their own. Again, this is not a natural disaster. This is a problem with the rental itself, and the tenant should not have to foot any cost for the inconvenience. The rent should be abated and the 2 parties need to come to an agreement about fair compensation for a hotel. If they agree on $50 a day, then that's all the tenant gets. The landlord can also make a claim with his own insurance for any rent lost or compensation to the tenants.

Re: No gas by Anonymous on October 31, 2014 @10:10	[ Reply ]

One added point I forgot to make. "This is also not the LL's fault either." A broken water heater, burst pipe, or hole in the roof would not be considered the landlord's 'fault', but they ARE the landlord's 'responsibility' to maintain. Please don't confuse the words fault and responsibility.