Bad apartment management, what are my tenant rights?

Question

i live on the first floor and there was a big leak from the 3rd floor. my room out of the other 3 was pretty tore up from the leak. i have a bathroom in my room and the mats were underwater and when you stepped on the carpet, the water rises over your feet.

enough of the description of the damage, i contacted my landlord that saturday, which was a week ago and they have still yet to fix it. they keep giving me the "we're waiting for.." speech. i have not stayed in that room since the leak because of the awful smell and now since the water is drying, i believe mildew might be forming.. the smell is so bad it was starting to spread to the other rooms.. they have to replace the entire carpet but have yet to do it. i have heard that mildew can be a health hazard

now, do i have rights to refuse to pay rent or possibly get accommodated on the rent because of the hassle? i have been staying with other ppl bc i have no where else to say.. i tried to look up tenant rights but i'm still not informed on it.

Answer 1

Check out the Rental Tenancy Act for your area .  There shoudl be a clause in there that obligates the landlord to keep the place safe and habitable.

You have given him reasonable time to correct the problem.  If it's not done in the next day or 2 at the most including all clean up then tell him you are going to be staying in a hotel and biling him.  In fact I would be in a hotel now!  

  In the meantime file papers and get the courts to order him to not only clean up the problem.   He will be given some time to do this and your rent will likely be prorated and reduced for the time you were not able to stay in your suite.  Take lots of pics and get an impartial witness to come over and smell the place.  Don't use a friend.  Get a co-worker or someone else.

The smell is not just a mildew problem but it may be a  serious black mold problem which can be lethal.   You are being much too patient with this guy!  A week to take care of this problem is plenty of time considering your living conditions.

You do not have a right to refuse to pay rent.  Continue to pay it.  Let the courts give you the right to withhold your rent if the place is  not cleaned up.

By the way if you end up having to move out because the place was not habitable your landlord may end up paying your moving expenses.  That should give him something to think about.

Answer 2

I assume you kept copies of your written complaints to the landlord. I'd add complaints to the Health Department and Building Code people. Take photos to add to the file. If you feel you have established a strong legal case you should consider informing the landlord you are leaving.