Can I sue my landlord for rent ive paid him?

Question

My husband and moved into this 2 bedroom apartment on July 9th. Since then we have had nothing but problems. First off the owner told us that we are entitled to two parking spaces on the side of the apartment. Theres a couple living above us that always parks in our space. We've complained several times and the owner tells us that he didnt know there was a parking problem here and makes the people move. Then 2 weeks into living here we started to notice cockroaches in the kitchen. I mean BIG ones. So we told the owner. He yelled at us and said that if we dont like it here we have to give him a 30 day notice then leave. That we should be glad to live here and he will relist the place for rent. Well a few days later he had his brother in law fog the apartment. But there are still roaches here. Now we are starting to smell mold coming from the basement. (a previous tenant told us there was a major mold and roach problem when she lived here). I havent told the landlord yet. He's coming today to pick up the rent and ill tell him. We're gonna have the health dept come out and inspect for mold. My question is, if the health dept find that there is alot of mold in the basement, and tells us to move, can we sue the owner for the all the rent plus our security deposit that we've paid?

Answer 1

no not unless you can prove he knew before he rented it ot them it had  a mold issue then you can sue

Answer 2

You probably won't be able to recoup your expenses, including your rent. But, your security deposit must be returned in full provided you haven't trashed the place.

You definitely have grounds to break your lease. You can file with the Health Dept. to have the landlord's rental license revoked unless the insect and mold problems are eradicated.

Just start packing, give notice in writing in addition to telling him and find a new place to live.

Answer 3

You can sue if you so desire, but you will lose.  You had occupancy of the premises for the time you paid rents, so you have suffered no loss.  The landlord advised that you could move out with thirty days notice, even though you had a lease.  Perhaps you should take him up on his offer and find a place with which you are more happy ?

Answer 4

Sue for your deposit back yes. Sue for rent you've paid while you lived there no.

Answer 5

Having been both the landlord and the tenant, I've never heard of anyone taking the landlord to court to return the rent and security deposit. That doesn't mean that it cant be done, but it's time consuming and could end up being very expensive. The health department will be dealing with the landlord. They usually aren't the ones who will tell you to move. You can try withholding the rent until the mold and bugs are taken care of. I'm imagining you dont want to stay on there. Since he mentioned the 30 day notice, give him a written intention to move when the rent is due. Try calling Renter's Rights in your area. They can tell you how to deal with your landlord. Good luck with this and I hope you dont run into jerks like the landlord too often.

Answer 6

It's to bad that your first thought is to sue. It is much easier, cheaper, and less stressful to negotiate with your landlord to work out your problems. It seems he addressed your parking issue promptly and to your satisfaction.

There are several types of roaches. It sounds like you have "palmetto bugs" a large type. The problem is that to get rid of them you must treat the entire building and, if you live in a humid environment, you've got to treat regularly.

Mold is a different issue. Most mold is not harmful unless you have a specific allergy. It is likely that you don't actualy smell the mold, but the musty smell that comes from humid stale air. The repair with this would be a fan/vent in the basement.

Your landlord has property to make money. It is in his best interest to take care of his property and keep you as a tenent. You need a place to live and are satisified with the rent and location, it is in your interest to stay. Try to work it out.

Answer 7

I doubt you can get the rent back but you should get the security deposit back. its his responsibilty to make sure there is no mold. google your states laws

Answer 8

You can sue for rent - you have to prove that there were damages incurred due to the condition of the apartment. More likely, you can sue for damages incurred by having to move early.

Either way, you need documentation. I suggest you start recording when occurences happen, and what you did to resolve the situation.