Help....what do yu think my rights r??

Question

oka so we had a fire in my 5 family home..the fire started becuz some lady was smokin and feel asleep...the fire started on the other side a the building which is a whole different address.our whole upstairs was ruined.we didnt have renters insurance which sucks.now to my question.im pregnant so my landlord made me leave.he is however letting my mom stay there against the insurance companies wishes.its been over a week and he still has not fixed ANYTHING.he keeps telling us give him time.our toilet wont flush n he told my mom to use a bucket.lol....so yu think we could sue him??

Answer 1

Talk to your landlord about refunding rent, security deposit and last month's rent, then tack on a request for moving costs.

You could sue, but I doubt you will get satisfaction that goes beyond this.  The landlord is not responsible to you for smoke damage.

Answer 2

You have no case against the landlord. They did not cause the damage to the home. Your mom chose to stay in a fire damaged home, which defies logic IMHO. you can sue the tenant who caused the fire, but unless she had a Tenant's policy you may be trying to get blood from a turnip.

It is difficult to find any sort of contractor these days to come in and perform work on short notice, so a week with no repairs done is not unusual. If this were three months and nothing had been done then I would raise an eyebrow, but not a week. My Spidey Sense is telling me that the landlord may not have any insurance at all, since he seems desperate to maintain tenants, and the rental income, in the building (even though it is not safe to do so). If he were properly insured then he should have Rental Income coverage to ensure that he is still receiving income even with the tenant's gone due to the damage. I would consider looking for a new place to live.

Answer 3

If your house is uninhabitable, then your landlord is required to put you up in a hotel until he can provide a habitable premises for you.  I had to sue my landlord a few years ago for a similar situation and won the case.  That is in California though.  I know that the laws can vary from state to state.

Answer 4

No.

Technically the apartment is un-inhabitable and the land lord should tell you to leave. You would not be required to pay a penalty for breaking the lease.

So, the landlord wants to you leave (probably for the health of the baby -- a good thing.).  He should put your mother out- but is letting her stay for the time being and you want to sue him?

How about you see about moving out of the fire damaged apartment an going somewhere else.

If the landlord is smart - he'd put you out since the apartment is not in-habitable.

Answer 5

No if it was a easily fixed repair, maybe if it was a health violation, then maybe you could. Why don't you go to your baby daddy house stay there. Thats why you get a renters policy to cover your stuff, a renters policy would not have rebuilt your apartment. The Landlord should of had insurance on the building they are theones trhat are going to pay for it to be rebuilt.

Answer 6

Based on what you provided here I'd say no, you don't have grounds for a suit against the landlord.

If anything, the tenant who started to fire could be liable if you sued her although if she is a renter also, quite possibly she has no assets.  If so, this would render a lawsuit useless and costly as you wouldn't be able to collect.

The landlord is actually doing your Mom a favor.  Why sue him?