Should the property manager have shown me how to install the hurricane shutters I found in the garage? ?

Question

With several tropical storms out there in the Atlantic, I am concerned that the property manager wants to charge me a pretty high price for putting up these shutters. Am I responsible for doing it? I thought I could just take my pet and leave. I am willing, however, to be shown how or even have help putting them up, but I cannot pay him for it.

Answer 1

This is a good question - not stupid at all.  This is something a property manager would normally pay to have done and then pass the fee onto the property owner, not the tenant.  It almost sounds like fraud, and I would not let the property manager get away with charging this fee to you.  

If you don't have a duty specified in the lease to install these shutters or have them installed, the property manager doesn't have a leg to stand on.  Write him a letter stating that you are willing to install them if shown how or that you are willing to allow a workman onto the property to install them, but that you are not authorizing them to do any work that will result in a charge to you.  Also, if you do leave town to flee the storms, write them a letter stating that you will be gone and how they can contact you.  At least in my state, if a manager can prove that they have just cause to think you abandoned the unit, it can cause all kinds of problems.  Good luck!

Answer 2

No, you do not own the building, and you are not responsible for installing these shutters, or paying for installation, or for that matter even giving them help to install them.   But, you can't just take your pet and leave, and break the lease either.  If you have a years lease, you have to pay rent and stay until the lease term ends.  If you have a month to month tenancy, you can give them a 30 day notice, and move out at the end of 30 days.  You can move in the snowbelt, and you wouldn't have to worry about hurricanes, but then you would have to worry about blizzards.

EDIT:  I would just leave until the weather calms down, but you have to keep paying the rent, even if you are gone for an extended period of time.  We lived in Florida a few years ago when they had real bad weather.  We left for a couple of weeks and traveled north.  It is definitely scary down their when the hurricanes hit.

Answer 3

If the property manager or owner has any common sense they will take care of things. You can't be responsible for a natural disaster.

Why are you concerned with being charged to put the shutters up? No offense but that's just stupid. If anything they would be thankful. Use common sense or just plain brain power. It comes to some of us.

Answer 4

no; unless your lease says so; give them to him or her

to do!

Answer 5

What does your lease say?  Seems like you should at least be shown how to put them in place.  Otherwise, you shouldn't be required to do so.