Landlord/tenant rights, dealing with problems, where to get help...
Help with Rental Housing Problems
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bill1963 Posts: 1
Posted On: 8/31/2015
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We've just recently moved into and older home in August of this year. We took over the residence from the previous renters who were in the process of moving out.
1) When we saw the house, it was messy as the renters were packing which was acceptable. We liked the house. The owners wanted a rent of $750.00 a month which is within our budget so we decided to rent it. So we signed a year lease. At the time, the owner stated that the wall plugs were only two pronge and he had put in three prong outlets in the front room and one bedroom. There are only one four three pronged outlet in one location in the front room and one two pronged outlet in only one bedroom. The master bedroom only has a two prong outlet. (Not good for today’s appliances, tv’s clocks etc)
2) The first day we moved in we started noticing things that really weren’t quite right.
A) No exhaust fan in the bathroom. (Mold in tile next to tub)
B) Whole house smells really bad. (Musty smelling)
3) Health and Safety; After 2 weeks of residing at the house, on a hot day (No central air either) there became a strong odor coming from my daughters room. It ended up being that the previous renters had two dogs that may have used that room to relieve themselves. The odor is so bad that my 10 year old daughter can’t even stay in the room. I had to move here bedroom out into the front room in order for her to have a place to sleep. I have an industrial carpet cleaner and tried to really clean the carpets (Which are at least 30 years old). After the clean, I started to smell the odor even more. We had a floor installer come over to look at the house to see if we could replace the carpeting in my daughter’s room. Upon looking at the room, it was determined that the carpet, would have to be ripped out, new sealing primer (Kilzs) on the floor, then a new underlayment would need to be done before anything could be put down on the floor ($900.00 just for that 10’ x 10’ room). My wife asked him about the bathroom. He noticed the lot of mold in the floor tiles, probably due to the bathroom not having an exhaust fan. The kitchen has asbestos tiles, one is cracked and coming off the floor. Then he went to the addition of the house, noticed right off the bat that the room was moldy smelling and that we really shouldn’t use that room for anything at all due to the fact that what we put in there will hold the smell and probably get moldy as well. So now I have two rooms in a two bedroom house that I can’t use.
Now, my entire family started to feel sick. , I thought possibly that we had the flu but after I left to go to work, things seem to get better. When I return home, I feel sick again. My wife and 10 year old daughter are there all the time and constantly feel bad, weak and just plain lousy. Also during this time, we noticed lots of mice poop on the kitchen floor and laundry area and I have to put some traps in the kitchen. What course of action should we take? We just want to move out but money wise it is really not feasible.
Bill
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Moderator Moderator Posts: 4075
Posted On: 9/1/2015
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Hello Bill,
Thank you for sharing your situation and question with us.
We can appreciate that you would be concerned about this situation.
Your User Id indicates that you are in Chatham.
We suggest that it is best you contact the nearest Community Legal Clinic for some assistance and to find out what your rights are.
I hope this information is helpful. Please let us know if you have further questions and if there is any follow up to your question/situation.
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Anna
Settlement.Org Content and Information/Referral Specialist, CIRS
Settlement.Org
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