Tenant Wants Rent Reduction b/c of Leak
With this winter’s crazy weather, just last month, a leak appeared from our patio (which is also the roof of an extension) into our tenant’s apartment. I have been on the scene each time it has leaked (on two separate occasions over the last month), and I have been trying different things to repair, or…
With this winter’s crazy weather, just last month, a leak appeared from our patio (which is also the roof of an extension) into our tenant’s apartment. I have been on the scene each time it has leaked (on two separate occasions over the last month), and I have been trying different things to repair, or at least fix the leak until the weather gets warmer. My tenant keeps mentioning a rent reduction or credit for the rooms that have the leak. What should I do?
This is a gray area. I think the fair answer is that it depends on whether they are able to use the room. If the leak is to an extent that the tenant is having to move computer equipment or upholstered furniture out of the office then it is fair for them to get a rent reduction. If we’re talking about an isolated area and just moving a laptop into the other room when the tenant isn’t using the study “just in case” then I’d say no rent reduction but it’s a fine line. Of course I believe this should be handled in terms of what is the right thing to do and how badly you want to keep this particular tenant happy rather than the legal obligation, which is probably much lower.
Unless you advertised your apartment as beautiful, well-located, comes with 1-1/2 leaks, it strikes me as perfectly reasonable for your tenant to request a specific rent adjustment. Could they base their request on the Warranty of Habitability and win? Maybe. This is not about whether you’ve been diligent in trying to repair the leak, or whether conditions permit or prohibit you from immediate repair. This is purely about the conditions in the tenant’s apartment. This has been a difficult winter for all concerned, landlords and tenants alike. Your willingness to acknowledge, and possibly compensate the inconvenience in the tenant’s apartment will go a long way towards goodwill. Viewed from the LL’s perspective, and speaking as a LL, you’d certainly be quite annoyed if there was a leak and the tenant never mentioned it, or if the tenant was not diligent in emptying and replacing the bucket each time it filled.
As both a renter and an owner of property (rent in New York, own elsewhere), a leaking roof in a room is unusable assuming the room was being used for more than storage. If this were an unfinished extension used for storage, fine, put a bucket down and cover what is being stored in plastic sheeting. If instead of the extension, the roof of your house was leaking into a top floor bedroom, my guess is you would not be waiting until after the snow melted to fix the problem while continuing to sleep in the room as though there was no problem. Just my two cents – unless the tenant has been a total jerk to this point and you don’t mind losing him or her, give the rent concession. If it were me and I was a good tenant, I would be planning to find a new place to live after the lease ended without a concession.
Just as a general comment… The one bit of “power” a tenant has is money. So, simply bringing up the topic of a rent reduction is a *very* effective way of communicating how important the issue is to them.
Simple as that. Words are good — “The leak in the roof is not to my liking.” But giving a monetary value to something signals that the issue exceeds the “it’s annoying” stage and has entered the realm of “This isn’t what I am paying you gobs of money for!!”
Unless you have a long history of being a wonderful, responsive landlord to these *specific* people, how would they know that such a message isn’t required to maintain the fire under your ass?
I’m not saying they should or shouldn’t get a rent reduction, but you kind of have to admit, it’s annoying to have to move furniture around to accommodate a leak that may be a while before it’s permanently fixed.
I had a similar issue as a renter, you sound much more attentive than my previous landlord. However, after going back and forth the landlord did give us a rent credit of $200 for the month where the leak remained unfixed. It went a long way, and when other issues came up in the future it was much easier to give the landlord a little slack as he worked though the probelms. So while I agree that legally they may not be entitled to anything, it can be considered an investment in your relationship with the tenant – if it’s a good tenant.
From a tenant’s perspective — Our landlord is super responsive and prompt with repairs. We have a leak going right now and the LL has been trying a variety of things to remedy the situation until the weather warms up and he can get a better look at what is going on. From what you describe, our situation is similar to yours, as the leak is on the extension in our kitchen area. A rent credit was never discussed and since none of our stuff was damaged we never really expected to get one. Now, if the LL was unresponsive, or the damage was due to a lack of building maintenance, I think I might want a credit. But as it stands, we just roll with the punches.
Another reason it’s best to have tenants on the garden level and not the top floor, although this being an extension they probably are on that floor.
I once had a major leak while we were away. Ceiling had to be replaced and floor had to be repaired. Covered by insurance. Water also got onto two of tenant’s oriental rugs. Insurance didn’t cover because these were tenant’s possessions and, technically, I was not liable, but I paid to have them cleaned, because I really liked these tenants. Now, I always instruct tenants to get tenant insurance, which is really cheap and will cover things like sofa damage owing to leaks, etc.