| Posted by Dr. Autonomo ® , Sep 17,2003,01:50 | MetroBlab |
i have been scouring my apartment from about 9am to about 4pm with a type of bleach based cleaning solvent and spraying cubbards, drawers, closets, baseboards with roach spray in attempts to de-roach my living environment. my apartment as well as other apartments in this complex are severly infested with roaches. the apartment owner has a man come out every three months or so to spray. sometimes they use industrial spray that is housed in a large metal canister, sometimes they use boric powder, and this month they used a single small can of bug spray you can buy at any grocery store, spraying about 4 squirts from the can and only in the kitchen. the other 2 residents on my floor both have toddler aged children and one is pregnant. this roach infestation is so severe that you can watch the roach life cyle take it's course over and over and over. they come out in packs during both the night and day with no display of fear. they swarm out of the baseboards, as i have watched them do this sitting in my living room with sunlight streaming from my open windows. after many and numerous complaints from most tenants, i had decided to write them a letter formally voicing a complaint with signatures from other tenants explaining we will take action through reporting this to the health department if the situation is not rectified immediately. i was writing this letter today, adding paragraphs between intervals of scrubbing and disinfecting my apartment, when low and behold a peice of paper was slipped underneath my front door. the notice reads:
"NO PETS ARE ALLOWED IN THIS BUILDING. FLEAS FROM THESE ANIMALS CREATE A CHANNEL FOR DISEASES.
IF YOU HAVE A PET YOU ARE IN VIOLATION OF YOUR LEASE, WHICH SAYS NO PETS. YOU MUST REMOVE THE PETS WITHIN 30 DAYS OR YOU WILL BE EVICTED."
signed by both the owner of the realty company and the office manager.
now, there is a third line above the two signatures designated for the property manager's signature, but this signature is missing.....our landlady (property manager) who lives in our apartment complex owns a cat (and has had the same cat for over ten years, so i assume this is why she was not asked to sign the eviction notice. also i never signed a lease, as i was told i could a)rent month to month without a lease, and b) i could have pets. i have lived here with my two cats for over a year. also, a few months ago, when they used boric powder, one of my cats became ill from it and had to be taken to the vet.
the truly comical part of this notice is the "channel for diseases" excerpt. shortly after receiving the notice i was overcome with a impulsive desire to contact the owner via phone and explain that i had just sprayed my cats with 4 squirts of domestic bug spray and following his example, that should prevent them from being disease ridden for at least three months.
granted, i was already looking for a home for my two female cats due to the long consecutive weekly double shifts that i work, but the real issue is the legality of this notice.
currently, i am researching eviction laws in tennssee and the health department procedures and laws that involve action against apartment complexes with infestation problems.
does anyone have any suggestions?
| Posted by Jester_Fermaggio ® , Sep 17,2003,17:25 | MetroBlab |
TITLE 66 PROPERTY
66-28-106
PART 2
RENTAL AGREEMENTS
66-28-201. Terms and conditions.
(a) The landlord and tenant may include in a rental agreement, terms and conditions not prohibited by this chapter or other rule of law including rent, term of the agreement, and other provisions governing the rights and obligations of parties. A rental agreement cannot provide that the tenant agrees to waive or forego rights or remedies under this chapter. The landlord or the landlord's agent shall advise in writing that the landlord is not responsible for, and will not provide, fire or casualty insurance for the tenant's personal
property.
(b) In absence of a lease agreement, the tenant shall pay the reasonable value for the use and occupancy of the dwelling unit.
(c) Rent shall be payable without demand at the time and place agreed upon by the parties. Notice is specifically waived upon the nonpayment of rent by the tenant only if such a waiver is provided for in a
written rental agreement. Unless otherwise agreed, rent is payable at the dwelling unit and periodic rent is payable at the beginning of any term of one (1) month or less and otherwise in equal monthly installments at the beginning of each month. Upon agreement, rent shall be uniformly apportionable from day to day.
(d) The landlord shall not charge a tenant for the late payment of rent due unless more than five (5) days have elapsed since the rent was due. Any charge or fee, however described, which is charged by the
landlord for the late payment of rent shall not exceed ten percent (10%) of the amount of rent past due. (e) (1) No charge or fee for the late payment of rent due from a tenant in a public housing project shall exceed five dollars ($5.00) per month. No late charge or fee shall be assessed such tenant unless more than fifteen (15) days have elapsed since the rent was due. (2) The provisions of this subsection shall apply only to counties with a population between two hundred fifty thousand (250,000) and three hundred thousand (300,000) according to the 1980 federal census or any subsequent census.
| Posted by Jester_Fermaggio ® , Sep 17,2003,17:26 | MetroBlab |
(NOTE: Since you have been paying rent and have an oral agreement (b) doesn't apply)
Concerning the new "no pets" rule your landlord is enforcing, he or she can probably enforce such a rule, but he or she will have to have proof you own a pet. Usually, apartment complexes get this "proof" during their annual inspections:
66-28-402. Rules and regulations.
(a) A landlord, from time to time, may adopt rules or regulations, however described, concerning the
tenant's use and occupancy of the premises. It is enforceable against the tenant only if:
(1) Its purpose is to promote the convenience, safety, or welfare of the tenants in the premises, preserve
the landlord's property from abusive use, or make a fair distribution of services and facilities held out for
the tenants generally;
(2) It is reasonably related to the purpose for which it is adopted;
(3) It applies to all tenants in the premises;
(4) It is sufficiently explicit in its prohibition, direction, or limitation of the tenant's conduct to fairly
inform the tenant of what the tenant must or must not do to comply;
(5) It is not for the purpose of evading the obligations of the landlord; and
(6) The tenant has notice of it at the time the tenant enters into the rental agreement.
(b) A rule or regulation adopted after the tenant enters into the rental agreement is enforceable against the
tenant if reasonable notice of its adoption is given to the tenant and it does not work a substantial
modification of the rental agreement.
Your landlord's responsibilities:
66-28-304. Maintenance by landlord.
(a) The landlord shall:
(1) Comply with requirements of applicable building and housing codes materially affecting health and
safety;
(2) Make all repairs and do whatever is necessary to put and keep the premises in a fit and habitable
condition;
(3) Keep all common areas of the premises in a clean and safe condition; and
(4) In multi-unit complexes of four (4) or more units, provide and maintain appropriate receptacles and
conveniences for the removal of ashes, garbage, rubbish and other waste from common points of collection
subject to 66-28-401(3).
(b) If the duty imposed by subdivision (a)(1) is greater than any duty imposed by any other paragraph of
this subsection, the landlord's duty shall be determined by reference to subdivision (a)(1).
(c) The landlord and tenant may agree in writing that the tenant perform specified repairs, maintenance
tasks, alterations, and remodeling, but only if the transaction is entered into in good faith and not for the
purpose of evading the obligations of the landlord.
(d) The landlord may not treat performance of the separate agreement described in subsection (c) as a
condition to any obligation or performance of any rental agreement.
Sounds like your landlord is in violation of 2 and 3 above.
Nevertheless, if you want to challenge your landlord, contact an attorney. If you can find a place around the same amount you pay in rent, you should move. You are only obligated to give a 30 day notice. You will NEVER EVER get rid of a roach problem, by the way.
State of Tennessee Landlord Tenant Law
| Posted by fluffy ® , Sep 17,2003,07:39 | MetroBlab |