Landlords and Repair Responsibilites

Student renters often feel stuck with less-than-ideal living conditions. Maybe the drip, drip, drip of your leaking bathroom faucet is driving you insane or the paint is falling off the walls.   As college students, often times we expect to live in below average rental units.  But remember that there is a difference between living the college lifestyle and being taken advantage of by your landlord. 

Landlords Must Fix Major Problems

Your landlord is responsible for keeping your unit in a habitable, or livable, condition. The landlord must keep the structure of the building sound, including stairways, floors, and roofs; keep electrical, heating, and plumbing systems operating safely; supply hot and cold water in reasonable amounts; and exterminate infestations of pests such as cockroaches.
Keep in mind, however, that if a problem is the result of your own carelessness -- such as a mouse infestation caused by your poor housekeeping (month old pizza boxes tucked under the sofa) -- the repair bill will properly be forwarded to you. If you don't pay it, the amount may be taken out of your security deposit.

Landlords May Have to Make Minor Repairs

What about the annoying problems most tenants face, like leaky faucets, old paint, torn screens, or worn flooring? While these types of problems can be unpleasant or inconvenient, they don't make the unit uninhabitable. Does the landlord have to repair them?
Whether your landlord must take care of a minor repair depends upon a number of factors, beginning with the nature of the problem. Purely cosmetic repairs are not legally required. Mildewed grout or worn carpet, for example, are less likely to require a landlord's attention than are loose tiles that make the shower unusable or holes in carpeting that could trip someone.
If you're not sure whether your landlord is legally required to make a repair, check to see if your specific complaint is addressed by:

• the terms of your lease
• any oral or written promises your landlord has made
• state and local building codes, or
• state landlord-tenant laws.

How to Get Your Landlord to Make Minor Repairs

It's often harder to enforce your rights to minor repairs than major ones, especially as a student renter.  Tenants in an uninhabitable dwelling are often allowed by law to withhold rent or use "repair and deduct" procedures, but taking those actions for merely minor problems could get you evicted. There are, however, a number of proven strategies for getting landlords to take care of minor problems.

Write a repair request

Even if you've already asked your landlord to take care of a problem, a written request is almost always helpful. It gives you a chance to articulate the problem clearly and point out why it's in the landlord's best interest to have it fixed. A letter also allows a reluctant landlord to think it over without having to give you an immediate answer (which often results in a knee-jerk "no").
Try to develop a number of themes in your letter. One effective tactic is to explain that the problem might become worse -- and more costly to the landlord -- if it's not taken care of right away. A landlord might find it easy to ignore your drippy faucet until you point out the possibility of an overflowing sink and water damage to the floors.
Another theme that will grab your landlord's attention is the potential for injury. A hole in the stairway carpeting could cause someone to trip and fall, making the landlord liable for the injury. Landlords are also sensitive to security issues, so be sure to point out any security risks created by your problem, such as a broken lock or faulty hallway light. Finally, if the problem affects other tenants, be sure to emphasize that.