Am I asking for trouble?

May 24, 2006 1:38 PM

What are the possible repercussions (legal or otherwise) of subletting my bedroom which has, in the past three months, been treated for a mild bedbug infestation? We discovered bedbugs in our apartment earlier this year. We treated the apt ourselves (very thoroughly, though) and I purchased a new bed. I have gotten a few bites over the past few weeks but am planning to have a professional extermination of my room before I leave. I have not said anything to the subletter. I am wondering what the subletter could do if, god forbid, he/she is bitten over the course of the summer. I feel I have dealt with this problem responsibly and thoroughly but I know there is no guarantee that he/she will be bite-free during his/her stay. Could I be sued? More generally, is it totally unethical of me to sublet given the situation - especially given the fact that I have not mentioned any of this to the subletter?
posted by anonymous to law & government (22 comments total)

So you have bed bugs and you don't want to tell someone that it IS going to effect.

Is it unethical?

Not if you're a fucker, fucker.
posted by 517 at 1:46 PM on May 24, 2006 [1 favorite]

Sounds like fraudulent concealment to me, but it probably depends on state/local laws, etc.

To clarify: you want to conceal the fact that a situation very likely may be present that will damage your tenant's goods and psychological well-being? A situation that very likely will have a significant financial impact on said tenant?
posted by ducksauce at 1:50 PM on May 24, 2006

Well, it is unethical, considering that bedbugs are resistant to treatment and can survive up to a year, thus you're using the renter (and possibly their children) as guinea pigs. Legally speaking, what state or country are you in? In the U.S. this really varies depending on state and local laws. For example Texas code requires property owners to disclose known facts about the property that may influence a prospective tenant's decision to rent or not.
posted by rolypolyman at 1:52 PM on May 24, 2006

My very first roommate I lived with failed to mention that her and her kids were recovering from a lice infestation.

So guess who - after 18 years of being lice-free - got it? Yeah. And it sucked hard. Had I been smarter, I would have sued because the only way I could get rid of them was to chop off my hair, from midback to chinlength, then use 2 boxes of RID. I had to throw out all of my bedding and most of my clothing. After I finally got rid of them and my scalp healed from all the scratching, I got them AGAIN.

At that point, I sucked it up and moved back in with mom... but not before I was deloused thoroughly.

Not my best moment.

(now, even thinking about it, my scalp is itching and my skin is crawling... blech)

So I concur with 517. I hope someone pees in your frosted flakes.
posted by damnjezebel at 1:52 PM on May 24, 2006

517 writes "Is it unethical?

"Not if you're a fucker, fucker."

Seconded.
posted by chiababe at 1:52 PM on May 24, 2006

Yes, it is totally unethical of you not to mention this to potential subletters. And while I don't know if it's illegal, someone might try to sue you, yeah. From what I understand (and based on your description of the situation), it is extremely difficult to get rid of bedbugs, even after professional extermination.

Also, wash all of your clothes in hot water and spray down all boxes, furniture, and luggage with disinfectant before you move, or you're likely to take the bugs to your next apartment.
posted by lunalaguna at 1:53 PM on May 24, 2006

You know the place is infested with bedbugs and you're bailing out, subletting without telling the victim?

It's not just lawsuits you have to worry about, it's baseball bats.
posted by jellicle at 1:58 PM on May 24, 2006

It is certainly unethical, especially when you consider that bedbug infestations can be transported from place to place. Once your subletter leaves, there's some significant chance that s/he will take the bugs along, and then you'll be responsible for further infestations.

You can avoid this problem by letting the person know about the prior problems and letting them make an informed decision.
posted by yellowcandy at 2:09 PM on May 24, 2006

Well, we've pretty well established that this is unethical and probably illegal. Regarding whether you can be sued is the question. A lot of leases here in Texas have arbitration clauses... in which case being forced into arbitration could be considerably more expensive for the tenant. Thus the tenant may be pretty much shafted.
posted by rolypolyman at 2:10 PM on May 24, 2006

Yes it is unethical, and you should be thinking beyond the threat of a lawsuit. The possibility of getting sued should not be your moral compass.

Anyway, isn't this also something that your landlord should be partially responsible for? It's not his responsibility to disclose if you are subletting, since I'm assuming you're arranging the transaction, but shouldn't he have been involved so that the professional extermination happened before now?

Seriously, the fact that you even asked this question is kind of sad. Not telling is so beyond wrong.

Not telling will also probably make whatever written or oral contact between you and the subletter null and void, so if he finds out and moves out you could still be responsible for the rent as the subletting "contract" has no value.
posted by ml98tu at 2:10 PM on May 24, 2006

"I have an extremely embarassing and highly contagious STD, should I tell someone before I enter a committed relationship with them?"

Naaaaaaahhhhhh.

Right, anonymous?

Seriously, having lived in NYC and suffered through pest infestations because of others' negligence, all I can say is that I am so grateful that you posted this-- so that everyone's collected indignation might possibly save who-knows-how-many people from contracting an expensive, traumatizing, painful problem.
posted by hermitosis at 2:11 PM on May 24, 2006

Wow. You just got whapped heavily alongside the head with a baseball bat by all these individuals here, didn't you?

I'm about to go off on a sympathetic riff, so keep reading.

But before I do, I'll also somewhat MeTa-ingly note that if we abided by all those who advocate the "just answer the question asked and don't look at the circumstances behind it" method, this person's problem wouldn't be solved.

As someone who dealt with a bedbug infestation, I think I understand what happened ... the part of the story you didn't fill us in on.

You want to get out of there. Now. Immediately. The whole bedbug thing has freaked you the fuck out and you just want to flee, flee, flee ...

But your landlord is being an ass, and says he won't let you out of the lease unless you bring someone in. And so you're wondering what the legal and ethical implications of a sublet would be, given these circumstances.

My answer to you is this: I think you need to do what you can to break your lease in a legal fashion and put the burden on the landlord to handle this matter. Unfortunately, more detailed advice can't be provided you unless we know what location you're in. Send an e-mail to Jessamyn, one of the admins on this site, telling us where you live -- city/state-wise. People can give you more constructive advice from there.

Yes, get everything exterminated before you leave -- and then try to move out during a period of time when the poisons are still active (usually 4-6 weeks following the treatment). The section of the Wikipedia article on bedbugs that deals with treatment should be looked at quite thoroughly and followed, and get someone solidly reputable who knows how to handle bedbugs — not all exterminators do, trust me. And after you've gotten your stuff treated, try to be prepared to move.

How, if your landlord won't let you out? Well, many big cities have tenants' rights organizations -- if you live in one, look for one. If you don't, see if the nearest big city can offer you advice.

Look at the local legislation that covers your lease. Is there a tenant-landlord ordinance for your city? If so, it may supercede the terms of your lease. Your landlord has a duty to provide you with an infestation-free apartment. If they can't provide that, they're not holding up their end of the bargain.

It may be worth a few hundred to you to get a lawyer on your side. Law firm stationary can be eerily effective in convincing landlords that the whole magillah is not worth it.

Try to be as thorough as you possibly can. Throw away those things you can't adequately launder. Don't drag things you're tossing out through common areas without bagging them up; if they're too big to bag, get appropriate material to seal them up. Treat this like a biohazard situation.

And realize that although this is stressful as living hell for you, there is an end, and the vast majority of bedbug sufferers do reach the end and manage to arrive at a point where their infestation is done and in the past. But also realize that it's okay if they give you the heebie-jeebies for a few years. I just got over my infestation last summer -- last September, to be precise -- and I'm still freaked the f—k out over it.

Good luck!
posted by WCityMike at 2:32 PM on May 24, 2006

Depose of everything that is infested and get out.

WHY ARE YOU WORRYING about CONTINUING TO PAY for an apartment that is literally infested? I wouldnt worry about subletting. Move on, tell the landlord the place is a snakepit, and disgusting and no one in their right mind would live there.

You could seriously THREATEN someones health. Especially if you rent to someone you dont know has a chronic disease or other problem like fighting cancer or asthma.

I had to live in an infested big city apartment, one was literally infested with mice, the landlord DID NOTHING but put out the occasional trap and told me I was "overreacting" to the mice. I would see 6-7 mice a day run across the floor and their poop got on everything in closets. I know bedbugs would be even worse. I know the effect on my health and well-being [I got out] during the time I was there was VERY NEGATIVE.

Dont rent this snakepit to anyone!
posted by Budge at 2:36 PM on May 24, 2006

Well, not going to get into a fight, Budge, but probably the reason why they're worried is that f you walk out on a lease and the courts don't feel there's adequate enough reason, you can be liable for the missed rent, all at once. That's good enough reason for most people to want to go about it in the legal fashion.
posted by WCityMike at 2:50 PM on May 24, 2006

If a place is unliveable under most jurisdictions, doesnt the lease become null and void? Reading it Im wondering why the guy who is renting is having to deal with the exterminators instead of the landlord? I dont think someone would be held liable for rent for a place that is unrentable to someone else! I dont mind you bringing this up just wanted to make that point.
posted by Budge at 2:55 PM on May 24, 2006

More generally, is it totally unethical of me to sublet given the situation - especially given the fact that I have not mentioned any of this to the subletter?

Yes. Totally unethical. WCityMike, please note this portion of the question, which is what most people addressed.

I don't quite get the living situation, anonymous. You talk of subletting your room, not the apartment. But you mention that you treated the apartment. Do you own this apartment, making you the "landlord" over the person subletting your bedroom?
posted by desuetude at 3:08 PM on May 24, 2006

You might end up subletting to someone who appears to be fully-functioning but otherwise suffers from anxiety or panic attacks - which BTW, they are not required to disclose to you, since such information can be considered confidential.

Imagine what will happen when they find out there are bedbugs - they freak out, have a panic attack and literally go crazy. As a result, they're forced to cut back on work time or school, and have to see their psychiatrist more frequently.

If you fail to disclose, your next AskMe will probably be "Where can I find a good attorney in ________?"

Yes, it is totally unethical.
posted by invisible ink at 3:16 PM on May 24, 2006

General response to above: there's no judge, anywhere in the country, who would enforce a lease for an apartment full of bedbugs. Landlord has an affirmative duty to provide a habitable apartment; that includes heat, hot water, electricity, four walls, a roof, and no significant pest problems, at a minimum.

So if submitter is honestly afeared of breaking his lease, he need not be.

However, my reading of the question is that he's a student, subletting over the summer only, and plans to return in the fall to the apartment.
posted by jellicle at 3:24 PM on May 24, 2006

I think the Wiki's closing statement should be reason enough to keep this nightmare away from anyone else:

Anecdotal evidence within the blogging community seems to suggest that many, and perhaps most, people who successfully deal with bedbug infestations find themselves overly paranoid about the possibility of reinfestation for varying lengths of time. These feelings of anxiety may have some relation to delusional parasitosis: "Sometimes an initial and real insect infestation precedes and triggers the delusion [...] Out of desperation the victims may move out of their home, only to report later that the ‘bugs’ have followed them there too." (The Physician’s Guide to Arthropods of Medical Importance, J.A. Goddard, CRC Press, 1993.)

Consider full disclosure. "Just so you know, we had a bedbug problem here, though we believe it's been fully taken care of."

And don't be surprised when they bail as soon as they hear that.
posted by disillusioned at 4:15 PM on May 24, 2006

WCityMike, please note this portion of the question, which is what most people addressed.

Right. And the point was, everyone coming down with their respective Wrath of Righteousness upon this poor bedbug-infested soul wasn't going to do them much good. Plus, by the time I responded, it was pretty obvious that the "unethical" message had been pounded home over, over, and over again.

If you'd like to disagree more, please MeTa it ... although certainly the subject's been stomped to death a few million times already there.
posted by WCityMike at 4:54 PM on May 24, 2006

If one is still liable for rent, what about having the place exterminated and deducting the cost from the rent? Keeping records and receipts, etc. How many landlords would try to fight this in court?

There's also starting out in rent court: in one place in Baltimore the landlord spent several months refusing to fix a very leaky skylight in the middle of my middle room, so I took photos, called the housing inspectors to come look, and filed a suit. The rent went into escrow until the judge found in my favor and ordered the fucker to fix it, and I got most of the escrowed rent back too.

(Don't we have a long-term Mefite who's a property manager who could weigh in here?)
posted by davy at 7:53 PM on May 24, 2006

You maybe going through this hell right now; regardless, do you really want to inflict that on someone else? Yeesh.
posted by mimi at 6:58 AM on May 25, 2006