I've got eleven months to go on a lease, and a whole slew of problems with a new (to me) apartment, and a cheap, possibly negligent landlord. How do I remedy them? LOTS of details inside. But if you don't want to read the whole kit-and-caboodle inside here are the Cliff notes: (a) Landlord took more than weeks to fix the unusable bathroom sink; blamed the repairman. (b) Landlord expects me to find/select/transport the washer/dryer he’s obligated by lease to provide, and was missing on our move-in, and for less than $200. (c) Landlord flat-out refused to clean disgustingly smelly carpets we encountered on moving day (d) Landlord reneged on verbal agreement to replace crappy kitchen linoleum (e) Landlord made repeated, guilt-trippy and borderline abusive calls about first month's rent, and (bonus) (f) makes (super odd) references to lesbians. [Way too many details inside; you probably don't need to bother reading unless you want specific specifics] [more inside]
posted by mr. remy on Sep 30, 2009 - 21 answers

After signing the lease and paying the deposit, the owner is asking me to sign a release saying that I know that the door buzzer system does not work and will not be fixed. Is a buzzer something that I'll wish that I had, or will I be fine just having people call when they need to be let in? The buzzer wasn't mentioned either way before I signed the lease (but I saw that the building had a buzzer system without thinking to check it). I wouldn't want to try to get out of the lease and have to redo my apartment search, but it does seem a bit weird not being warned about this in advance. Do I have any recourse? Can I force them to fix it or to give me some sort of discount on my rent, or should I just let it slide? [more inside]
posted by vegetableagony on Aug 19, 2009 - 30 answers

My landlords want to kick me out and move into my apartment. They gave me the 60 days notice, but I have some questions about the validity of their notice. [more inside]
posted by krunk on Jun 16, 2009 - 17 answers

Here's my situation: I live in Washington, DC. I notified my landlord about a month ago that I was offered a job in another city, and would want to either assign my lease to someone new, or sublet. This is allowed with his consent. I have one roommate who wants to stay in the 2 bedroom condo we live in. We presented a prospective tenant to the landlord with a rental application, and now the landlord is accusing us of all sorts of things... [more inside]
posted by BobbyVan on Aug 2, 2008 - 10 answers

I'm about to sign a lease with a peculiar clause about carpet cleaning. I have had a lot of leases before and I don't recall ever seeing anything quite like this. I'm wondering if it's just a standard thing I haven't seen before, or if it's unusual or even unlawful. [more inside]
posted by Cogito on Jul 23, 2008 - 24 answers

MA filter: Must I have fuse box access if I rent an apartment? [more inside]
posted by pikaboy202 on Feb 17, 2008 - 7 answers

Apartment life. The smoker downstairs is making it very difficult for me to breathe! [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Jan 13, 2008 - 17 answers

What do I do if my landlord claims I've breached a rental agreement by smoking marijuana in the apartment, when I haven't actually done so? [more inside]
posted by Hypocrite_Lecteur on Dec 1, 2007 - 27 answers

My fiance got mugged two nights ago in Chicago. Now what? [more inside]
posted by santojulieta on Nov 21, 2007 - 34 answers

My landlord in NY claims that our heater must turn on when the temperature drops. If we wanted to prevent this, a technician would have to "turn the valves off" -- a cumbersome process that risks the valves later freezing and "popping" and steam destroying our apartment. True? Is this common? And if so, how can we deal with a too-hot room, other than by opening the window?
posted by shivohum on Oct 26, 2007 - 30 answers

My landlord won't give me my deposit back. Is there anything I can do? [more inside]
posted by dead_ on Sep 12, 2007 - 20 answers

Does my friend have any recourse in a situation where he was told he could rent a place, attempted to discuss the rental with the landlord over a period of two weeks to no avail, and then was told the place was rented to someone else? [more inside]
posted by Hat Maui on Jul 29, 2007 - 16 answers

I"ve been using the basement under my apartment as shared storage space with other tenants since I moved in over 3 years ago. The property management now wants to charge me for this. Should I fight this or just start paying? [more inside]
posted by de void on Jul 2, 2007 - 6 answers

Can my new landlord leave me off the lease? [more inside]
posted by purplefiber on Jun 11, 2007 - 7 answers

My apartment was entered without the knowledge or consent of me, or my landlord. Is this trespassing? [more inside]
posted by othersomethings on Jun 8, 2007 - 21 answers

The three bedroom apartment I just leased is supposed to be "fully furnished," but I've just discovered that one of the bedrooms is empty. Is my landlord in the wrong? What do I do now? [more inside]
posted by holympus on Jun 2, 2007 - 22 answers

I'm moving out of my San Francisco apartment, after renting it for almost 4 years. My wood floors have taken a beating. Any ideas what I can do to make them look their very best for my final inspection? Is there a definition of normal wear and tear? [more inside]
posted by juliplease on Mar 8, 2007 - 15 answers

NoWaterFilter: My landlord had to shut down the water on Saturday and only gave me a couple of hours warning. It's Monday and it's still not on. I'm in Ontario and I'm wondering what my rights are in this situation. [more inside]
posted by dripdripdrop on Oct 2, 2006 - 20 answers

Anyone have experience with legalizing an apartment in NYC? I inherited a basement apartment with my single-family Queens house. Have a great relationship with my tenant and do not want to evict. Recently, though, I've received notices from the city to discontinue "illegal use of space for living." In addition to evicting that would involve tearing out the tub, a wall, and other stuff. [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Sep 6, 2006 - 12 answers

Who's responsible for a termite infestation? Tenant or landlord? [more inside]
posted by dentata on Sep 3, 2006 - 2 answers

Oregon Landlord/Tenant LawFilter Help: I moved out of an apartment three months ago. I received a collection notice a few weeks ago, billing for replacement carpet. Help! [more inside]
posted by SpecialK on Jun 8, 2006 - 11 answers

I believe that another tenant has place an air "freshener" in the hallway out side of our apartments in violation of their lease. I want it removed. What should I do? [more inside]
posted by Fat Guy on May 21, 2006 - 44 answers

I moved out of an apartment abruptly in January due to extenuating circumstances (a murder in the building), now I have a bill for $5000. Lots more inside. [more inside]
posted by TurkishGolds on Oct 3, 2005 - 17 answers

I don't understand leasing and renting in Toronto [great deals and spectacular lake-front views inside]. [more inside]
posted by Capn on Feb 7, 2005 - 5 answers

TenantFilter: So I gave permission for the building manager to let a contractor into my apartment to do some fix up work. Not only does she not let him in personally, which is what I thought I okayed, but she leaves the key to another tenant to pass on to the contractor when he shows up. Am I overreacting in thinking that was way out of line? How do I go about responding to something like this? [more inside]
posted by ODiV on Jul 18, 2004 - 10 answers