Can my $@#%^#* landlord do this?

Factual Questions
1

Since the day I moved into this apartment more than six years ago, I’ve had a cockroach problem to one degree or another. Never before then, but always since. Apparently the people who lived here before me were a disaster, letting the place turn into a pigsty and letting the kids run wild; they even ripped phone cabling out of the wall when they moved out.

My landlord, OTOH, is a moron. A well-meaning moron, but a moron nonetheless. He’s tried a few times over the years to spray for roaches, but he does a very half-assed job, squirting a bit around the fridge and the baseboards - get this - in my kitchen only, and no place else in either my apartment or the rest of the building. Once, a year or so ago, I complained to him that the bugs were getting bad in my place, and could he please do something? and his response was “Oh, I wish I’d known, because I just sprayed **every other apartment in the building, but I didn’t know you had a problem, so I didn’t spray yours.” ** (emphasis mine). Apparently he didn’t think that critters which have been around for millions of years would figure out that they could stagger a couple of yards into the hallway and be perfectly safe.

Well, the rent is cheap, and having him spray haphazardly every once in a while was a pain in the butt, since I’m asthmatic and don’t deal well with airborne chemicals, but I dealt with it. I keep all food in sealed containers, and while I may leave a dish in the sink here and there, my place is pretty clean. Over the summer, he tried a little harder, having me clear everything out of the cabinets (which was a royal pain, since I have a lot of kitchen stuff) and bombing the place, then spraying afterward. AFAIK he didn’t do anything in the other apartments, though.

Well, the roaches are returning slowly, and he just came in here and told me that since the problem is apparently mine (not true, BTW; my upstairs neighbor, at least, has also complained), I must make arrangements with an exterminator to fix the problem AND pay for it out of my own pocket. This, in spite of the fact that I was here when the first exterminator evaluated my place and said to him “you know, look around; there is no hygiene problem in this apartment; the problem is deeper than that.”

Well, obviously I’m pissed, but what can I do from a practical standpoint? I don’t think it’s fair to make me pay to fix a roach problem that was here long before I was, and that has only gotten to this point because my landlord is a moron. Ideas, anyone?

2

Spend about three bucks on a box of borax and sprinkle it around the edges of the apartment.

Or get a cat.

3

Master Cecil speaks.

4

Well, I have The Master’s column in book form on my shelf, like any good Doper. I also have a cat, and although he’s huge and fat, it’s not from eating cockroaches. In addition, I worry about what The Master’s method would do to my cat. Is borax toxic to cats?

Also, my question is not so much one of how to get rid of the roaches; that, at least, I have some idea about. It’s more a question of whether my landlord can legally hold me responsible for making and paying for the arrangements needed to resolve a problem which predates my living here, and which is at least partially due to his own lack of brain cells.

5

Call your Board of Health and ask them about it.

6

You shouldn’t call other people names, as that may rebound to you. You said “since the day I moved in”[ but not before.] Well, how do you know what the situation was before you moved in? You also acknowledge that the prior renters were slobs. How did you learn this? Apparently from the condition of the apartment.

The first place to look is your lease. What does it say? The lease will set forth some of the obligations of both the landlord and tenant. The law will set forth further obligations.

7

Look into your province or state housing legal body - the equivalence to what we have here: the Ontario Rental Housing Tribunal.

This is what Ontario has to say regarding your situation:

http://www.orht.gov.on.ca/public/index.html

Bolding mine, of course.

You must have an equlivalent thing where you are - look into it, but from the little I know about landlord/tenant laws elsewhere, it would surprise me very much if this was different elsewhere.

8

If you are in the states you could probably claim a habitability issue and stop paying rent until the problem is solved. You’ll want to research the implied warranty of habitability laws in your jurisdiction, but insect infestation is usually something covered by that.

A quick overview of the idea.

You can also stream Bill Handel’s radio show early Saturday mornings (Handel on the Law out of KFI in Los Angeles – www.kfi640.com) to see some practical applications of this; he seems to handle a half dozen habitability calls every show.

9

Thanks, guys; my lease doesn’t say anything about pest control specifically, so I’ll have to go back to the law library and check out the landlord/tenant ordinance (I’m in Chicago, BTW). I don’t want to antagonize my landlord (he does mean well, but, as I said, he’s a moron),because I basically like the apartment otherwise, the rent is cheap, and moving is a pain in the butt. But I don’t want to be stuck having to deal with chemical fumes and rearranging my kitchen every few months because he’s not as smart as a cockroach, nor do I want to have to pay for a professional to fix something that isn’t my fault.

Oh, and barbitu8, I knew about the condition of the apartment becaause my landlord was still rehabbing when I signed the lease, so I saw for myself. (He’d just bought the building then; the neighborhood has improved a lot since then, partly because some of the loser tenants got kicked out.) When I said I’d never had a problem before I moved in, but always since, I meant that I’d never had a cockroach issue anywhere I’ve lived until I moved in here, so the stupid things didn’t originate with me.

10

Kind of a slight hijack but say you stopped paying rent, and in a month the leasor fixes the problem. Are you then responsible for the rent you didn’t pay?

11

I don’t know for certain, Jdeforrest, but I wouldn’t think you’d ever have to pay for the rent during the period the apartment was “uninhabitable”. You should certainly check with a tenant-rights organization before doing anything, though. Most cities of decent size have them.

Now, that we know the OP is from Chicago, here is the Metropolitcan Tenants Organization.

Here are some relevant portions from the Chicago Residential Landlord Tenant Ordinance, Chapter 5-12.

Section 070
“The landlord shall maintain the premises in compliance with all applicable provisions of the municipal code and shall promptly make any and all repairs necessary to fulfill this obligation.”

Section 110
"In addition to any remedies provided under federal law, a tenant shall have the remedies specified in this section under the circumstances herein set forth. For the purposes of this section, material noncompliance with Section 5-12-070 shall include, but is not limited to, any of the following circumstances:

[snip a lot of things not relevent here]
– failure to exterminate insects, rodents, or pests;"
[snip some more things not relevent here]

Section 110, Subsection D, Failure to Maintain
“Failure to maintain. If there is a material noncompliance by the landlord with the rental agreement or with Section 5-12-070, the tenant may notify the landlord in writing of the tenant’s intention to withhold from the monthly rent an amount which reasonably reflects the reduced value of the premises due to the material non-compliance. If the landlord fails to correct the condition within 14 days after being notified by the tenant in writing, the tenant may, during the time such failure continues, deduct from the rent the stated amount. A tenant shall not withhold rent under this subsection if the condition was caused by the deliberate or negligent act or omission of the tenant, a member of the tenant’s family, or other person on the premises with the tenant’s consent.”

Now, you may not want to get so confrontational with the landlord, but it doesn’t appear to me that you are at all responsible for the insect problem unless it is being caused by your neglicence (which you assure us it is not). It doesn’t matter if it is only in your apartment.

12

I checked the Il Rev Statutes, and this is all I found:

[quote]
Illinois Compiled Statutes
Property
Landlord and Tenant Act
765 ILCS 705/

Sec. 0.01.  Short title.  This Act may be cited as the Landlord  and

Tenant Act.
(Source: P.A. 89-82, eff. 6-30-95.)

(765 ILCS 705/1)
Sec. 1.   Every  covenant,  agreement  or  understanding  in  or  in

connection with or collateral to any lease of real property, exempting
the lessor from liability for damages for injuries to person or property
caused by or resulting from the negligence of the lessor, his or her
agents, servants or employees, in the operation or maintenance of the
demised premises or the real property containing the demised premises
shall be deemed to be void as against public policy and wholly
unenforceable.
(Source: P.A. 84-551.)

(765 ILCS 705/5)
Sec. 5.  Class X felony by lessee or occupant.
(a)  If, after the effective date of this amendatory  Act  of  1995,

any lessee or occupant is charged during his or her lease or contract
term with having committed an offense on the premises constituting a
Class X felony under the laws of this State, upon a judicial finding of
probable cause at a preliminary hearing or indictment by a grand jury,
the lease or contract for letting the premises shall, at the option of
the lessor or the lessor’s assignee, become void, and the owner or the
owner’s assignee may notify the lessee or occupant by posting a written
notice at the premises requiring the lessee or occupant to vacate the
leased premises on or before a date 5 days after the giving of the
notice. The notice shall state the basis for its issuance on forms
provided by the circuit court clerk of the county in which the real
property is located. The owner or owner’s assignee may have the same
remedy to recover possession of the premises as against a tenant holding
over after the expiration of his or her term. The owner or lessor may
bring a forcible entry and detainer action.
(b) A person does not forfeit his or her security deposit or any
part of the security deposit due solely to an eviction under the
provisions of this Section.
© If a lessor or the lessor’s assignee voids a contract under the
provisions of this Section, and a tenant or occupant has not vacated the
premises within 5 days after receipt of a written notice to vacate the
premises, the lessor or the lessor’s assignee may seek relief under
Article IX of the Code of Civil Procedure. Notwithstanding Sections
9-112, 9-113, and 9-114 of the Code of Civil Procedure, judgment for
costs against the plaintiff seeking possession of the premises under
this Section shall not be awarded to the defendant unless the action was
brought by the plaintiff in bad faith. An action to possess premises
under this Section shall not be deemed to be in bad faith if the
plaintiff based his or her cause of action on information provided to
him or her by a law enforcement agency or the State’s Attorney.
(d) The provisions of this Section are enforceable only if the
lessee or occupant and the owner or owner’s assignee have executed a
lease addendum for drug free housing as promulgated by the United States
Department of Housing and Urban Development or a substantially similar
document.
(Source: P.A. 89-82, eff. 6-30-95.)

13

You may want to check the Municipal Code.

14

Yes. IANAL but I used to be a landlord (and a tenant before that). Typically the recommended approach to withholding rent is to deposit it into an escrow account as a show of good faith. Then when problem is resolved you pay up from the escrow account. This is to show that you are not just making up excuses for not paying your rent if you don’t have the money.

15

OK, now I’m really pissed off. Not only is my landlord apparently trying to blame this on me, but he’s escalated!!! Mods, please move this to the Pit if you feel the need, because although I do need some advice, I am so fucking pissed at him right now that I can’t see straight.

Today I received the following letter (not registered, BTW):

From: [lawyer]
Dear Eva Luna:

We represent [your landlord] and the owner of the property at [your address]. The exterminator’s report indicates that there is a bug infestation in your paprtment. Further that the apartment os overcrowded with boxes, paper and the like which contributes to the problem. Please accept this as notice to remove all the unnecessary items from your apartment and obtain the services of an exterminator to remedy the bug problem. Your immediate attention is required as this is considered a nuisance issue which will subject you to eviction if it is not corrected.

Very truly yours,

[sleazeball lawyer]

OK, WTF??? The only time there was an exterminator in my apartment when I was present, there were boxes, because MY LANDLORD HAD TOLD ME TO REMOVE EVERYTHING FRM MY CABINETS AND PUT IT IN BOXES SO THE EXTERMINATOR COULD DO HIS JOB!!! And if he’s entered the apartment without notifying me, then he’s broken the landlord/tenant ordinance himself!

As a practical matter, how serious is this, and what should I do? I really don’t want to spend money on lawyers to fix something that isn’t my fault! Can he really try to evict me if I haven’t done anythng wrong? Again, at this moment, all food is in sealed containers and/or the refrigerator, and there are zero dishes in the sink! Any boxes in my apartment are in normal places, like closets, and the only loose papers are the bills on my kitchen table waiting to be paid! This is so fucking unfair!

16

The entire property needs to be treated. Otherwise the critters just move for a short time. I treated my apartment once a month for about three months. Then I did it less frequently. I used three of the bombs they sell at the hardware store. Put one in every room and leave for about 4 or 5 hours. Then come back and open everything up and turn on the a/c for about half an hour.

I can’t believe that the landlord can make you resonsible for pest control. I have tangled with a landlord or three in my day. It makes sense to be compromising because it seems that they have more aces than the tenant. Keep everything they give you in writing and document all of your conversations.

I had an organization that was like the “governing body” write my landlord once. That got an immediate response. Can’t remember the name… something like Houston Apartment Association. It was something like the Better Business Bureau.

Good luck with this.

17

Eva Luna:

Hate to say this, cause IAAL, but GET yerself a lawyer!! NOW. There are usually good free legal services in cities the size of Chicago. I’ve seen a lot of well-meaning and intelligent folks screw up their legal position by writing nice reasonable letters that say things like “Well, of course I admit I have some books and papers, but I believe the major reason why we have this problem is…” Your LL has already escalated; get yourself your own gladiator.

However, even though I’d be surprised to learn that Chicago and Illinois law can make YOU legally responsible for pest control, you should know–practical advice here–that roaches love to eat paper and cardboard. The little #%@*#s will nest in book backs…the gaps in cardboard…newspapers…a shopping bag collection…so along with keeping food in sealed containers, try promptly throwing out old newspapers/magazines/junk mail.

If you are like me and need to have a lot of paperbacks around at all times to feel secure, you can de-roach your books by packing them into cardboard cartons, carefully sealing up the cracks and corners with tape, and leaving them for about five weeks: roaches can’t live that long without water. When you unpack those books, shake well; vacuum up dead roach bodies and any egg cases. Dispose of the vacuum cleaner bag inside of several plastic bags; outside the building. And get rid of the boxes you used to do this.

18

Since your landlord has decided to escalate this, thought it might bear keeping in mind that landlords in Chicago are required by law to provide their tenants with a copy of the Chicago Residential Landlord Tenant Ordinance. From what you’d said about having to look it up, it didn’t sound like he’d done that. So you have some ammo should this get nasty.

Contact the Metro Tenants Organization. Ask them specifically if they know of free/cheap legal services you can utilize. Unfortunately, when I spoke to them a couple years ago about some issues I was having, the woman I got was less than helpful, so asking specific questions on “what do I do now” may or may not get you anywhere. She had a HUGE chip on her shoulder, and prefered to stand on her soapbox about how Aldermen are paid with taxpayer money to screw tenants over (yes, she actually said this) than to answer my questions. Hopefully she’ll have left and you’ll get someone a little more sane. :stuck_out_tongue:

Most lawyers will offer a free initial consultation (at least over the phone), so you can at least get an idea of what you have to do. Hell, if it comes to it, I’m part-timing for a lawyer who does a lot of landlord/tenant issues. If you want his phone number let me know.

19

Hah!

Just spoke to half the other tenants (so far), and they ALL say they have severe roach problems, even the upstairs neighbors who never leave a single dish in the sink and take out the garbage every might before going to sleep. (I bet my landlord thinks I can’t talk to them, because they don’t speak English very well!)

Time to become a tenant organizer! All the other neighbors so far are pissed off that we’ve apparently been scammed; I’m the only one to get a threatening letter from an attorney so far, but they all say they have complained multiple times abut the roaches, and have without exception been told they were the only ones with a problem! Isn’t communication a beautiful thing? Glad I majored in Spanish!

I can’t wait to talk to the Illinois Tenats Union next week…my dufus-head landlord doesn’t know who he’s messing with!

20

#1 Get a lawyer

#2 Bake alot of cookies

#3 invite your neighbors over for tea, coffee, cookies, and to meet your lawyer.

#4 discuss the joys of class action lawsuits.

#5 Feed landlord to lawyer