Landlords Cannot Track Who Owes for Appliance and Leak Repairs
Landlords face persistent challenges with property maintenance, ranging from appliance failures and plumbing issues to unexpected repairs and tenant neglect. These issues often involve delayed responses, costly repairs, and disputes over responsibility, creating stress and financial burdens for landlords. The complaints highlight a lack of preventative maintenance and a reactive approach to property upkeep.
SOURCES (60)
“I am 18F living with my boyfriend 20M. Just got a new landlord who’s in his mid 20s about 2 weeks ago. Past landlord said the fridge was unrepairable. Fridge is leaking water everywhere—inside and outside of the fridge. Old landlord tried to fix it…”
It's caused by delamination of the sink due to age. I've seen it before.
“Honestly not too sure, I have the same thing in my sink but don't know how it comes to be.”
“I live in a very old building, renting. My A/C pipe has been on and off leaking since June. Maintenance respectfully has no idea what they are doing and it feels like they keep doing bandaid jobs. They never seem to be able to identify the issue and resolve it and it's more of a guessing game. They have come to my unit 5 times now and I need help identifying what I need to ask from management at this point. Things they have already done: drain line clearing with CO2 like 3 times, changing my”
Did mention it. Apparently it was used as a drain and it isn’t anymore
“I purchased a house last year. Condenser and a coil was just a few years old. But it was burned up. Compressor had failed. Contractor came and looked at it and recommended a new system. I told him the condenser should still be under warranty so I’d like to pursue that. Should’ve been a clue not to use them because he kept telling me there was no warranty since the unit wasn’t registered. But I spoke to his supplier and that was in accurate. Long story short, I had a new furnace, new coil, and ne”
“I live in a building built in the 70s so I'm not sure if this is normal wear and tear or if something happened. The ceilings are concrete, so I'm wondering if this is just the age of the building?? I live in a condo and there is a unit above me. Electrical and hvac run through a drop ceiling or bulkhead (not sure what it's called) in the hallway, but everything else has this concrete ceiling. All the bathrooms, washer/dryer, and kitchens are stacked. The pipes run through the center”
“This is so far the only logical and professional response I’ve seen in this thread. Somebody that actually tried to work out a resolution such as providing money for laundromat service. At my place the landlord charges everybody $50 for providing washer and dryer, so if mine is taking forever to be fixed then yes I absolutely need to be compensated if I’m going to the laundromat.”
“This would be considered excessive use of resources or could indicate a massive leak. This would fall under an emergency situation and therefore you have the right to shut the water off at the meter until an investigation is done. If they live in a single family home, they should be paying their own water bill. If in a multi family home, they would be liable for excessive use if it is deemed that they were doing this intentionally or never notified the landlord of a leak. Not to mention a multi”
“I live in a high rise condo building on the 6th floor. There's a commercial unit below me on the 5th floor (one of a few in a mostly residential building) that's experiencing water leaking thru their concrete ceiling. We think it's coming from our shower drain based on the location of the ceiling leak. Also, we ran the water in the shower while bldg maintenance watched on the 5th fl, and he saw water coming thru the ceiling. We had a plumber come out to make sure that's where the”
“Conversely, I’m a tenant and I have a water leak, and my landlord isn’t doing a shittin thing about it. The water bill is in my name, tho, so he doesn’t care.”
“In the middle of the fourth major water leak in the unit I’ve been renting for a year. Got into it with property management today because trying to get any kind of communication or coordination with their maintenance staff has been like pulling teeth. The issue is that I have pets I am aggressively neurotic about ensuring the safety of, so I keep requesting 24 hours notice of entry that they somehow have a hard time of coordinating around. But the straw today, on top of the large hole I’ve had i”
“Gm. I am in a second floor condo, 10 unit building, NJ, 40 years old. In unit heat and hot water (gas), has worked fine with maintenance repairs. Up until yesterday, hot water faucet in all thee sinks needed to run for a bit for water to turn hot. Suddenly, one hot water faucet runs hot right away. Note: another unit just changed their bathroom sink. Q#1 - Could this be from neighbor's change? Q#2 - Any danger? submitted by /u/shmoti3_5 [link] [comments]”
“I lived in this property Calle Sangonera 8 Villaviciosa de Odon for almost a year and experienced many problems. The landlord controlled when I could use the washing machine and sometimes came and switched it off. He restricted the use of lights, and during colder periods the heating was only available for a few hours a day. Basic items such as a pillow, hair dryer and other necessities were not provided, so I had to buy what I needed myself. Most seriously, the landlord kept a spare key to my r”
“Is that a drain going into the wall? That wall needs to be opened and a proper connection made or you could be fucked if that causes damage to the building or other units if you're an owner.”
“Verify with your state statutes, but in my state, you have legal right to enter your property under pretence of plumbing related emergency. You have the right to protect the physical habitability of your property due to intentional or non-intentional neglect, which water running for hours on end would constitute. Turn off your main water supply and issue an immediate notice to correct or vacate to the tenant and the housing voucher provider immediately. Inform housing program of tenant's beh”
“Hello! I am a single female living in my apartment. As you can see in the video (bonus! Brown water coming up at the very end) water is coming up from my floorboards in my bathroom. I have submitted a maintenance request, but I want to prepare for interacting with my landlord. I am worried of being taken advantage of! I am assuming I need to advocate for - removal of basically all of the floorboards in my bathroom - mold inspection and possibly treatment Anything else?? submitted by”
“Is it common for landlords to help maintain and pay for plumber or repair work in rented apartments? I unfortunately rent from family... But we literally have not been able to use the second toilet or bath as the tap for the bath is old and water comes out the hose and the tap at the same time when turned on and sprays everywhere and the toilet is completely unusable doesn't flush at all and the toilet seat is sticky for some reason and I can't even open it. And the shower seal is coming”
“I’m a landlord myself, and recently one of my apartments was left in pretty rough shape after a tenant moved out. Walls needed repainting, deep cleaning, there was damage around the unit, and overall it was way worse than I expected. What frustrated me most was realizing that a lot of it probably could have been caught much earlier if I had a better way to document and monitor the condition of the property during the lease. I’ve been working in tech for 10+ years. I work remotely full-time for a”
“I’ve been having ongoing maintenance issues at my apartment since I moved in last year in November. There’s been this awful sewage smell that occurs when using the shower or dishwasher. The smell comes from the dishwasher and sink. Repairs were only done recently, which involved changing the piping for the kitchen sink. The landlord had her husband do it. It didn’t solve the problem. I sent a text saying the problem keeps occuring, that’s it’s probably a venting problem, and to please have a plu”
“The water is completely off for days? I think welfare check is needed. He absolutely could be dead inside. Thanks for updating. Hope you get good news.”
“context: im in austin, tx and the heat has consistently been in the high 90's to low 100's. so my entire AC system just got fixed/replaced (i dont really know) by my apartment's maintenance crew due to an issue with the cooling. now, my roommates and i are having a disagreement about where to keep the thermostat set. my roommate wants it set to 65-67, i think keeping it at 70-72 would be more cost efficient and put less strain on the new system. well today, she set it 67 because she”
“My washing machine has been out of order for a couple weeks now. When I hadn’t heard anything back after almost ten days regarding my maintenance request, I reached back out to my landlord. I was told they had submitted a work request and I just was waiting to hear from the repairman. He called me that same day and seemed irritated. He asked for my availability which did not seem to align with his availability. He asked if I was available Friday, and I told him I was but not after a certain hour”
“I’m constantly amazed when landlords cover utility costs. It leaves the door WIDE open for stuff like this to happen. You use it, you pay it, is the only system that works. When the city comes to shut it off due to none payment, you’re not involved.”
“I live in Utah, I rent an apartment in a four-plex. The apartments are a bit older with water damage on the floorboards and a water drainage hole right outside my back door. I live in the bottom apartment so you have to go downstairs to get to it. I put that in here to let you guys know there's dark, moist areas that German roaches love. Well exactly three weeks after moving in I am in an absolute panic, I have never seen a roach in any of my apartments or houses before (something I am very”
“That’s just bookkeeping. There isn’t a sewer meter. Plumbing doesn’t work that way”
“This became a soil integrity emergency at 5000 gallons a day. The kind of emergency that can result in felony charges, gets the fire department out, and may take years to fix. You wouldn't be criminally liable, but you can be on the hook for repairing other's homes.”
“They exist but aren’t common any where I’ve lived in the US. The assumption is what comes out must go down and for the most part that’s accurate enough. You can get credited if you can prove it didn’t (e.g. filling a swimming pool, cooling towers on commercial buildings, etc.).”
“To address all relevant information: I lived in this apartment for about 5 years total. When moving in, I purchased an older washer and dryer from the landlord for $500. Neither units ever had any issues and operated without problems. When planning the move, I came to an agreement with the landlord where he agreed to purchase them back for $350. The shower had an issue with leaking for multiple years. I requested to have it fixed multiple times to which I was told that it was unable to be fixed,”
“Been trying to get maintenance out here for months, am I overreacting? submitted by /u/Ok-Custard-1545 [link] [comments]”
“I live in an apartment and this started to leak. I told my landlord and I'm waiting for his reply. Can i do a quick fix with Flex Tape or something similar? At least until i hear from my landlord? I really don't want to go through the aggravation of replacing myself or hiring someone. submitted by /u/Accomplished_Dog5373 [link] [comments]”
“Perhaps he’s delinquent with utilities from doing this before and not being able to pay”
“Given the water usage, I'd consider this an emergency and have a locksmith open the door so a plumber can inspect.”
“State this, and your comment below about heating mouse droppings being a significant health hazard, in both an email and a certified letter. Let them know that replacing the stove is required to eliminate the hazard and that this is the landlord’s responsibility. Tell him that you are not responsible for any cost, including the service fee. Also contact your local health department.”
“If so, how would I go about that? Just moved into my own appartment for the first time and landlord is no help. (Germany) submitted by /u/humblebee1234 [link] [comments]”
“My house's street water shutoff system is easier to use then my house's main cutoff. That's in CA with a almost 40 yr old house.”
“Could also be a leak, I've gotten bills like that before and it turned out it was a leak near my driveway. City fixed the leak once, it happened again and then they sent a crew out and rebuilt it. Guy told me the whole thing had been put in wrong when it was initially done.”
“Unit in strip mall, water has been off for 9 months. Other units in same strip have all been turned on the entire time, including neighbors.! Should I be concerned about turning it back on? We live in mostly warm weather state so not overly concerned it froze or anything. Only thing connected is a toilet + bathroom sink (tankless heater). No showers, tubs, etc. submitted by /u/ObjectiveProfessor41 [link] [comments]”
“In plenty of places a homeowner can turn the water off outside too, just depends on how it's set up. It's not that black and white either. It's not legal to shut water off to force a tenant out but that's not what is happening here. For all OP knows there could be a massive leak. The tenant has locked him out of his own property so he is unable to check for leaks so the only real option to protect his property is to shut the water off. No judge anywhere would consider this a cons”
“Ask the landlord for another plumber who has proof they are licensed. That way you'll know they are a real plumber. Otherwise, tell the city about the plumbing issue and about the landlord possibly bringing someone to your home impersonating a plumber and stick to the issue, not rant about the possibly fake plumber.”
“Only the water company can do that. Most places it’s illegal for a landlord to turn off utilities anyway.”
“Big question here… does your city charge for sewer too? I lived in a Md town that was 1:1”
The water is likely flooding inside the house, and you will have mold.
“Call the utility company and report that THEY told you that the water has been running for 24/7. Tell THEM that there is a leak because the tenant is not there. Have THEM shut service. Contact tenant/landlord lawyer.”