P
pmmora
Guest
I am renting a townhouse in which the roof began leaking on October 30th. This is not the first time it has leaked, but the leaks from last year's rainy season have been repaired. The leaks this time occurred in my bedroom and the room is uninhabitable. The water leaked all across the ceiling, down through the wall (with a huge wet spot around an electrical outlet), and seeped into the carpet from the floor. The water also leaked down into the kitchen (which is under the bedroom) and ran all across the kitchen ceiling and began dripping out of the light fixtures in the kitchen. The bedroom now smells like a swamp from the rotten, damp ceiling and floor and has been that way for 3 weeks now. The landlady will not do any internal repairs until the entire roof of the building has been replaced (scheduled for the week of Nov. 26th). That means the internal repairs will begin the first week of December. By that time I will not have been able to live in the room for a month and one day. What are my rights??? Can I refuse to pay rent? I was told that I can only withhold a third of the rent because it is only one bedroom that is damaged. Also, what about the damage to the kitchen? Who can I contact about possible health code violations?
-Patti in Southern California
-Patti in Southern California