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are landlords responsible for personal property?

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nycxxsuga

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? New York

In my situation, there was a water leak that flooded the apartment and damaged the tenant's personal property. Since then the tenant has withheld payment for March and has claimed it was withheld for reimbursement of damage to their personal items. They included an itemized list for things such as dress shirts, boots, and laundry/dry-cleaning which total to approximately the same amount as the rent. I'd like to know if the landlord is responsible for damage to their personal property and whether the tenant can withhold the rent payment because of that. Any help is greatly appreciated! Thank you.What is the name of your state?
 


LindaP777

Senior Member
Yes, the LL (or their insurance company) is responsible for damage done to the tenants belongings. It's not unreasonable to ask for all receipts for cleaning, repair or damage.

No, they can not withhold rent for the damage, unless the LL agreed to allow them to deduct from their rent.
 

Cvillecpm

Senior Member
The landlord is NOT responsible...tenant should have had renters insurance to cover their own belongings.

Owner needs to move to evict tenant for withholding rent for this issue...it is NOT a habitability issue.

The landlord can not insure another person's property which is why the tenant needs to claim on their renter's insurance. If they don't have renter's insurance, then they "self insured" and are responsible for replacement of their personal property and belongings.
 

Ohiogal

Queen Bee
Good point. If the toilet overflowed because of overfilling, or the leak caused from misuse by the tenant, then of course the LL is not responsible.
And like other have said Renter's Insurance would be a necessity. Landlords are not responsible for tenants belongings unless the landlord is negligent and causes the damage (such as throws the tenants belongings out on the yard in an illegal eviction action or purposely breaks the tenant's belongings while fixing something).
 

Cvillecpm

Senior Member
Guys - the landlord CAN NOT insure the tenant's belongings....the landlord does not know what they ARE much less their VALUE....that is why renter's insurance is in existance.

Most KNOWLEDGABLE landlord would take the tenant's request/claim and forward it to their insurance company with brief description of what happened and their ins co will REJECT the tenant's claim.
 

xylene

Senior Member
And like other have said Renter's Insurance would be a necessity. Landlords are not responsible for tenants belongings unless the landlord is negligent and causes the damage (such as throws the tenants belongings out on the yard in an illegal eviction action or purposely breaks the tenant's belongings while fixing something).
True. But landlord negligence or condcut need not be as egregious, malicious or blatantly illegal as in your examples for the tenant to recover.

An example.

Landlord owns two family (upper / lower) in NY

Tenants live in lower unit.

Upper unit is vacant.

Landlord, for whatever reason decides to discontinue utility service to the unoccupied unit, assuming rising heat from lower unit keep pipes unforzen. Had always worked before.

Lower unit Tenants, unaware of this potential for disaster, keep their heat at a thrifty 65 degrees, well above the lease specified minimum of 60 degrees.

Now it is Feb. Severe -20 degree cold snap - multiple pipe bursts in the upper.

Thousands of dollars of tenant property is ruined - and the apt is unihabitable.

Tenant did collect for damages to property and for breech of lease. Not a party to this suit, but I was there. ;)
 

Alaska landlord

Senior Member
thank you so much everyone for your help. I will speak to the tenants to see if they have renter's insurance.
Forget the talking about renters insurance. These tenants feel they hit the jackpot and probably spent the rent money. You need to post a pay or quit and start the eviction procedure. To protect yourself in the future have a lease clause suggesting renters insurance and familiarize yourself with your state landlord act.
 

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