Breaking sublease, claiming uninhabitability

[quincy]

Ok, thanks. Would there be any consideration of the maintenance issue, that I wasn't told the condition of the apartment beforehand, or how long the issue went unaddressed?

Possibly but unlikely.

You had the opportunity to inspect the property before signing the lease. It does not appear you have any evidence to show the apartment was uninhabitable (an inspection report would have been good). And you did not follow the proper procedure in reporting the problem to the landlord.

I think the best you can hope for is that the other tenant decides not to sue.

 

[watership]

I thought I had followed the procedure, by notifying the tenant in writing of the issue, and waiting for the repairs?

Unfortunately, I was out of state and couldn't view the apartment beforehand.

Thanks for your help.

 

[quincy]

I thought I had followed the procedure, by notifying the tenant in writing of the issue, and waiting for the repairs?

Unfortunately, I was out of state and couldn't view the apartment beforehand.

Thanks for your help.

Emails and texts are generally not an acceptable form of notification unless both parties agree to accept all communications in this way. Formal letters are what is needed.

It can be a problem to rent a place sight unseen. You as renter are expected to know what you are renting before signing a lease that legally obligates you to it's terms.

You can certainly argue that you notified your landlord of needed repairs but I am afraid a court will not decide in your favor should the other tenant sue.

 

[HRZ]

OP...odds are your local building codes require functioning windows ...and the fire codes are likely to require same...look them up , make copies

Tenants probably get some benefit of doubt as to procedures ...your best posture as I see it as old LL, is to lay out that you made multiple clear demands to your LL to get the windows operational , tenant as LL was totally ineffective as to a cure ...one email to management is totally useless and inconsistent with the procedures in law...in short LL blew past the steps with mgt....then introduce actual building and fire codes as appropriate

 

[Zigner]

OP...odds are your local building codes require functioning windows ...and the fire codes are likely to require same...look them up , make copies

Tenants probably get some benefit of doubt as to procedures ...your best posture as I see it as old LL, is to lay out that you made multiple clear demands to your LL to get the windows operational , tenant as LL was totally ineffective as to a cure ...one email to management is totally useless and inconsistent with the procedures in law...in short LL blew past the steps with mgt....then introduce actual building and fire codes as appropriate

Without an inspection, the OP has no evidence that the windows were/are non-functioning. In fact, if it was paint holding them closed, I'd bet that the tenant and/or landlord has already gone in with a utility knife and cut away the paint that was (may have been) holding them closed.

 

[quincy]

OP...odds are your local building codes require functioning windows ...and the fire codes are likely to require same...look them up , make copies

Tenants probably get some benefit of doubt as to procedures ...your best posture as I see it as old LL, is to lay out that you made multiple clear demands to your LL to get the windows operational , tenant as LL was totally ineffective as to a cure ...one email to management is totally useless and inconsistent with the procedures in law...in short LL blew past the steps with mgt....then introduce actual building and fire codes as appropriate

"Multiple clear demands" were not made.

 

[xylene]

I'd bet that the tenant and/or landlord has already gone in with a utility knife and cut away the paint that was (may have been) holding them closed.

SUPERLANDLORD!

I'd bet if the landlord did anything at all, they tried to do one window, worked on it for an hours or 2, having buidgets 5 minutes for the task, cut their hand and then abandoned the project.

That's consumer experience with stuck windows and landlords, and I think it is spot on. A thankless and very time consuming task that often results in cuts and broken glass, even when done by glaziers / professional painters with years of resotration experience... and with a very good chance the window will fuse itself almosts as hopelesslely shut again the next hot and humid day.

 

[quincy]

Apparently windows were painted shut (which is a fire code violation) but some opened. Something was needed to prop them up, though.

The concern I see is that there apparently is no proof of this.

And the repair/maintenance requests were not made properly.

And the apartment was vacated in violation of the lease.

I do not see watership faring well in court - but I could be wrong.

 

[HRZ]

post to me was unclear about how hard OP tried to get her LL to get windows working ...probably hinges on same in DJ court.

 

[Zigner]

It wasn't unclear to the rest of us.

 

[quincy]

post to me was unclear about how hard OP tried to get her LL to get windows working ...probably hinges on same in DJ court.

Not hard enough. She sent an email to the other tenant.

 

[xylene]

Doesn't the landlord have a duty to deliver an inhabitable premises? To that point, were the windows operational the last time the landlord inpsected them and is there a record of that?

 

[quincy]

Doesn't the landlord have a duty to deliver an inhabitable premises? To that point, were the windows operational the last time the landlord inpsected them and is there a record of that?

You mean habitable not inhabitable, I assume?

Yes, a landlord must provide tenants with a rental that is habitable. But there is no proof that the premises were/are UNinhabitable.

If significant windows were painted shut, it would be a fire code violation but that does not necessarily mean it is an UNinhabitable rental. The violation is curable.

An inspection by Code enforcement would have been helpful.

edit: corrected my stupidity

 

[PayrollHRGuy]

You mean habitable not inhabitable, I assume?

Inhabitable and habitable mean the same thing. Like flammable and inflammable.

in·hab·it·a·ble
inˈhabədəb(ə)l/
adjective

1. suitable to live in; habitable.
   "soon we will run out of inhabitable space on the planet"

 

[xylene]

don't worry

http://imgur.com/CoDcWqn

but surely the landlord would have great defense if they had the previous move out inpsection report saying "Windows work awesome"

It would be funny if they had billed the past tenant for painting the windows shut...