Landlord now trying to choose my friends

[Krystalbubbles]

Last month I got a letter stating that my rent was to go up 50 dollars starting Feb. Ok, I paid it. I also put a letter stating in there that I needed my air conditioner fixed again, I've lived here for 9 months and had air conditioning a total of 2. Today I got a letter stating that: People on the lease can only occupy the apartment (highlighted) and then handwritten: we have had complaints about your guest; he will need to leave or you will be asked to move. The only male guest that has been coming around is a friend of mine and he doesn't live here, he doesn't stay the night here, he only comes to visit. Is this legal? I mean, he hasn't gotten into any fights around here with anyone. Can she retaliate us calling her neglet with eviction? There is soooo much wrong with the apartment right now and she refuses to do anything about it and when it's mentioned she does this! We are in the process of finding a new place right now, but until then we are stuck with a air conditioner that doesn't work, an oven that doesn't work half the time unless you bang on it cause the wires are soo rusted, and a storm door that bangs all night because no matter how well you close it it comes open.

Wondering Bubbles in Oklahoma

PS
I took pictures of the rusted stove in case I might need them in the future

 

[djdj]

Why did you pay the $50 thats ILLEGAL if you have a lease!

Deduct that from next months rent.......

The landlord CANNOT tell you who can come and go in your apartment, PERIOD!......Unless of course its a police matter then maybe she could get a restraining order.

Why havent you sent a letter certified mail return recipet saying the a/c does not work, it is hot and if its not fixed in 10 days we will call a repairman and and deduct it from the rent.

Same with the stove.......

she just stole $50 from you

 

[Krystalbubbles]

Thanks dj, the reason being that we went ahead and gave her the 50 bucks was my grandfather, he didn't want me to get evicted so he gave me the money and told me I had to pay it. As for the certified letter, I never thought of it. I am afraid that I will get evicted if I do anything to cross her. With her, it's a no win situation, if you don't do what she says, your gone. The maintenance man has to ask her if he can make repairs on apartments before he does anything, that's how bad it is. We're in the process of looking for a house right now. So, hopefully, we'll be out soon. As for the picture, should I turn that into the housing authority?

 

[LL]

Who is "we"?

It is "My rent", and "I lived here 9 months", but "we are in the process of finding a new place", and "hopefully, we'll be out soon".

In many states, the rental agreement can specify who can occupy the apartment. If you have someone else living there who is not authorized, you can be evicted.

 

[djdj]

But it has to be specific........anyone can have people stay over, anyone can have someone house sit while your away,.....

NO ONE can take those rights away....you have a right to security, and to protect your property, if a landord refuses you to have someone house sit, write a letter and send it certified mail, stating that any losses due to a breakin or fire or any other calamities subjects the landlord to a law suit for recovery of damages.

That is FAIR!

A Landlord CAN prevent someone from living there IF they start getting their MAIL fowarded, or have any of the utilities chnged to their name, and the lease states only the named person can occupy the premisis, but if the lease allows a roomate, the landlord cannot do anything, except not renew your lease.

Is that clearer....

 

[LL]

Sorry, dj.

My tenants can have visitors for not more than 14 days during the term of the lease; Not more.

Thats the law, and it is enforceable in CA.

No housesitters, no change of roommates, no mother-in-law visits beyond the limit without written consent of landlord.

I am very reasonable about allowing exceptions, but:
your advice would get someone a 3-day notice to vacate, followed by an unlawful detainer filing, based on an incureable breach of the lease.

It is not a question of choosing a tenants friends; it is a question of holding the tenant to occupancy as negotiated in the lease.

If you send me a certified letter as you describe, I know better, and you will have wasted a few dollars in postage.

 

[djdj]

Like i have said we are more civilized here in the Big Apple.

I would agree if you are living on the premisis,you have a lot more to say as to who lives in your home... but as a rental property, i would not put up with those some of this...

I like to take vacations, and someone has to watch and feed the pets, I WONT subject them to conditions in a pet boarding facility....So that would be the legal question i would propose:

DO PETS have a legal right to stay in their own homes, when the owner is away from the premisis? If yes then does the owner of the pets also have a right to have someone house sit the pets,even if the lease states no house sitters, becuse the consequences of not allowing a house sitter to feed the pets, would be the pets would die and the owner charged with animal cruelity.

I think a judge would side with the tenant on this one.

UNLESS YOU AS THE LANDLORD would like to care for my pets when i am gone for 2 or 3 weeks.....i could go for that... can you?

As far as people staying 14 days that is not unreasonable, but as always a good landlord will have to flexible, you know family members do get burnt out homes, as well as floods hurricanes and tornandoes, so it take time to get money a place to live etc.

Reasonable is all i ask for.....now if the person just takes up residence, other people see him moving in clothes furniture, a car parked all day, well thats diferent, and having mail transferred is not acceptable...

But what she is saying he doesnt stay over, and if he did, so what? Why should she have to explain anything? She has a right to privacy, unless it becomes a police matter.

My Lawyer has a saying "The Law is the Law, until reality sets in"

[Edited by djdj on 02-09-2001 at 02:29 PM]

 

[LL]

dj, you crazy redneck, where in the world are you coming from?

1. If I live on the premises or not makes no difference about enforcing a lease that says "Only djdj can occupy the premises."

2. The question about someone to come and feed (and clean up after) your pets is not a legal question. It is illegal for someone to come and stay in the apartment for 15 days in order to watch and feed your pets. Its not your choice. (I "WON'T" put them out to board!)

3. Pets are not LESSEEs, so its not "their" home. Pets do not have the capacity to enter into contracts. They are the property of their owner, and his responsibility, too.

4. You must not really have any experience with courts or understanding of how laws work to answer this way. Your argument about it being the landlord's fault that the owner would be charged with cruelty to animals is so inane that you really cannot be taken seriously at all. I think that your statement that "I think a judge would side with the tenant on this one." is full of beans. It's not the judge's choice. It is established law, and if the judge doesn't follow it he will be reversed on appeal. A complaint to the Presiding Judge, or to the CA Commission on Judicial Performance would have him removed from the bench if he did this very often.

" family members do get burnt out homes, as well as floods hurricanes and tornandoes, so it take time to get money a place to live etc." If a family member loses their home for some reason, what right does the tenant have to invite them into her rented premises, except as visitors? Better check the lease, of course, and check with the landlord before you do it.

DJDJ, I'm disappointed in you. This is not good law, or good advice, this is garbage. You cannot just make up the law according to what seems right to you. There are written statutes, case law, judicial policies all of which are intended to make a smooth and consistent justice system where people who need the courts can know where they stand and what their rights and responsibilities are. If you don't have that in New York, well we do, and that would make us more civilized than New York.

Krystalbubbles says that he doesn't stay overnight, and if that is the case, then her landlord cannot terminate the lease based on that. If he is just visiting, then so long as he behaves himself, its not the landlord's business who her friends are, but the landlord can definitly concern himself with their behavior on the property. We don't know who is complaining, and about what.

 

[djdj]

OK LL......i screwup too

I love my 3 little cats..... well not so little anymore, and I will look into this......

But I really cant believe thata judge would allow a landlord to try and evict a tenant when the tenant is on vacation, or travelling for on the job, and all i want is for my cats to stay at home and have someone feed and play with them....

And having someone stay 2 or 3 weeks especially when i have a few neighbors i not to fond up, you know kids with boom boxes in their car at 2am....

The nearest family member is 2 1/2 hrs away, and i have friends that i trust about 1hr away....so what if they stay for 2 weeks, i would introduce you to them, let you know what the situation is and expect you since these people are not rednecks, drunks or drug users, not to complain.

Pets have rights too....

this is fun...

 

[Krystalbubbles]

Ok, for starters, I pay the rent, but my boyfriend and I are on the lease. I lived here first so I call it my home and I generally refer to it as mine even though he IS added to the lease. The only people that occupy the home is him and I.

We do occasionally have overnight guests, but they don't stay all that long when they do come, I think that the most that has been stayed is a week when my cousin was here.

LL, if a tenant came to you with a broken a/c in the middle of summer with 100+ heat would you snap on it and get it fixed or would you keep putting it off until the winter came and you had no reason to get it fixed?

Dj, I talked to the landlord today and asked that the a/c be fixed to which she responded, it is too cold now to get it fixed, and that I had to wait until it got hotter to do it.

We have went and looked at a Mobile Home to rent that is a lot nicer (everything works and there's no hole in the ceiling with water leaking, not to mention neighbors that walk on you all night and slam doors that break your knick knacks) and more room (bigger bathroom, not the size of a childs closet) for less money a month than this one and we are trying to come up with the money to get it.

Now, after I move out, what can I do to make sure that this apartment gets everything it needs fixed before the next tenants move in? I have made a list of everything that was wrong with it when I moved in and I am starting a list of everything wrong with it now. We did not do any damage to the apartment what so ever, no holes in walls, no paint damage, no carpet damage, no window damage, nothing. We just want to make sure that the next tenant has a better experience than we have had.

You two argue like family! lol

Bubbles