Lease Termination

[Cindy Taylor]

my husband and I leased a townhome in July, 2000. When the gas co. came to hook things up, the mgmt. co. was sited for not having the furnace ventilated properly. In Dec., 2000 when the weather started getting very cold, we began to smell gas because the mgmt. co. had not fixed the problem yet. Because of numerous other incidents with the mgmt. co., we decided to terminate the lease because of the hazard it posed to our lives. When the mgmt. co. received our letter of termination, they attempted to fix the problem. After speaking with the gas co., the mgmt. co. still did not repair the problem properly. The mgmt. co. is now holding us responsible for the remainder of the lease (7 more months), even though they were negligent in their actions. Do we have a case for legal action? Lawrence, KS

 

[minerk]

From the Kansas Atty General's Office (http://www.ink.org/public/ksag/contents/consumer/landlord.htm#landlord

"LANDLORD'S DUTIES:

Comply with the requirements of applicable building and housing codes materially affecting health and safety.
Exercise reasonable care in the maintenance of common areas.
Maintain in good and safe working order and condition all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems, and appliances supplied or required to be supplied by the landlord.


LANDLORD WON'T MAKE REPAIRS: If the landlord is legally obligated to make repairs but will not, the tenant may sue for damages and terminate tenancy after informing the landlord of the problem, unless the landlord has made a good faith effort to resolve the problem."

Any questions?