My landlord is so freakin dumb!

[diabeticman]

Okay been having issues with the landlord. Basically he needs to fix both sides of the duplex I am rent from him along with our neighbors. Both the neighbors and my wife and I have been holding the rent to try and encourage him to make the repairs.


He basically is trying to evict the neighbors for non payment because she isn't giving him money.

THE jerk just kicked himself. The side my neighbors have been renting wasn't approved by code for rental BUT he moved her in that place anyways. We suggested that when she goes to court on the 19th that she point this fact out in court and get papers supporting that fact from code enforcement that she shouldn't have been living there AND she should also counter sue the landlord for the rent she paid him for the past 8 months.

[safeinOhio]

1. I have found that in most

civil cases, both sides end up with about half of what they expected.

[truebluegreen]

2. "Clean hands."

I believe the legal principle involved would be "clean hands", assuming your neighbors knew that their rental wasn't approved by code.

You cannot profit from an illegal act. If someone steals pot from you, you can't take them to civil court to recover the loss. If someone rents you an illegal apartment, you can't sue them to recover the rent you paid--YOU were doing something illegal too.

I think. If you knew about it.

Or not. I'm very tired.

Edited to add: your landlord is really freakin' dumb regardless.

[diabeticman]

4. Actually. She had no clue it was illegal for her to be renting the place. She thought it was all

above board. He had her sign a lease and everything. Code was being nice and not making her leave considering she was living there for as long as she was and until july he was at there side routinely making repairs.


ON our side he gutted the bathroom. Left my wife and I with a ply wood floor and drywall walls. We have been living like this for 11 months. He claim he was going to remodel it.

[truebluegreen]

7. Ah! Maybe there's a chance then,

and someone will throw the book at the azhole landlord. He needs clean hands too, if he thinks he will be getting any satisfaction, and it sure sounds like he doesn't have them.

Best of luck to you all.

[ToxMarz]

3. Sounds like you are all screwing each other, even if he set it off

I'd start looking for a new place to live. My guess if you have put up with the lack of repairs and the rental property is not even legal, you probably will have a hard time finding anything else satisfactory for the price you are paying. You can only withhold rent if you deposit the funds on time per the lease with an escrow agent, otherwise you are in breach of the lease and can be evicted regardless of property condition. If the city is now involved they will quickly act to evict from the illegal rental, and you may be caught up in that to a) because he will need to do extensive modifications to both to make one legal rental again, b) they may deem your unit unfit based on the repairs you are waiting for. If you can find another place, move on. Doesn't sound like there will be a good relationship in the future even if you get what you want, and how much of your life do you want to spend on it. No idea if anyone can sue for past rent, I don't think it is very straight forward.

[diabeticman]

5. NO, IT was legal. My wife and I have lived here for 11 years. Our first landlord was

a woman who lived in the other side and own the property. Long story short she killed herself and her family. While the house was in limbo. The estate and her brother let us live there until a buyer could be found. We entertained the idea of buying it at one time but it just wasn't do able.

Guy the lawyer handling the estate called to repair our leaky toilet ended up buying it. Quickly repainted and fixed up the other side to get it rented out. Finally fixed the toilet after we nagged for a couple months than decided he wanted to remodel our bathroom so that we didn't have to go down to the basement to bath and shower. Gutter the bathroom leaving us with a plywood floor and drywall walls. dissapeared for a few months after promising he was going to start the remodel.

Finally my wife and I held our rent JUST to get the jerks attention. He didn't bother showing up until October when my wife was talking to a handy man about making the repairs ourselves. He is still dragging his ass.


We are getting out. Just kind of hard after 11 years to leave a place you felt like home.

P.S. He never had us sign a lease.

[ToxMarz]

8. Sorry, not trying to be an ass, just honest

With the issues you have added, the two of you with unlimited funds could spend tens of thousands of dollars litigating it. If you can come to an arrangement with him you are both happy with great, but now that the city/officials are involved it may not be an option.

[union_maid]

6. Rental laws vary

Here, where I live, you can't get back rent because an apartment is illegal. If there's no rental permit, that is between the landlord and the locality. If it was uninhabitable that might be a different story. Holding back rent to get repairs done is a legitimate strategy,though, but you'd best go to court with the money in hand in case the case doesn't go your way.