Hollywood Landlord Has Heavy Hand on the Faucet

Question: I have lived in a 36-unit apartment complex in Hollywood for the past 15 months. Since then, the landlord has shut the water off at least a dozen times for maintenance or repairs.

On only two occasions was I notified the day before, which was greatly appreciated. The other times the water turnoffs were complete surprises. Sometimes, it was turned off while I was showering.

Am I mistaken or are apartment owners required to give notice of water and electrical interruptions?

Answer: You are mistaken. According to Trevor Grimm, general counsel to the Apartment Assn. of Greater Los Angeles:

“There is no blanket prohibition against turning off utilities for maintenance and repairs without notifying the tenants. However, common sense and thoughtfulness for others would dictate that you receive reasonable notice of the need to shut them off.”

The landlord is obliged under California’s habitability law to provide you with hot and cold running water. You also have the right to “quiet enjoyment” of the premises, which includes the use of utilities.

But damages for temporary water shut-offs would be hard to prove, depending on the circumstances (frequency, duration and need for shut-offs).

If the landlord is turning the water off in efforts to drive tenants out of the premises, the law provides penalties of up to $100 per day, or any part thereof, during which the utilities are interrupted.

You should ask the landlord, in the nicest way possible, to try to give you advance notice of utility shut-offs if at all practical. Since he did notify you twice, it may already be his policy.

Owner Ignores Ants, but What About Rats?

Q: I recently moved into an apartment and signed an 11-month lease. About every three weeks I get a visit from an army of ants. I take care of the problem but they keep coming back.

Last night, I heard a scratching noise between the walls. It sounded like a rat was stuck in the wall and was trying to chew his way out. I alerted the owner about the ants, and he just laughed. He said he found a rat in his toilet one day.

I’m going to alert the owner about the scratching noise in writing. If the rat breaks through the wall, I’m out of here. I’m worried about the lease and my future ability to rent. What are my options?

A: If you see a rat, the unit may be found to be uninhabitable, which may allow you to break the lease early. But make sure that you have all of the evidence needed to prove your claim before leaving because the place is uninhabitable.

The landlord is responsible for maintaining the common areas of the property, including the exterior walls and roof, as well as inside your walls. If you have a problem with rats, which constitutes a habitability problem under state law, the owner is obliged to solve the problem.

He is entitled to a reasonable time to comply with the law, which can be up to 30 days. With rats inside your apartment, he probably should comply much more quickly.

If the landlord will not solve, or attempt to solve, the rat problem, you should call the L.A. County Health Department to cite him.

First Give Notice, Then Evict Freeloaders

Q: We own a duplex and live in the back half of it. We rent out the front half. The tenants have lived there for five years, and they pay the rent off and on, skipping some months and only partially paying others.

Recently, it’s gotten worse. We are confused about how to proceed. How should we handle this situation? Do we need a lawyer? Do we have to go to court?

A: The first thing to do is to serve the tenants a three-day notice to pay (the rent) or quit (move out). The forms are available at most stationery stores.

Include all rents owed within the previous 12 months on the notice. State law prohibits you from seeking back rent that is more than one year late.

Also, remember that acceptance of rent creates a presumption that all past rent has been paid. Bring the debt forward on any receipts you give or make notations on the backs of their checks. Show that there is a balance due and that you are applying the current rent payment to the oldest debt.

If the tenants don’t pay up within three days, you will have to evict them. For that I would recommend an attorney, and not just any attorney. Get a specialist who is an expert on landlord-tenant law.

Resolve Noise Trouble Before Signing Lease

Q: We live in Los Angeles and we are near the end of our 12-month lease. Our downstairs neighbor plays his stereo very loud. If we commit to another 12-month lease, can we break it without incurring financial penalties if the landlord refuses to remedy the noise situation?

A: The only way to be sure you can break the lease without penalty is for the landlord to write that kind of language into it. That doesn’t make sense because it defeats the purpose of the lease, which is to “guarantee” your 12-month tenancy, and because the definition of “remedy the noise situation” is subject to debate.

Talk to the owner about the noise problem now, if you haven’t already done so. If you can’t get the problem resolved before you sign the lease, there’s no reason to believe that you will solve it later.

Postema is the editor of Apartment Age magazine, a publication of AAGLA, an apartment owners’ service group. Mail your questions on any aspect of apartment living to AAGLA, 12012 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90025.