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So, I moved into a new place last month. After about 2 weeks the lock on the patio door broke. Now of course this is some kind of exotic lock and I couldn't find it anywhere locally.

Google is your friend tho and I found a replacement lock on the internet - cost $30. I ordered it and installed myself not exaclty a hard thing to do.
I take the $30 out of the rent and send the receipt for the new lock along with my rent check.

Couple days later I get a call from the landlord saying I owe her $30 she talked to a lawyer and she don't have to pay for the lock blah blah blah. I bit my tongue on this since I'm at the beginning of the lease and want to maintain goodwill. (if I was at the end of the lease I would have just told her to take me to court & moved out) it costs $35 to file a case in housing court. So, I don't see how that would be worth it.

My plan now is to remove the lock when I move out and put the broken lock back in. She can go call a locksmith that will charge here three times as much. What a dork.

This landlord business is enough to make a guy go out and buy his own house. If the prices weren't 40% over valued I would do just that.

Its always amusing to me when people pull out the phrase "I talked to a lawyer" like that instills fear or something. No lawyer in his right mind would tell a client to sue someone for $30. They won't even pick up the phone for $30.

Put the broken lock back in and call a locksmith to replace it. Being a matter of security the landlord cannot say no to the work being done + it will cost them 10 times more than it did for you to originally do it.

So it is win-win.

Mintbread wrote:Put the broken lock back in and call a locksmith to replace it. Being a matter of security the landlord cannot say no to the work being done + it will cost them 10 times more than it did for you to originally do it.

So it is win-win.

+1

Though, most landlords have their preferred repair-folk they do business with. And you're required to go through them for any repair work. Because of that technicality, call up the landlord, tell her the lock is broke and she needs to fix it asap. All the meanwhile, leave the new lock in there. When the repair guy gets there, hand him a beer, tell him to make the invoice up as he sees fit and then drop it off at her office








Ok, I'm kinda kidding and halfway serious about the above idea lol

Pay the $30 to your landlord, remove your lock and put the broken one back in. Then report the broken lock to the landlord (this is what you should have done)...make sure that in your lease, especially in the fine print, it does not stipulate that you are responsible for repairs while you are a tenant (some unscrupulous landlords do this) and she is legally responsible for repairs. She is just as bound to the terms of your lease as you are. If she says her 'lawyer' told her something, ask her to have the lawyer contact you or send you a formal letter ($10 bucks says that shuts her up).

If she fails to comply with her lease you are free to do the work yourself and bill her. The law varies from state to state, but the landlord is responsible for maintaining the property. Even if you did not pay the $30, she doesn't have a legal foot to stand on if she wants you out, but don't count on having your lease renewed.

A landlord is responsible to repair all items immediately, which hinder the safety of a tenant. This means any items which can cause serious injury, such as broken glass or electrical wires exposed, or which hinder the personal safety of intrusions and invading your home.

A landlord is not responsible for an immediate repair for anything else beyond the safety of the tenant. Though, the landlord muct provide written notice to the tenant prior to entering the premises to do any repairs or maintenance. Usually 24 to 48 hour notices is required, depending on state.

The landlord was in the right with refusing to pay for your own repair. You must request the repair to them unless they authorize you to do the repair and reimburse you with payment being a reduced rent or other methods. And if so, get it in writing. If a repair which hinders the safety of the tenant(s) presents itself and the landlord fails to comply within resonable time, the tenant needs to acquire a written estimate of repairs, then withhold the amount from rent and apply it to an "Escrow" account with your financial agency (bank).

Of course, much also depends on the lease, but in general, these are some of the laws required with landlord/tenant relationships.

Dude, you can't just make repairs as you see fit and submit receipts as rent payments. Did you ever notify the landlord about the broken lock? Only if she refused to have it replaced can you have it done yourself, but then the money must go into escrow.

ZooTech wrote:Dude, you can't just make repairs as you see fit and submit receipts as rent payments. Did you ever notify the landlord about the broken lock? Only if she refused to have it replaced can you have it done yourself, but then the money must go into escrow.

Yes I told her. Waited 7 days no answer & no results. I don't see what the big deal is about $30.

I did her a favor by replacing it myself. A locksmith is gonna charge 3x as much to fix it. Oh well she'll find out when I move out and put the broken lock back in.

I just find it funny.

MrGompers wrote:

ZooTech wrote:Dude, you can't just make repairs as you see fit and submit receipts as rent payments. Did you ever notify the landlord about the broken lock? Only if she refused to have it replaced can you have it done yourself, but then the money must go into escrow.

Yes I told her. Waited 7 days no answer & no results. I don't see what the big deal is about $30.

I did her a favor by replacing it myself. A locksmith is gonna charge 3x as much to fix it. Oh well she'll find out when I move out and put the broken lock back in.

I just find it funny.

Some favor.

The landlord could easily replace a lock herself.

You have no basis to be upset or to call your landlord "stupid."

As has been pointed out, tenants cannot simply make their own repairs to their leased property.

When I read the OP, my jaw dropped when I read the thread title, then read that you simply took the cost of your repair out of the rent without ever letting the landlord know beforehand.

Taking over 7 days to replace a lock is unacceptable - here that is grounds for withholding the entire amount of your rent in escrow until it's fixed.

I don't know how it works where you live, but here you can call the local housing authority and report the fact that the lock has been broken over 7 days and they give you the OK to put things in an escrow account, as well as notifying the landlord that a repair has to be made ASAP.

Doing the above usually does not put you in the good graces of said landlord - but IMO they're out of your good graces by not fixing it in the first place. MA is pretty tenant friendly in this respect though.

In Va they have 21 days but have to prove that they acted immediately. After that everything can go to escrow, you can move out (no longer held to your lease) and you can sue. It's one of those things to look into. Sometimes it's not worth it though.