I really wish that there were more renters’ rights available in my state and the city, because it sure is difficult to get by around here.
The city has a reputation for low quality housing, and yet that hasn’t impacted the rental market whatsoever.
Even if you are shelling out cash left and right just for a place to live, you are basically guaranteed to live in subpar construction and low quality indoor conditions. There’s something about this area that has attracted sheisty contractors, and you often get trapped in nightmare leasing situations. This has been my experience time after time. That’s why it’s incredibly important that you know somebody who lived in that building before and you always check over the lease line by line. Unfortunately, this last place that I rented had an awful rental policy that I missed until it was too late. For the most part, the lease looked standard. However, there was a section tucked into it regarding the heating, cooling, and ventilation system that I completely overlooked. Although the apartment I’m renting is in a massive building, each heating, cooling, and ventilation unit is treated like its own separate entity. The property manager does not arrange for HVAC technicians to come through the building and perform any kind of routine service on the air handling devices. The renter is responsible for everything having to do with indoor air quality. This means, they have to change the air filter every month, arrange regular HVAC service appointments, and even replace the HVAC system if anything goes wrong. I’ve never heard of such a ridiculous air quality control device provision before in my life. When I read that clause of the lease, I promptly hired a lawyer and moved out of the building. It was cheaper than paying for the HVAC service.