Pleasanton, CA asked in Personal Injury for California

Q: My moms property manager is refusing to fix anything in the apartment. Mom injured due to negligence. What can be done?

My mom is elderly, low income and on dialysis. Her property manager has been refusing to fix anything such as broken oven, heating/air conditioning, fire/ smoke alarm. There was also a lifting piece of floor in the home that my mom fell over and hurt herself very badly.

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3 Lawyer Answers
Thomas A. Grossman
Thomas A. Grossman
Answered
  • Palm Springs, CA
  • Licensed in California

A: I assume your mother is living in a rental unit, which is run by a property manager. Under California law, you must first request in writing that something that needs repair be fixed. If the landlord does not fix it within a certain amount of time, you can withhold rent. You can also threaten to sue the landlord for "constructive eviction," if the place is so bad that your mother cannot live in it. Finally, if you can prove that your mom's fall over a piece of flooring material was due to the negligence of the landlord (something that is not easy to do, especially if the piece of flooring was visible for some time), then you can threaten a lawsuit for negligence and damages. Another option of she can afford it is to have your mother move to a better place.

Dale S. Gribow agrees with this answer

William John Light
William John Light
Answered
  • Santa Ana, CA
  • Licensed in California

A: Sounds like your Mom has a very good case against the landlord. She should retain an attorney. Gather up all of the communications to the landlord about fixing the property. Hopefully, there is something about the floorboard in there. Take photos of the area where the fall happened, including close ups of the floor boards. Include a ruler or tape measure to accurately record the deflection in the floor.

Dale S. Gribow
Dale S. Gribow
Answered
  • Palm Desert, CA
  • Licensed in California

A: She can also file in small claims for up to $10k

Does she have lease?

Landlord may want to kick her out but that would probably be retaliatory eviction

She should contact legal aid or maybe u could do so

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