Q: My apartment hasn't been updated in over 50 years and my landlord claims broke, can I update it and take it off rent?
The apartments I live in were built in the 1970's and have not been remodeled or updated since. The only new stuff is paint and carpets. The cabinets are original and gunked up with dirt and grime and grease that I cannot get them clean. The stove barely works properly. Nothing in the apartment that I can tell has been updated besides the work my boyfriend did to our bathroom. My landlord claims broke when asked to replace anything or update anything since they took a mortgage out on the property for an unknown reason. Do I have any legal right to update anything inside the apartment and not pay rent until the total for the updates is met rent wise? Meaning if I put $1000 into updating the cabinets and getting a new stove do I have legal right to give the receipts to my landlord in explanation as to why I'm not paying rent, since its not actually my job to do this but due to his refusal to get anything new or fixed it fell on me?
A: You could suggest that to the landlord, but landlord does not have to agree. There is no legal right for a tenant to update the premises and offset that against rent. If a tenant does not pay the full rent on time, landlord can evict the tenant. Try to work it out with landlord, but if landlord won't do anything, then you could tell landlord you will leave when your lease expires.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
