What is usually expected from landlords, for non-critical maintenance, including unclogging, electrical, paintjobs, lawns, etc.?

11 comments

1. Most places with a lawn I’ve been expected to cut it, unless it was an apartment complex with shared outdoor space. Painting is mostly expected to be done by the landlord but I’ve known of people who worked out something else. Electrical work is 100% the property owners responsibility and usually would be considered critical unless it’s just like changing the switches or something for aesthetic purposes.

2. This is the website for my city that summarizes things. The first link is to a PDF file, the information is organized well

   https://www.seattle.gov/housing/renters/know-the-law#rentersrightsresponsibilities

3. >What is usually expected from landlords

   It would be listed in your rental agreement.

4. A lot depends on what you e worked out with your landlord. There’s a lot of privately owned rentals where your landlord is just a guy who ended up with an extra house.

   Generally minor things like unclogging would be for the tenant to resolve, though some landlords may prefer to do it if they don’t trust the capability of the renter. Anything electrical is for the owner, paint is usually the owner but you dan often work something out. Appliances or mechanicals breaking is for the owner. Lawns can differ a lot, I’ve had places where it’s the renters responsibility and places where it’s the owners.

5. The legal requirements vary by state and city laws. [These are some of the tenant rights concerning repairs where I live in San Francisco:](https://sftu.org/repairs/)

   > Requirements for the Landlord. Some of the requirements are:

   * Adequate and safe heat.

   * Effective weatherproofing, including doors, windows, and roofs.

   * Housing, in areas under control of the landlord, free of garbage, cockroaches, rats, and vermin.

   * Plumbing and gas facilities in good order.

   * Hot and cold running water.

   * Electrical equipment in good order.

   * Stairs and common areas maintained in good order.

   >Tenants have the right to report landlords to city agencies and the right to withhold rent or “repair and deduct.” The landlord cannot retaliate against you. Any eviction or rent increase attempt within six months of such a complaint will be examined by the judge for retaliation.

   > If the landlord has been ordered to correct the violations by the city or state and the violations have not been corrected for at least 35 days after the order to correct the violations, California Civil Code Section 1942.4 has statutory damages of up to $5,000 which can be given to the tenant in a habitability lawsuit.

6. It should be specified in a lease agreement. But it’s fairly standard here for a tenant to be responsible for all reasonable maintenance and issues; replacing batteries and lightbulbs, clogged sinks or toilets, lawn care or landscaping, etc.

   A lot of places won’t let you paint but some will; if they do it’s generally the tenant responsible for the cost.

7. If you do maintenance yourself you are usually allowed to deduct costs for consumables and parts from rent if your landlord is ok with that. Otherwise they are required to make repairs.

   Lawn care is usually covered in the lease. Sometimes the tenant sometimes the landlord.

   It varies by state and the lease itself can modify it.

   It is also usually something that is just done one way or the other and never makes it into court.

8. We even have something called “constructive eviction,” which is where you’re not responsible for any rent or other obligations until the landlord fixes the issues. It’s the idea that by violating your local & state housing codes they’ve essentially evicted you.

   To answer your question, landlords are required to provide livable conditions. These include running water and plumbing, heat & electricity, and other essentials such as basic upkeep, pest control, etc. Most landlords are not “mom and pop” style. The property management companies and corporate landlords want to protect their investments, and as such they include these costs in the rent. This makes it much easier for them to have routine maintenance or replace a faulty appliace without raising rent. In smaller landlords or mom and mom landlords, the tenant may be responsible for more upkeep, and/or the landlord could provide less. I have rented my entire adult life (20ish years) and all my landlords provided the above requirements as well as basic security, laundry facilities, routine maintenance and recreation facilities such as pools and gyms. I am barred from making any repairs myself and the maintenance guys typically respond with a fix within 3 hours. This is the key reason I still rent. My homeowner friends have to maintain their properties themselves whereas I’m able to let someone else take care of it.

9. Depends on your state and contract. Check over both.

10. For me, they’re responsible for things I don’t do to it myself. So the water damage coming from the roof would be their problem, but if a light bulb goes out or the drywall gets dented it’s my problem (though the latter would just come out of my security deposit when I move out.

11. So I actually work for a single family home rental company. It’s probably slightly different for other companies buy I tell new residents that they are responsible for basic maintenance such as changing smoke detector batteries, light bulbs, changing the filter in the furnace, snow removal and lawn care. The company is responsible for major issues with things like the HVAC, plumbing, leaks, issues with the appliances that came with the home and electrical. Anything that falls within that sphere is the companies responsibility. If someone submits a service request for a non-emergency issue, we like to get a maintenance guy or vendor out within a couple days depending on availability. When someone moves out of the home, a maintenance supervisor goes to the home and creates a scope of work for his techs and also hires vendors for the major issues.