FRIGID tenants who are shivering through apartment heating issues can force their landlord to help out – as long as they know their rights.
Legal experts have urged renters to never settle for chilly homes when temperatures drop to dangerously low numbers.’
Renters in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, have made an urgent cry for help as their heating systems aren’t workingCredit: KFOR
According to legal experts, renters have options if a landlord refuses to fix heating issues in a timely mannerCredit: KFOR
For the past several years, residents in Oklahoma City,聽Oklahoma, have struggled to keep warm thanks to shoddy heating systems.
In November 2022, dad Joseph Garmon, who lived at Ascend Apartments, made a desperate plea for help as his 饾槫饾槱饾槳饾槶饾槬ren were forced to cower under piles of blankets and sweatpants for warmth.
“It’s horrible. I got three kids and a wife, and they’re sitting in the cold,” he told NBC affiliate聽KFOR聽at the time.
Cathleen Beauchamp, a tenant in the same building, claimed she became ill due to the frigid temperatures.
“I hate that I’m having to bounce from place to place to make sure my 饾槫饾槱饾槳饾槶饾槬 is warm and comfortable, that she doesn’t get sick because she has asthma,” she said.
“And when she gets sick, she gets really sick. She ends up in the hospital.”
At the time, management posted a notice in the building saying that the broiler machine was broken but that they were repairing it as quickly as possible.
However, some tenants claimed that after days of waiting, they still didn’t see any progress.
This year, attorneys want tenants to be fully prepared if they have to confront their landlord about heating issues.
According to attorney Tim Gilton, the Oklahoma Landlord Tenant Act asserts that property owners must maintain a reasonable liveable standard for renters.
This means that heat, hot water, and electricity must be running smoothly at all times, Gilton told KFOR.
If these essentials ever have an issue, renters should report it and give their landlord a 14-day notice.
Once that two-week grace period has passed, tenants can take drastic actions if the problems haven’t been solved.
“The tenant can either move out, terminate the lease earlier or, up to the cost of one month of rent, have the repairs done at their expense and then look to the landlord to reimburse them,” said Gilton.
I got three kids and a wife, and they’re sitting in the cold
Joseph Garmon
Before renters take any abrupt action, they should make sure they protect themselves.
This means giving written and dated notices to landlords throughout every step of the process.
Make sure a paper trail proves that a service request was made and not followed up on within the two-week period.
Then, notify the landlord, explaining why you will be moving out or refusing to pay your rent.
In other renting news, one man was billed a massive $15,000聽immediately after his mother died.
And one landlord tried to double the rent despite聽a chicken corpse issue.
