Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Washington

I live in section 8 goverment housing apartments in connell wa, and having a disagreement with the manager. i moved in Aug. of 2007 and had 2 kids and was 8 months pregnant. At the time i was in process of getting evicted from othello housing authority which bob the manager here at that time was aware of every detail. So thankful to him i was able to move in here within 2 weeks of turning in my application. When i met with him and paid the deposit and firsts month rent he gave me the key told me to walk through it see if there was anything i had any questions about because they just did a quick clean up so i was able to move in asap. I did a quick walk through and noticed the carpet had small stains here and there and in one room there was pencil marks on the wall from a child coloring on it. i told him about them he said that the apartment needed to be repainted and recarpeted and needed new base board heaters as well but that he would get that done at a later time so me and my children had somewhere to move into. I now have 4 kids a 10 year old a 3 and 4 year old and a 7 month old. I have no income so my rent is at 0. His wife juanita is now the manager and in order for me to be able to move into a 3 bedroom all damages have to be fixed in the one im living in now supposedly and she wants me to basically move stuff all out of each room one at a time to do the repairs and paint and put new carpet. my house is very cluttered with mine and 4 kids stuff in 2 rooms especially with play pen and swing and all baby stuff etc. My kids since i have lived here have colored on the walls here and there and 1 time with a permenant marker that i couldnt wash off and of course theres sticky fingerprints every where. but she is trying to say that im gonna be held responsible to pay for repainting it and new carpet because of the damage my kids did by coloring on it and the carpet stains but if i was told when i moved in that those things needed to be done already should i have to pay for any part of? ya my kids did damage them both already but there needed to be replaced anyways so i dont feel that i should have to pay for it when they where already aware they needed replaced before me moving in. so i argue my opion and point to her and she wasnt to happy at all and came and took pictures of the markikgs my kids and even of the dirty sticky stuff that could be washed off and said she was sending them to the owners and that they would not be happy and most likely want me to be evicted. so please help me cuz i doon feel or think that they legally can but need to make for sure cuz i got four babies to keep under a roof and dont want to be on the streets so if im legally liable to pay for paining and new carpet then i will but i just dont feel like i should have to when it already needed to be done. pleas let me know what my responsibilities with this situation are. i would really appreciat it thank you so much


Asked on 4/26/11, 5:25 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Amir John Showrai The Pacific Law Firm, PLLC

What is really going to control in your situation is whatever was written down and communicated between you and the landlord (or management). Thus, if you wrote down the carpet and walls issues that needed re-carpeting and painting on your move-in check list, then I think you have a case for not having to pay for those particular rooms to be painted and re-carpeted.

Also, if you took photos of each room prior to your move in to compare with what they look like now, that would help too. As a practical matter though, you are in a tough spot since you want to move to another unit in the same complex. Management may not agree to the move until you work something out on the old unit, and from what I read, you may need to take them to court to enforce your rights re: the damage.

However, in court, without written proof (checklist, e-mails, other writings) that management knew and agreed to replace those things that were damaged upon move in, you are unlikely to prevail in court.

My best suggestion to you with zero income is to contact the Northwest Justice Project (Google them) and get in touch with their office closest to you and if they can help, they will look over the case and whatever documentation you have and give you a better idea of where you stand.

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Answered on 4/27/11, 3:01 pm


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