Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

I have a 2 part question today. I live in a 2 bedroom 1 1/2 bath apartment. On the morning of Dec 6, 2022 i discovered water coming from ceiling downstairs. ( carpets are soaked) I let management know and plumber came out the same day. turns out it was the hot water heater upstairs that broke. They have turned the water off to the how water heater and gas.. enviromental people came out and took samples of the dry wall and carpet for testing. Tests came back positive for Asbestos. They came back out on Tues December 27 to remove the asbestos. they came back later the same day and took a big piece of drywall/sheet rock, and sealed the stairs and told us no one could be in the house until the results of the air tests. even then we( have a houseguest) still cannot stay in the apartment until repairs are done. it is now 12/29/22, and I am wondering about rent. Am I still obligated to pay the rent even though we cant be there? i mean i paid for the month of December and now rent is coming due again. what are my rights in this? I am currently staying with my mom.

Part two of this is the houseguest, she has refused to leave the apartment and she completely ignored the signs on the door stating do not enter. Now she is not on the rental contract, and there is no contract between her and I. My landlord now wants her gone. she has been offered accommodations multiple times and she has refused it. she will be given a 30 day notice on the 1st of Jan. we have called the police but they say its civil, in which im not sure of how that can be when the environmental people told us no one could go in to the apartment..


Asked on 12/29/22, 5:11 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

1. Check your lease. It most likely has provisions covering rights and obligations in the event of damage or destruction of the premises. Generally, though, you are not obligated to pay rent when you cannot occupy the unit, and they probably owe you a credit for the days of December that you were out of possession of your leasehold.

2. Unless the local housing authority has red tagged the unit, what the environmental people say carries no weight with the police. You don't provide enough information to evaluate what her rights might be, specifically if she has established rights as s subtenant or lodger. There doesn't have to be a contract if your arrangement with her created a tenancy. Probably your quickest option for getting her to exit is to get the unit red tagged and then call the police again.

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Answered on 12/30/22, 4:36 pm


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