Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California
The plumming is messed up and the back heater is out and it is freezing in the house. It's so cold that you can blow cold fog out your mouth and I have five children at home and this is unacceptable. Am I required to still pay rent and live in conditions that we are living in? The plumming issues are very bad because there a problem with sewer line and the City of Fairfield came out and said that it was the responsibility of the landlord and I gave that information to my landlord but his concern getting my rent money first before he fix anything, because of this the toilet gets backed up and toilet water comes up thru the bathtub and we also have had flooding situations. He wants me to continue to pay rent but not fix anything, what can I do? Can I withhold my rent until he fixes the problem? Who can I report him to? What legal actions can I take?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Heat and working sanitary sewers are a condition of habitability of a rental unit. You can either withhold rent, in which case he will probably try to evict you and you can raise the conditions as a defense, or you can move out and sue him for a "constructive eviction." In either case, though, you probably will ultimately wind up moving. The other thing you should do immediately is contact the local health department and file a complaint against the landlord for maintaining an unsanitary unit.
Related Questions & Answers
Looking for something else?
10,200 active attorneys ready to answer your legal questions today.
Featured Attorneys
Earn additional revenue and grow your business.
