Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Massachusetts

damage to personal property of tenant

Does a tenant have recourse for the damage to his/her personal property due to a latent defect in the premises? The facts are as follows: the landlord presented a certain room in the dwelling as a storage area for the personal property of the tenant. Along one of the walls in the storage room was a water leak that the landlord either knew or should have known about since the apartment was replete with other minor leaks due to a roof in need of repair. The tenants were not informed of the leak and it was not readily apparent - even when raining since the water silently dripped down along the wall. The water did not pool, but ran between the area where the wall meets the floor. Upon moving in the tenants stored an array of items in the room including two carpets placed against the leaking wall. Months later, it was discovered that the water had damaged the carpets beyond repair. The landlord paid the cost of one rug - $300 and refused to pay the costs of the other - which was appraised to be worth $2,250. Do the tenants have a cause of action? I thank you kindly for your response.


Asked on 7/14/99, 4:38 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Stuart Williams

Re: damage to personal property of tenant

Absolutely you have a cause of action based on what you wrote.

I see from your language ("cause of action", "either knew or should have known", "latent defect", "not readily apparent") that you are a law student of some sort; am I right?

I've been through a major lawsuit based on water damage to the tenant's belongings ( mainly a computer ), just last September. There are many ways to frame the suit, but them's just details.

Here's the big question I have for you: what did the landlord say was his reasoning for paying for the cheaper one and not the more expensive one? Is there another side to this story? What is it?

Call me if you live in Eastern Massachusetts and we'll talk. (617) 527-0050. (Or write directly to [email protected] if you're a bit shy.)

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Answered on 7/19/99, 10:51 pm


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