Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in New York

Maintenance company defaulting on building maintenance

I own a condo unit in a building in New York City. For about a year, we�ve had a lot of problems with rats in the building. They are not in my apartment because I�ve sealed all the holes (underneath sinks, etc.), however there are several large holes in the building�s foundation that haven�t been properly sealed. I�ve contacted the maintenance company (whom I pay over $600/month) many times over the past six months and kept a log of the calls and letters I�ve sent to them regarding this issue.

They have consistently ignored my requests to fix the foundation�s holes and don�t even return my phone calls now. I�ve even had exterminators tell them that this must be fixed to resolve the rodent problem, yet it still hasn�t been done and there are now rats in almost every wall of the apartment. So, I recently sent them a letter stating that I would no longer pay my maintenance fees until they resolved the issue.

Am I within my legal rights to do so? Should I retain a lawyer? Could I sue them to get the work completed and for damages to my apartment (for example, the rats recently chewed through some wires and I lost partial electricity, which I then had to pay an electrician to fix).

Thanks so much, Kim


Asked on 11/14/04, 8:25 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Andrew Nitzberg Andrew Nitzberg & Associates

Re: Maintenance company defaulting on building maintenance

You are correct. This is a serious problem.

You have 3 options:

1) withhold payments. Remember to put the 600 in a separate bank account every month. This is required by the courts to show that your nonpayment is not a sham.

The down side is that the maintenance company may not find this a sufficient incentive to fix the problem.

2) fix it yourself and subtract the amount from your maintenance payments. If the repairs are necessary, then you are well-within your rights to choose this option.

3) go to court and get an order (injunctive relief) from the court to the maintenance company to fix the problem.

I am available to assist you in this matter and my fee is 500 dollars to pursue option #3 (a court order).

You are welcome to a consultation for no fee.

Read more
Answered on 11/17/04, 1:15 pm
Stephen Loeb Law Office of Stephen R. Loeb

Re: Maintenance company defaulting on building maintenance

Why not go to Housing Court and make a motion by order to show cause to have the reapir done to the infrastructure? Make sure to include pictures, bills and reports as evidentiary exhibits. You may want to consider hiring an attorney to help you. Meanwhile, while you are probably within your legal rights to withhold maintenance, don't spend it, put it a separate account, because once the problem gets fixed the maintenace comapny may be entitled to recoup a portion of the withheld funds.

Should you like to discuss this or any other legal matter, you can call my office to schedule an appointment for a consultation or in the alternative, I can be reached for on-phone low-cost legal consultation at 1-800-275-5336 x0233699.

Read more
Answered on 11/17/04, 8:14 am


Related Questions & Answers

More Landlord & Tenants questions and answers in New York