Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Texas

my mother and i moved into this house that at the time we did not know how bad the insects such as spiders and termites were. i reported the problem to our landlord and he told me to call a exsterminator and have the bill sent to him, so i did this and they came out and sprayed. they sent him the bill for 150 dollars which he paid and pest controllers said they would return every 3 months but if they reurn have the landlord to call and they would come. the termites got worst coming out by the thousands, all over the house floors and outside the house, i swept up a bucket full. i called my landlord and told him about it and he said he would take care of it when he returned from out of town in a week,{ all he had to do is make a phone call} after the week past he still never did anything, 2 more weeks past and nothing, even after while i keep bugging him about it. finally he came by to see it for him self and all he could say is that orkan didnt do their job and so he wants his 150 dollars back from them or me pluse this months rent. what can i do about this?


Asked on 4/03/10, 2:43 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Mark Dunn Mark D. Dunn

In Texas there is an "implied warranty of habitability," which means that regardless of what your lease says, it is understood that, in exchange for the rent you pay, you will be provided with a place to live in that is in fact habitable. If you can't stand to live there, then you aren't getting what you paid for, regardless of the specific terms of the lease.

You should move out. Write to the landlord (a PAPER letter - stop using the telephone and email), lick a 44-cent stamp, and tell him exactly what you told me. Also tell him that he has breached your lease, and you are moving out. Find another place to live.

Take photographs of the premises before you leave - especially the buckets of termites.

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Answered on 4/09/10, 8:49 am


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