Asking a Landlord to Make Repairs

If there is a "serious and dangerous" problem in the place where you rent, the courts can force your landlord to make repairs. The legal term for this action is "rent escrow." Rent escrow provides a process through which tenants pay a court fund instead of the landlord until the landlord makes needed repairs. You can file a petition to establish a rent escrow in District Court by filling out a "Petition in Action of Rent Escrow" form. 

Rent escrow provides tenants with a procedure for ensuring the repair of serious and dangerous defects in their dwellings, whether the defect is within a single unit or in an area used jointly by all tenants. The defects covered by this law are those which constitute "a substantial and serious threat of danger to the life, health, and safety" of a tenant. Excluded are  defects which merely impair the aesthetic value of the premises, or which are non-dangerous violations of a local housing code. Also excluded are dangerous conditions in the community at large.

It is the public policy of the state that sanctions be imposed on landlords who permit dangerous conditions to exist in their leased property, and that an effective mechanism be established to prevent and repair these conditions.

This law applies to all residential dwelling units except farm tenancies.

It applies equally to publicly and privately owned units and to single and multiple unit dwellings.

This law imposes an obligation on landlords to repair and eliminate conditions which constitute, or if not promptly corrected will constitute, a fire hazard or a serious and substantial threat to the life, health, or safety of occupants.  The defects include but are not limited to lack of heat, light, electricity, or hot or cold running water, except where tenant is responsible for payment of utilities and the lack is the direct result of tenant's failure to pay; lack of adequate sewage disposal facilities; rodent infestation in two or more dwelling units; any structural defect which presents a serious and substantial threat to the physical safety of the occupants; or any condition which is a health or fire hazard to the dwelling unit.

Minor defects or non-dangerous violations
Minor defects or non-dangerous violations of a local housing code are not covered by this law. There is a rebuttable presumption that the following conditions, where they are not a serious and substantial threat to the life, health and safety of the occupants, are not covered: lack of fresh paint, rugs, carpets, paneling or other decorative amenities which only reduce the aesthetic value of the premises; small cracks in the walls, floors, or ceiling; lack of linoleum or tile on the floors, provided the floors are structurally sound and safe; or the absence of air-conditioning.

Steps in the rent escrow procedure
The tenant must notify the landlord of the defective condition. The required notice to landlord may be any one of the following: a written notice sent by certified mail, listing the dangerous condition or defect; actual notice of the defect or condition; or a written violation, condemnation, or other notice from an appropriate government agency identifying the condition or defect.

After receipt of the notice, the landlord has a reasonable time to make repairs. The actual length of time considered reasonable is for the court to decide, taking into account the seriousness of the defect and the danger it presents to the occupants. There is a rebuttable presumption that a period of more than 30 days after receipt of notice is unreasonable.

If the landlord refuses to make repairs, or fails to make repairs within a reasonable time, the tenant may bring an action of rent escrow, asking to pay his rent into court, or tenant may withhold rent from the landlord and wait to be sued.

Tenant may request any of the remedies provided by this law, whether he uses the rent escrow law affirmatively or defensively.
In addition, if the landlord does not correct the condition within 90 days after the court finds that the condition exists, tenant may seek an injunction in District Court to order the landlord to correct the condition.

With either an affirmative or defensive approach, relief for tenant is conditioned upon the following: 1) landlord received proper notice and, if appropriate, had reasonable time to correct the defect; 2) tenant pays into court the amount of rent required under the lease, unless that amount is modified by the court; 3) in monthly tenancies or tenancies measured by a period of more than one month, there have not been 4 or more judgments of possession for rent due and unpaid entered against the tenant in the 12 months preceding the filing of the action; 4) in weekly tenancies, there have not been 6 or more judgments of possession for rent due and unpaid entered against the tenant in the preceding 12 months, or, where the tenant has lived in the dwelling for 6 months or less, there have not been 3 or more judgments of possession entered against the tenant.

The landlord will prevail if he can prove one of the following:
The defective condition was caused by tenant or a member of his family, or by his agent, employee, assignee, or guest; or landlord or his agent was denied reasonable and appropriate entry to the premises to make repairs.