Bathtub issue in rental (direct from owner)

[duggie]

Hi guys,

I moved into a new place two weeks ago now and everything seemed to work okay...until I noticed three fissures in the bath tub this morning.

When I first moved in, they weren't noticeable, but the floor of the bath tub did make a bit of a crunching sound. I figured it was normal, just a cheap plastic covering of an older tub but it was working.

It does look like water is leaking through and the cracks are noticeable. I just let the owner know so they can take whatever action necessary.

I'm wondering, does anyone know what my options are here? Are they obliged to fix the tub? So early into my lease (two weeks), can they try to make me cover it?

Thanks for any info!

 

[nikad]

The main issue with a bathtub leak is that it can damage the ceiling of your neighbor downstairs. If the owner does not take care of it, he is going to have to pay for his neighbor's ceiling damages, so you might want to let them know right away.

 

[sts7049]

what kind of lease arrangement do you have here? something formal? or one of these off the books airbnb type of arrangements?

either way, i would think that the fact that the tub is cracked and will flood the units below should cause some urgency to fix. hopefully you have good communication/relationship with the owner

 

[Bajo_cero2]

With the actual law you can do urgency repairs and deduct them from rent and / or pay the rent to a judge if they refuse to recognize it. I had to do it at my apartment and it was a nightmare

 

[Quilombo]

I wouldn't leave it to the whims of the landlord, whatever the rental arrangement is (except Airbnb, in that case you can get them to intervene). Odds are pretty good that it's leaking at least a little (if not a lot) in to the next unit, and your neighbor is going to be pissed when their ceiling is caked in mold, or worse.

This is what I have done, and recommend to do, in order:

- Give written notice it's an issue
- Give the land lord max 2 weeks to fix it
- Give them a final written notice that you'll be fixing it, and you'll be deducting the cost from the next rent payment, and if they don't like it, they have 24 hours to do something about it
- If they still don't act, fix it, retain all receipts/invoices from contractors
- Deduct it from the next rent payment, while submitting copies of the expenses/invoices along with payment

There are further steps you can take, but ideally it wouldn't require further escalation.

 

[gringoexpress]

Document the hell out of it. My last airbnb was a new apartment with a few drainage problems, there was a constant puddle of sewer water in the bathroom that would grow and flood the entire apartment every time i took a shower. I told the owner, she refused to fix it, and then tried to come after me for damages because everything was covered in crap from the sewage water when i moved out. I actually ended up getting a little money back from airbnb at the end because thankfully i thought to take a video of the problem, but i still have some really nasty feedback on my profile blaming me for the damage.

 

[duggie]

Thank you all for such awesome, reassuring answers!!!

 

[Bajo_cero2]

Written notice means carta documento.

 

[Greg S]

Most of these drainage problems can be avoided by living exclusively on the top floor. Woosh! All your sewerage is someone else's problem.

 

[nikad]

Most of these drainage problems can be avoided by living exclusively on the top floor. Woosh! All your sewerage is someone else's problem.

ugh top floors come with a whole different set of issues like humidity from the terrace, rats/bats and low water pressure...