Parents please help - Problems with landlord

midwesterner
Sat, 23 Jan 2010 19:24:45 +0000

I see you are at Ithaca College. Is the apartment also in Ithaca? You should start by contacting the correct city department.
http://ithaca.govoffice.com/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC={D545B01B-4614-424D-A21A-7326BABF3C07}&DE={97725D9C-F384-446D-B39C-1C842F764F4F}

Basically, you have to stop being a sweet young thing. These people are trying to rip you off. Did they clean and repair the apartment before you moved in? No, they did not. You are not getting your security deposit back without threatening legal action, IMO. The best you can do is get them to clean up and do the needed repairs for the rest of your tenancy.

Take a photo of the spoiled contents of the freezer (the freezer is broken - that’s why the food smells horrible. Frozen food, even if spoiled, wouldn’t smell that bad.) Notify your landlord immediately by phone and e-mail that it is going in the garbage next pickup day. Double bag it in a good quality bag!!! Tie it off twice and dump it. Clean out the freezer with a strong mix of bleach and water. Wear rubber gloves and very old clothes.

Document all of your repair and heat problems - dates when landlord was notified, extent of problems, current state of problems. Don’t worry about the cleaning you had to do - that’s a moot point now, and your photos don’t prove anything -they could have been taken at any time. Your photos should document health and safety issues. Read the regulations for landlords.

Notify your landlord that the items on the porch, the repairs that still need doing, etc. Do it by certified mail that shows it was delivered.

If nothing is done, or not done to your liking, get an attorney to write a letter on his/her letterhead detailing the problems and the process you will take to correct them.