Can Landlord Deduct for Smoke Damage?
QUESTION: In your Dec. 19, 1993, column you answered a question headlined “Two Security Charges for Two Apartments?” I have a similar situation with a townhouse in San Diego that I rent out.
Recently, the renter who has lived there for the past two years gave me notice of his intention to move. On a repair visit shortly thereafter, I found out that the tenant is a chain smoker. I was unable to remain in the unit for any extended period of time due to the appalling stench.
While I was there, I noticed that the expensive drapes that were hung throughout the townhouse had extreme smoke penetration and discoloration due to exposure to cigarette smoke. The carpets are a mess too.
According to your previous article, the owner of that apartment building could only charge his two-year renter one-third of the cost of carpet and drape cleaning because the judges say that three years is “normal wear and tear” for carpets, drapes and paint.
Since the tenant of my townhouse has lived there for less than three years, can I charge him the full cost of cleaning the carpets and drapes? Are the rules the same for townhouses as for apartments? Are they the same in San Diego County as in Los Angeles County?
ANSWER: Generally, the rules for rented townhouses are the same as the rules for rented apartments, but judges’ interpretations of the law can vary from county to county, just as they do from judge to judge.
According to Robert Winter Jr., an associate counsel with the San Diego law firm of Kimball, Tirey & St. John, which specializes in landlord/tenant law, most judges in San Diego County define normal wear and tear differently than most Los Angeles County judges.
Winter said most judges there tend to interpret normal wear and tear as five years for carpets, drapes and painting, instead of three years.
That would mean that you could reasonably charge your tenant, who has lived in the townhouse for two years, 60% of those costs.
However, if the smoke damage is bad a judge may very well find a 100% deduction appropriate for the cleaning. If I were you, I’d deduct the 100% and let the judge decide if that’s fair, if it comes to that.
Finding Apartment When Time Is Short
Q: I am a single, professional woman who lives in West Los Angeles. I want to move from my longtime two-bedroom, two-bath apartment, which rents for $800 a month, to a similar apartment with a better location north of Wilshire Boulevard in Santa Monica.
I know this is not usually easy, but with the number of for-rent signs around I thought it might be possible. I don’t have a lot of time to walk around and knock on doors. What is the best way to get an apartment there, given my constraints?
A: Apartments in Santa Monica are usually hard to find. The recession, however, has created more vacancies there than usual, making it a little easier to find one.
Other than knocking on doors to find an apartment, you can try some of the local realtors who personally represent Santa Monica owners or keep lists of vacancies there.
According to Robert J. Sullivan, a Santa Monica realtor and property manager (Sullivan-Dituri Realtors), methods and compensation for finding you an apartment vary. Some will sell you lists while others will not charge you anything unless they find you a suitable apartment.
Sullivan said, “Know in advance what the charges will be and who pays them, you or the apartment owner.”
While many of these realtors have traditionally advertised in the newspapers, the recession has affected them too. So the yellow pages are also a good place to let your fingers do the walking for a realtor who specializes in property management.
Living Room Flooding Must Be Remedied
Q: I have rented a West Hollywood apartment for the last eight years. Since I moved in, the living room has substantially flooded at least once during every rainy season.
Each time the furniture must be replaced and the carpet taken up to dry. Sometimes, this takes weeks to accomplish.
Although numerous attempts have been made to repair the roof, none have been successful. It appears to me that there is some kind of structural defect or damage causing the leaks.
Does the law require only that good-faith efforts be made to fix the problem, or must it be rectified? Also, does the fact that I have put up with the problem for so long reduce my rights to now demand an effective correction of the problem?
A: While into each of our lives a little rain may fall, the state habitability code says that’s not true of apartments. It requires that residences have roofs that don’t leak. There are local remedies for such problems in the city of West Hollywood for rent-controlled apartments too.
According to Clarke Ireland, a rent stabilization counselor with the city of West Hollywood, you may request from the West Hollywood Department of Rent Stabilization a rent reduction for the apartment via a rent decrease application. They may be reached by phone at (310) 854-7450.
Ireland said that after your complaint is filed an inspection will be conducted and a hearing will be scheduled, which you must attend. The department will require the owner to fix the roof and it will reduce your rent until he does.
If your apartment is not rent-controlled, you can call the planning division of the city of West Hollywood at (310) 854-7475. It will inspect the property and cite the owner to fix the roof under the state habitability code.
