Knowing your rights as a tenant can help when you are in need of getting your heater repaired. Mission Viejo residents may not think that having a working heater in their home is very important because it is often hot most of the year, but those cold winter nights can sneak up on you from out of nowhere and leave you trembling.
All rental units in the state of California must be considered habitable. One common requirement of habitability is to have a functioning heater in your home. If you are a renter, it is your landlord’s responsibility to make sure that your heater is in proper working condition prior to you moving in to the residence. If the heater breaks and you are in need of heater repair there are several steps you can follow.
First you should contact your landlord or building manager. They should have the heater repaired or replaced in a reasonable amount of time. If it is during the wintertime and it is very cold outside they have only 2 days, but during the summer it is acceptable for a landlord or manager to take up to 30 days.
It should be noted that the tenant is responsible for proper operation of the heater. If the heater is damaged or broken because of the tenant or any of their guests they are accountable for the repairs or replacement.
If the landlord or manager fails to repair or replace the heater in a practical amount of time, the tenant may attempt to have the heater repaired and then deduct the cost of the repair or replacement from that months rent. The replacement or repair cost must be less than one month’s rent.
Another option is to withhold rent from your landlord or manager if it directly affects the health or safety of the tenants living in the unit. Although, when you take this type of action you must make sure you keep very accurate records of when the heater broke and every time the landlord was contacted about the problem. It is also necessary to put everything in writing when contacting the landlord. It is also a good idea to keep proper documentation of all parts of the situation.
If all else fails and not having a properly working heater in your home is a serious problem you may consider moving out. If the landlord does not repair or replace the heater the tenant may break the lease and move out without penalty. The tenant should not have to pay rent after the time heater broke.
Dealing with these types of situations can be stressful, thus it is important to know your rights as a tenant. It is also a good idea to understand heater repair. Mission Viejo residents will be happy to know that there are many local heater repair companies that can help them out with little notice.
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