What are my options to force my landlord into making electrical repairs?
Full Question:
I am in a 1 year lease on a rental house, the central air/ heat has never worked and now we have no electric in the main bathroom, the hallway and one of the bedrooms. The owner told us if anything went wrong while we were renting, we had to pay to fix it. I think the house had not been wired correctly/ or by a real electrician. Do we have to pay to get the wiring & heat/air repaired? With winter coming on heat would be nice. I have 7 more months in the lease, but without electric running through part of the house, it's making it kinda miserable to live. What can I do BY LAW??
10/30/2007 |
Category: Landlord Ten... ยป Repairs |
State: Oregon |
#11263
Answer:
The following is an OR statute:
90.320 Landlord to maintain premises in habitable condition; agreement
with tenant to maintain premises.
(1) A landlord shall at all times during the tenancy maintain the
dwelling unit in a habitable condition. For purposes of this section, a
dwelling unit shall be considered unhabitable if it substantially lacks:
(a) Effective waterproofing and weather protection of roof and exterior
walls, including windows and doors;
(b) Plumbing facilities which conform to applicable law in effect at
the time of installation, and maintained in good working order;
(c) A water supply approved under applicable law, which is:
(A) Under the control of the tenant or landlord and is capable of
producing hot and cold running water;
(B) Furnished to appropriate fixtures;
(C) Connected to a sewage disposal system approved under applicable
law; and
(D) Maintained so as to provide safe drinking water and to be in good
working order to the extent that the system can be controlled by the
landlord;
(d) Adequate heating facilities which conform to applicable law at the
time of installation and maintained in good working order;
(e) Electrical lighting with wiring and electrical equipment which
conform to applicable law at the time of installation and maintained in
good working order;
(f) Buildings, grounds and appurtenances at the time of the
commencement of the rental agreement in every part safe for normal and
reasonably foreseeable uses, clean, sanitary and free from all
accumulations of debris, filth, rubbish, garbage, rodents and vermin, and
all areas under control of the landlord kept in every part safe for
normal and reasonably foreseeable uses, clean, sanitary and free from all
accumulations of debris, filth, rubbish, garbage, rodents and vermin;
(g) Except as otherwise provided by local ordinance or by written
agreement between the landlord and the tenant, an adequate number of
appropriate receptacles for garbage and rubbish in clean condition and
good repair at the time of the commencement of the rental agreement, and
the landlord shall provide and maintain appropriate serviceable
receptacles thereafter and arrange for their removal;
(h) Floors, walls, ceilings, stairways and railings maintained in good
repair;
(i) Ventilating, air conditioning and other facilities and appliances,
including elevators, maintained in good repair if supplied or required to
be supplied by the landlord;
(j) Safety from fire hazards, including a working smoke alarm or smoke
detector, with working batteries if solely battery-operated, provided
only at the beginning of any new tenancy when the tenant first takes
possession of the premises, as provided in ORS 479.270, but not to include
the tenant's testing of the smoke alarm or smoke detector as provided in
ORS 90.325(6); or
(k) Working locks for all dwelling entrance doors, and, unless contrary
to applicable law, latches for all windows, by which access may be had to
that portion of the premises which the tenant is entitled under the
rental agreement to occupy to the exclusion of others and keys for such
locks which require keys.
(2) The landlord and tenant may agree in writing that the tenant is to
perform specified repairs, maintenance tasks and minor remodeling only
if:
(a) The agreement of the parties is entered into in good faith and not
for the purpose of evading the obligations of the landlord;
(b) The agreement does not diminish the obligations of the landlord to
other tenants in the premises; and
(c) The terms and conditions of the agreement are clearly and fairly
disclosed and adequate consideration for the agreement is specifically
stated.
(3) Any provisions of this section that reasonably apply only to a
structure that is used as a home, residence or sleeping place shall not
apply to a manufactured dwelling, recreational vehicle or floating home
where the tenant owns the manufactured dwelling, recreational vehicle or
floating home, rents the space and, in the case of a dwelling or home,
the space is not in a facility. Manufactured dwelling or floating home
tenancies in which the tenant owns the dwelling or home and rents space
in a facility shall be governed by ORS 90.730, not by this section.