automaticable

I live with 11 roommates in a 3-story house on a college campus that’s probably about 100 years old. This is our landlord’s second year here– he’s young, excited about property ownership, lives on campus, and is very accessible.

Or at least, that’s how it seemed when we signed the lease. Since then, we’ve had nothing but problems. Our pipes froze last night, so we don’t have hot water (and thus, no washing machine or dishwasher). My roommate’s bed has bedbugs. The deadbolt on our front door is broken and the door handle is falling off. The thermostat on our water-heater is broken. Our house is half-painted in a single coat of primer. Our ceiling leaks. And our landlord never answers our calls.

So the moral of this story? Well, make sure you know the whole story before you sign the lease. Ask the previous residents if they had trouble. Make use of the tennant union on your campus. Make sure your lease is well thought out and includes any maintenance requests. Take pictures when you move in. Put everything in writing.

If you're new here, you can subscribe to automaticable's RSS feed by clicking here. Or, you can get post updates through your email. Thanks for visiting!