Alright, I saw this thread http://thewolfweb.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=517238 and it didn't quite cover what has happened in this case.

Last week, we had plumbers come in to investigate the plumbing in my bathroom. The people below us were complaining about water damage to their ceiling. Lo and behold, my sink has been leaking. I didn't really notice any mold or any changes to my apartment, until I went to pull some things from the bathroom. I pulled my laundry hamper and there was mold all behind it. I know for a FACT that this wasn't there two weeks before the plumbers came.

Anyway, they tore out the vanity, and the entire wall on the sink's side, sprayed all sorts of crap, replaced the wall, painted, etc etc.

Well, I get an email from our rental company. "Attached is an invoice for damages assessed for your unit from the 2007-2008 lease year. The total damages for the unit have been split by all three tenants, and your portion is reflected on the attached invoice." All the invoice says is "Damages - Unit 206: $$$$"

I have been at the same apartment the last two years. We did not pay a security deposit either year. My same sink did leak (like, pipe BURST underneath my sink one day and flooded my bathroom) last year, but that's it and it was with a different company last year.

Is there a limit on how long they can charge for damages from a previous lease? I figured that once this years lease started, the previous tenants were obsolved from damages at most 30 days after moving out.

I think these charges are absolutely bogus. I did not cause the pipes behind my sink to leak. I did not ask for all of the stuff in my bathroom to be ruined from a pipe busting. Should I be going to campus and speaking to legal services?

[Edited on November 11, 2008 at 11:44 AM. Reason : Did not hire plumbers! They came at the authority of the rental company.]

11/11/2008 11:21:11 AM

Did you hire a plumber yourself to come fix it or did you have the apartment complex handle it?

11/11/2008 11:23:53 AM

student legal

they are responsible for maintaining a habitable residence

you shouldn't have to pay shit

11/11/2008 11:25:24 AM

yeah, why would you call a plumber?
you always call your landlord and have him call a plumber, or at the least clear any repairs with him.

11/11/2008 11:25:35 AM

Just saying....if you called a plumber on your own then you are probably liable. Most apartment complexes have approved people they use. How do they know you didn't hire some moron that came and busted all the shit up....or that you didn't try to fix it yourself?

11/11/2008 11:27:21 AM

oh i didnt see that you hired the plumber on your own

why the fuck would you do that?

11/11/2008 11:39:15 AM

Ack, no, I didn't hire the plumber at all. They showed up because of the water damage below us.

11/11/2008 11:42:39 AM

did the people below you hire the plumber?

11/11/2008 11:43:24 AM

I don't think so? I think it was one of the "Hey, we have water damage, can you send someone to look at it?"

11/11/2008 11:44:50 AM

Yeah fuck that then. If the complex provided the plumber then you shouldn't have to pay shit. That is one of the advantages of apartment living. When shit breaks or is damaged you don't have to pay to have it fixed. Unless, of course, they can prove that it was something you did that caused the leak.

[Edited on November 11, 2008 at 11:45 AM. Reason : a]

11/11/2008 11:44:59 AM

How should I phrase my communication to the rental company to say that they're completely bogus?

11/11/2008 11:52:05 AM

Just tell them that you are not liable for damage caused by plumbing failure, you refuse to pay, and any further attempt to collect this charge will result in you contacting an attorney.

11/11/2008 11:54:37 AM

How are they trying to charge you for it? Are they trying to say that you did something that caused the pipes to bust?

11/11/2008 12:02:37 PM

Quote :

"Just tell them that you are not liable for damage caused by plumbing failure, you refuse to pay, and any further attempt to collect this charge will result in you contacting an attorney."

That statement is on the money.
Don't discuss it with them.
Don't admit to any fault or negligence.
Stick to your guns on this one. It sounds like total b.s. to me.

11/11/2008 12:08:33 PM

Doesn't even matter, now that I read it again, you have to give an itemized list of damages and the accompanying charges anyway. They're fucked 8 ways from Sunday. Part of the risk of being a landlord is that damages will occur, normal wear and tear will occur, and you are responsible for upkeep.

11/11/2008 12:09:48 PM

Quote :

"How are they trying to charge you for it?"

By hoping she's just another college kid who doesn't know her rights and will pony up money without a fight.

11/11/2008 12:28:06 PM

Quote :

"By hoping she's just another college kid who doesn't know her rights and will pony up money without a fight."

Ha! They have yet to meet me and my father - I've inherited his assholeyness when it comes to money/my rights. I can smell bullshit on this situation.

I made sure to email my previous roommates though, and told them not to pay them a cent. They're the types that would pay with no questions asked.

11/11/2008 12:41:01 PM

Quote :

"obsolved"

11/11/2008 12:42:59 PM

Any chance this is from The Atria at Crabtree?

11/13/2008 12:12:47 AM

^^^ i hate to bring you down but i bet you wont have to be too bitchy, they will probably roll over for you when you challenge them.

11/13/2008 3:32:47 PM