Renter Safety Is A Landlord’s Responsibility
Michael Babboni
Personal Injury
Depending on your financial situation, or simply your stage in life, owning a home may not actually be the most sensible thing for you to do at a given time. For example, if you’re single, working many hours at your profession, and you hardly spend much time at home, it might make more sense for you to rent an apartment, condo, or space within a home converted over to renting purposes. This way, some of your utilities are taken care of, and, more importantly, you’re not tied down with a mortgage and a home you need to sell should you decide to move to another location.This also means that, for renters, the overall structural integrity of a residence is NOT your responsibility. That burden falls on the owner/landlord, or management if there is a company handling landlord responsibilities. So what does this mean for tenants?
Tenants Must Respect The Property
One thing that both sides must understand is that while you are living in a space like an apartment, condo, or remodeled home, this is not your property to 100% do as you please. Obviously, if you would like to paint the walls or hang up a few pictures, that’s your prerogative. However, you have no authority to remodel the space, such as deciding that two small bedrooms would function better as a larger room by knocking down the walls between them.
You live on the property, but you do not own it. Therefore, because you are relieved of the legal obligation to care for the residence, you also lack the authority to make fundamental, structural changes to it.
Landlords Must Protect The Tenants
Conversely, the landlord’s job is to take on any expenses that are required to maintain the structural integrity of a building and ensure tenant safety. If a severe storm blows off portions of the roof, inviting water to collect and possibly cause a mold infestation which is hazardous to the tenants, the landlord is expected to bear the repair expense. If there building is old, and has a weak foundation, or uneven steps that make negotiating the stairs difficult, the landlord must take action to fix these problems.
If a landlord does not do these things, and tenants come to harm as a result of the inaction, this is a clear case of negligence. When a problem is well documented, but the people required to remedy situation do not act, the law sides with the victims who have come to harm as a result of this inaction.
This means that if you slip and fall while climbing up the steps of the home you are renting, and get injured because of this, you should get the help of a St. Pete lawyer for personal injury and start going over the details of your case. Under no circumstances does a landlord have any legal protection against failing to do work that is necessary to the safety of tenants. This is especially true if injuries impact the ability of those tenants to work, live and earn their salary.
If you’ve been injured because of the neglected condition of the home you are renting, you don’t have to simply accept it. Get a personal injury lawyer and start on the road to making your landlord accept his or her legal responsibilities to you.