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Landlord Rent Issues....what should my gf (Swedish) do?

D

DaviDaVinci

Golden Member
There are 4 people that live in this house with one of them being the landlord. A couple months ago the yard flooded and water came into the basement (into my gf's room through the window). She had to stay at a friends for over a week and a few days upstairs in the landlord's office. In the meantime the landlord decided that leaving a couple of fans running without lifting the carpet would take care of the water under the carpet.

Anyhow, a month later the yard flooded again (sprinkler stuff....) and this time the carpet guys were called out and then the mold guys. Turned out that there was mold growing on the inside of the sheet rock under the window sill. So they tore the wall up and replaced it and also treated the insides with mold treatment stuff. So now she's out of her room for 2 weeks and was relocated to the landlord's office again upstairs.

Here's the issue. The rent is $330 plus utilities. The first time the landlord took off $80 (which I though was not enough). This time the landlord wants full rent for the current mishap.

She's pretty pissed that she had to moved all her stuff out of her room and then moved it upstairs (twice now). Her bathroom is outside her room so now she had to come downstairs every time. To top it off her landlord had clients come in and out of her office (she's a realtor).

Is there some landlord/tenant law (in Montana) that requires the landlord to discount this past months rent for not having her room for 2 weeks or is she basically $crewed?

She's already decided to put in her one month written notice tomorrow.

Thanks in advance.
 
i think Swedish girlfriends have different laws about renting


but i don't know what they are


:camera:'s?
 
Check your lease. My guess is that you are SOL. If it were me, I'd have demanded that they hire movers to move my stuff and pay for a nearby hotel room, assuming that this is landlord negligence / building inadequacy and not just a rare and unfortunate natural event.
 
Landlord and Tenant Rights and Responsibilities -- Tenant-Landlord Hotline 1-888-345-7474 -or- mthotline@gmail.com

Like verbal rental agreements, verbal notification is recognized by Montana law. A landlord may not refuse to make necessary repairs because notice was not given in writing. However, a tenant who gives verbal notification would be well advised to send the landlord a certified letter documenting the prior notification so as to avoid the possibility of a landlord claiming that notification was, in fact, not given.

Montana law specifies a time period of 14 days for the repair of problems in the unit that materially affect health and safety of the premesis. If the problem results in a case of emergency, the problem must be fixed in 3 days. In the initial notification letter, the tenant may specify that if the repair is not completed within 14 days the rental agreement will terminate in 30 days. In the case of an emergency, the tenant may specify that the rental agreement will terminate immediately if the repair is not completed in 3 days. If the landlord fails to have the necessary repairs made within the proper time period the tenant has a variety of options for having the repair made, if they do not wish to terminate the agreement.

Option 4: Substitute Housing
The tenant may procure substitue housing until such time as the landlord has made the necessary repairs. During this time the tenant is not required to pay rent to the landlord.

If the defect is life threatening, the landlord must correct the problem in 24 hours. After the deficiency has been fixed, the tenant must call the local Section 8 agency to schedule another inspection to verify that the problem has been fixed. The landlord should verify with the local agency that a reinspection has been scheduled. MDOC will not issue a rent check to the landlord until a reinspection has been completed.
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[add]
70-24-303. Landlord to maintain premises -- agreement that tenant perform duties -- limitation of landlord's liability for failure of smoke detector. (1) A landlord:
(a) shall comply with the requirements of applicable building and housing codes materially affecting health and safety in effect at the time of original construction in all dwelling units where construction is completed after July 1, 1977;
(b) may not knowingly allow any tenant or other person to engage in any activity on the premises that creates a reasonable potential that the premises may be damaged or destroyed or that neighboring tenants may be injured by any of the following:
(i) criminal production or manufacture of dangerous drugs, as prohibited by 45-9-110;
(ii) operation of an unlawful clandestine laboratory, as prohibited by 45-9-132; or
(iii) gang-related activities, as prohibited by Title 45, chapter 8, part 4;
(c) shall make repairs and do whatever is necessary to put and keep the premises in a fit and habitable condition;
(d) shall keep all common areas of the premises in a clean and safe condition;
(e) shall maintain in good and safe working order and condition all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air-conditioning, and other facilities and appliances, including elevators, supplied or required to be supplied by the landlord;
(f) shall, unless otherwise provided in a rental agreement, provide and maintain appropriate receptacles and conveniences for the removal of ashes, garbage, rubbish, and other waste incidental to the occupancy of the dwelling unit and arrange for their removal;
(g) shall supply running water and reasonable amounts of hot water at all times and reasonable heat between October 1 and May 1, except if the building that includes the dwelling unit is not required by law to be equipped for that purpose or the dwelling unit is so constructed that heat or hot water is generated by an installation within the exclusive control of the tenant; and
(h) shall install, in accordance with rules adopted by the department of justice, an approved smoke detector in each dwelling unit under the landlord's control. Upon commencement of a rental agreement, the landlord shall verify that the smoke detector in the dwelling unit is in good working order. The tenant shall maintain the smoke detector in good working order during the tenant's rental period. For purposes of this subsection, an approved smoke detector is a device that is capable of detecting visible or invisible particles of combustion and that bears a label or other identification issued by an approved testing agency having a service for inspection of materials and workmanship at the factory during fabrication and assembly.
(2) If the duty imposed by subsection (1)(a) is greater than a duty imposed by subsections (1)(b) through (1)(h), a landlord's duty must be determined by reference to subsection (1)(a).
(3) A landlord and tenant of a one-, two-, or three-family residence may agree in writing that the tenant perform the landlord's duties specified in subsections (1)(f) and (1)(g) and specified repairs, maintenance tasks, alteration, and remodeling but only if the transaction is entered into in good faith and not for the purpose of evading the obligations of the landlord.
(4) A landlord and tenant of a one-, two-, or three-family residence may agree that the tenant is to perform specified repairs, maintenance tasks, alterations, or 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 and is set forth in a separate writing signed by the parties and supported by adequate consideration;
(b) the work is not necessary to cure noncompliance with subsection (1)(a); and
(c) the agreement does not diminish the obligation of the landlord to other tenants in the premises.
(5) The landlord is not liable for damages caused as a result of the failure of the smoke detector required under subsection (1)(h).

History: En. 42-420 by Sec. 20, Ch. 313, L. 1977; R.C.M. 1947, 42-420; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 567, L. 1989; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 706, L. 1991; amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 401, L. 1997; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 408, L. 2003.
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Originally posted by: mooglemania85
Originally posted by: JDMnAR1
Originally posted by: PricklyPete
no pics?
Click to expand...

Seriously...what does her nationality matter in a rent dispute unless there are accompanying pics? 😕
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

Dammit, OP is offline. However, it's a good opportunity to post some links!

Would you say she's more like

linky

or more similar to one of these girls?

linky2

Or perhaps this fits the bill? 😉

linky3
 
Originally posted by: JDMnAR1
Originally posted by: PricklyPete
no pics?
Click to expand...

Seriously...what does her nationality matter in a rent dispute unless there are accompanying pics? 😕
Click to expand...

QFT.

Either way you are probably looking at small claims. What the landlord thinks is fair and the tenants are two different things.

Has the swede even bothered to ask the landlord for more of a break due to her inconvenience.

Also I am hoping the room was definitely uninhabitable and she just didn't elect to move out to dramatize it.
 
The landlord provided accomidations for her.

If she paid to have her stuff moved, he should compensate.

She does not get free rent.
 
Originally posted by: mooglemania85
Originally posted by: mooglemania85
Originally posted by: JDMnAR1
Originally posted by: PricklyPete
no pics?
Click to expand...

Seriously...what does her nationality matter in a rent dispute unless there are accompanying pics? 😕
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

Dammit, OP is offline. However, it's a good opportunity to post some links!

Would you say she's more like

linky

or more similar to one of these girls?

linky2

Or perhaps this fits the bill? 😉

linky3
Click to expand...

You win for providing pics.
 
Also, to the OP, your friend didn't have to pay out of pocket for accommodation while the issue was being handled. She was living in the same house. Only difference here was the inconvenience of having to move out all the stuff and _possibly_ having to go downstairs to use the bathroom.

In any case, they should try to work out a compromise. Not having to pay the months rent is unfair to the landlord, but having to pay it in full is unfair to your friend for having to relocate for no fault of hers.
 
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