How much worse can it get?
By carmella
@carmella (496)
United States
August 21, 2007 1:11pm CST
Have you ever asked yourself this question? Let me tell you how my life has gone the last week. First we have lived in a house for almost three months now that was not quite finished when we moved in and we were told it would all be done in two weeks tops. It all still is not done! Now the water heater "blew its top", 5 weeks ago and we have had to turn the water off and on as need as well as the power to the water heater. If we do not do this, water pumps out of the water heater onto the basement floor, and then mold starts growing, (we are highly allergic to molds), and the electric meter cranks up the killowatt hours.
Up till this month, we have always paid our rent on time, and had every intention of doing so this month as well, but we wanted the house and all it's issues and repairs taken care of. What we got was asked to be out by September 1st, or pay this months rent. Mind you this all was being said to us as we were going over all the repairs still needing done, especially the hot water heater, and the furnace that is still not conected and has a gas leak!
I do not feel that we are wrong here, I feel we have been treated unfairly and have been left to live in a house and pay full rent and not have the modern conviences you expect to have in a rental, ie... hot water when you need it, without turning on all sorts of knobs and switches and waiting an hour for hot water. A working furnace so on those nights, (we've had a few the past two weeks here in the mountains of Colorado), when it gets a little chilly, we can turn the heat on if we want to do so. No gas leak that causes us to have headaches.
I really need to know, am I wrong here? Should we have just handed over the rent and said, "no big deal about the repairs, we'll wait another three months"? We are left with no where to go now, and to put icing on the cake, we lost 70% of our income yesterday!
It really wouldn't be that big of a deal about the income. DH and I both work from home due to varrious disabilities that prevent us from being able to work you typical 9-5 job, but we have made it without help from anyone for the last 7 years, and we know we will make it again, but having to move at the same time we lost that much money is, well we have no clue how it is going to happen, none at all. If you all have any ideas, please by all means drop them on me. If you live in Colorado and have a one room log cabin you need taken care of for the winter, we'll take the job! If you have a used RV that you want to get rid of and can afford to sell it on payments, talk to me, we're interested. We have little at the moment, but we are survivors, we've survided a lot of misfortune and missery the last 7 years, but we are survivors and will continue to survive somehow. God is with us and we will be okay, we made it 1500 miles across the country in a 17 year old van with 190,000 miles on it, loaded to the hilt with the only belongings we had left, and God was with us all the way, and I know he is with us now too and will be through what ever happens over the next two weeks. Sometimes life is really scary though, isn't it?
Thanks to you all for listening and for any advice you can give us at this time. One thing though, the last thing we need is people looking down on us, so if you want to be nasty, please say nothing at all. We've lived through nothing short of hell the last 7 years, and none of it was because of anything we did wrong, so please be nice. If you would like to read about what we have gone through the last 7 years and what we are trying to do because of it all, please visit our web site at http://www.thejoyofhope.org, our story is there, as well as other stories from others who have gone through what we have.
3 people like this
7 responses
@Fishmomma (11377)
• United States
21 Aug 07
I would contact a lawyer, as landlords must follow the rules. Each state has requirements and you would need to see a lawyer in your state. There are lawyers that would take your case free of charge, but you may have to make a few calls. Good luck and hope things get better for both of you quickly.
@carmella (496)
• United States
22 Aug 07
We honestly have no desire to fight this man. He is a young rich guy, and we live in a county of less than 9000! I don't even know if there is an attorney around here, LOL Seriously though, we don't want to sue anyone, we only wanted a home to live in after 5 weeks in a tent, and we ended up with a nightmare. Right now I need exactly what I have gotten from everyone here, support, and the comfort of knowing I am not the one who is wrong in this, and that I was right in what I did.
Thank you!
@goddessglamourpuss (261)
•
21 Aug 07
That is such a raw deal.
First off you are absolutely right not to have paid the rent - from the sounds of it this guy is a real nut job to expect anyone to live there and pay for the privilege!!
I don't know much about the law on your side of the pond but I am sure he cannot just turf you out for non-payment if you have such legitimate greivances.
I'm really sorry I am unable to offer any practical assistance but your upbeat attitude really shines through and I'm glad you are still able to stay positive through it all.
3 people like this
@carmella (496)
• United States
22 Aug 07
I do try to stay positive, sometimes it is hard though. The thing that gets me is he acted as though it should not be aproblem that we have to turn the water and power on and off to the water heater and then wait up to an hour to have any hot water. He wanted us to pay him his full rent before any of the repairs were done. The repairs are atill not done and it has been almost a week since he was here. To make matters worse, there were repair men doing repairs on the house in front of us today, but no one ever came here to fix the water heater. The needed part was ordered last Tuesday, and we were told it would be here by Thursday. Then the owner showed up saying it would be a few more days before anyone could get out here with the part and put it on. In the mean time he wanted us to pay up. He threw me with his whole attitude, and I went off on him. He said I was being so agressive, LOL Yeah I think I was, but with good reason. The coversation ended with us agreeing to leave by the first and he would give us our deposit back, and august for free if we agreed. We agreed, we don't need to be in ahouse where we have no clue when anything will be repaired. The furnace has that gas leak, and it is going to cost as much to repair it as it would to just replace the furnace. Everyone keeps saying it's no big deal. If I can smell it up here and it is giving me a headache, then I say it is a big deal, especially when the leak is only maybe a foot from the flames of the furnace!
I'm sure it will all get better and everything will work out, I am just frustrated with the fact that another human can be so thoughtless of another.
@magikrose (5429)
• United States
22 Aug 07
I try not ask that question because when I do something happins to show me that things can get worse. All I try to do is hope for the best but at the same time expect the worst that way I am prepared for whatever happins.
I wish you the best in the near futre.
1 person likes this
@Aussies2007 (5336)
• Australia
22 Aug 07
You have made a common mistake that I have made myself a couple of times. You moved in a place which was not fit to live in. They made you verbal promises with nothing on paper.
They got you. They will tell you that you were happy to move in the place the way it was.
Under the law... no matter what... once you are in the place... you have to keep paying the rent. As long as you pay the rent... they cannot evict you. And if they try and you refuse to move... they have to take you into court. This will buy you time... and as you have plenty of evidences against them... there is a good chance that the court will get on your side.
You must have some government agency which protect tenants in your country. Ring them and explain your situation. Again... they cannot help you if you stop paying the rent. But if you do... they can force your landlord to fix the place.
There is only one risk. If the place is really bad and unfit to live in... and the landlord refuse to fix it...the government agency can condemn the place because it is unfit to live in and force you out. But if it is only about hot water... that should not be a problem.
Remember... possession is 99 per cent of the law. Nobody can put you on the street... even if you don't pay the rent. Only a court of law can put you on the street.
My advice... pay the rent and stand up to them. You have to fight if you want to succeed. Packing up and moving is not the way to go if you have no money to do so. Stay put. No court of law will evict you when you are right.
@carmella (496)
• United States
22 Aug 07
Fortunatly in the US, and namely in Colorado, you can withhold rent in our situation. Remember we also have a furnace that is non operable and has a gas leak. We looked into the laws a bit before we withheld the rent.
At this point there is a significant amount of mold growing in the basement, and our family is highly allergic to all molds. Our daughter is having nose bleeds again, and my husband and I are having respritory troubles. I am also suffering from headaches and all over body pains. These are all syptoms we have when we are in a moldy environment. You can see the mold, so there is no doubt it is mold causing our issues, that and the gas that has been leaking for the past 10 weeks.
At this point, I do not see the sense in figfhting. What are we going to fight for, a house that is making us sick? Not too mention the fact that we are poor, and if we pay him his rent, then who is going to pay the extra $200.00 light bill that the faulty water heater racked up? Part of him giving us august rent was to help pay that extra bill. It's a big mess, it really it is. It sadens me that people can be thoughtless, uncaring and down right mean to another human being.
@cassidy22 (2974)
• United States
21 Aug 07
The only thing I can think for you is if you kept detailed records of all that has happened, and can you file a suit to reclaim your losses? we do have a legal system in the states. There are landlord/tenant laws in Colorado, and in the case of a non-functional unit, the court will side in your favor. I've come to know the landlord/tenant laws in this state with my own issues dealing with a slum lord, which is what you have on your hands. They can't evict you without using the appropriate process, adn I suggest contacting your city attorney and filing a claim against this landlord. it's one thing to have stained carpet or nail holes in a wall. It's another thing to have a non-functional and potentially dangerous water heater malfunction! You are NOT in the wrong. your landlord threatened you with eviction because he/she KNOWS you are not wrong! There are laws, and those laws are to protect tenants from living in slums. Gas leaks are DANGEROUS and can lead to more than headaches. They have a RESPONSIBILITY to provide basic services - like roofs that don't leak, furnaces and water heaters that work, plumbing and electricity that are intact and not dangerous. What your landlord is doing is ILLEGAL!! Call a lawyer!
(send me a PM, if you live anywhere near me, I know a good lawyer who will do the trick for you, and in some cities you can apply for pro bono work if your financial situation allows it.)
I have found that whenever I have asked "can it get any worse" it usually does. Believe me, life can always get worse.
1 person likes this
@carmella (496)
• United States
22 Aug 07
As I mentioned a couple post back, I don't want to fight this man, and we gave our word we would be out the first, and we will. We have a tent and lived in it for 5 weeks, and can certainly do it again.
For the record though, we not only have detailed records, and letters to the realtor and owner, we alsohave photos of the mold in the basement caused by the water heater leak.
We want our deposit back, and out of his house. I just hope he fixes everything before putting someone else in here and letting them go through this. I am having a very hard time believing that anyone can be so cold and uncaring of anothers living sittuation in their rental. I know there are many slum lords out there, some wose than this guy, but it is just so hard to be me and try to imagine being so cold. What makes it even worse, is this guy comes off asbeing so sweet and nice. I just do not understand.
And yes, I need to be careful in what I ask, because it can get a whole lot worse!
@carmella (496)
• United States
23 Aug 07
Living in the tent for a few weeks would acually be fun, because we would go to the cool campgrounds and see lots of cool stuff. We really had a blast the 5 weeks we were camping, we had no clue where we were going and there was such great adventure in being in a new place every few days with no worry of getting home to work. We worked on the road, made what we needed to pay for the camping and a few things we wanted, food and gas. We were in no hurry to get anywhere, and best of all, we all we finally feeling alive again after years of feeling as though we were dying. My husband and I have horrible breathing problems, COPD, and asthma, but we could breath, even in the high altitudes we could breath. That all changed when we moved in here. My headaches that had been a burden for years and gone away almost entirely while camping, came back with a vengence when we moved in here. The only problem I was having in the tent, was my back was not dealing with the ground very well. We now have a nice air mattress, so that is okay now, LOL The more I think about it the more I think it would be fun to do it again for a few weeks.
You are right about what you said as far as the owner getting away with it and doing it again. That is what really upsets me, however, I cannot stay here long enough to fight him. It is getting cold, and with the cold the house will have to be closed up, and that creates a bad environment for my family, and my family's health is not worth fighting this man. This is a very strange little town, my husband calls it a dial up town in a DSL world, LOL This town moves that slow! The owner said he will return our deposit, and I am holding him to his word. If he fails to keep his word, then I probably will take him into small claims court. Right now though, I just want out of here and back on the path of healing from the last 7 years.
@cassidy22 (2974)
• United States
22 Aug 07
Well, you can do as you may. I'd want out of there too. But he has no right to evict you, and sounds as if he hasn't even followed the eviction procedures appropriately. You may be able to take him to court over that, over your security deposit, and many other things. It might help make the difference up between your lost income, and keep you from having to live in a tent. I love camping, don't get me wrong, but being quasi-homeless can get old quickly, and you shouldn't be going through any of this. I'm not saying it's about the money, I'm saying it's about RIGHT vs WRONG (which is why I am taking MY landlord to court!) and he shouldn't be able to get away with treating tenants like he treated you. And if he does get away with it, YOU KNOW he'll do it again!
1 person likes this
@Rozie37 (15499)
• Turkmenistan
21 Aug 07
First things first, don't ever challenge fate by asking, What else can go wrong. Secondly, there are specific procedures that you have to follow when dealing with a slum lord. I do not know what they are, but it would behoove you to look them up and get familiar with them.
That being said, it is time for you to sit down and rest. This is manditory. If you are a child of God and you have done all that you know to do, it is time to relax. Pray and trust him to work it out. God sees what you are going through and he knows exactly what you need.
He has already worked it out. The Bible says, trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy path. Your test will be a testimony. Make sure you give him thanks and then tell us about it. God bless you.
2 people like this
@carmella (496)
• United States
22 Aug 07
As soon as I read your words, I looked for an edit button for that title, LOL You are so right! I know God is in control and I also know I need to calm down and relax as you said, and I am trying, but it can be hard not to be a little stressed considering next Friday is coming fast and we have no where to go and are in a place where we know absolutly no one! Our story goes back 7 years, and even though we have lost everything we owned, and traveled 1500 miles from the only people we know, we still have faith, and will never let go of that no matter what. God is our guide and He will lead us to where he wants us to be. I guess we should have listened when we were turned down to begin with, instead we offered an extra $50.00 a month because we were tired of camping and wanted a home. That is what we get for ignoring what God wants. Next time He says no, I'll listen, LOL
1 person likes this
@carmella (496)
• United States
22 Aug 07
That was powerful! What you said about the app for the hom,eless shelter. We have placed all our faith in God, and to be honest, I wouldn't care if we had to live in the tent again for a while. We all were getting better from how sick we all were. The problem with doing that is that I am concerned about what others will say about the kids. It seems anymore child services want to yank every child they can away from the parents. I feel like it is okay to live in a house that is making them sick, but I could loose them if we were to just live in a tent, even though in the tent they are healing fromall the toxins they were exposed to in the moldy house. It's crazy.
I have placed it all in God's hands though, He will protect us, and He will guide us through all this and into what He wants for us. This time we WILL listen to Him, LOL We learnt our lesson with this house on that.
Thank you for all your kind words, they have been uplifting and very helpful to me.
God Bless!
1 person likes this
@Rozie37 (15499)
• Turkmenistan
22 Aug 07
Don't beat yourself up about the mistakes that you have made. In God, everything is a learning opportunity. You have to understand, that God knew that this was going to happen to you, before he even created you.
Do you think that he is in heaven going, oh my, what am I going to do now. I only have til Friday to make a way for them. No, a way has already been made. There is no one above God, he does not have to consult with anyone about helping you.
I have been in very similair situations, many times. I have never spent on night on the street or in a homeless shelter. I remember once, I thought that I was going to end up in a homeless shelter. Then while I was filling out the application, one of the questions asked. What did you do to end up homeless. At that point, I knew that there was no way in the world that I was going to end up there, because the only answer I could give was that I trusted God.
1 person likes this
@dreamr802 (985)
• United States
22 Aug 07
Wow, I am so sorry that you guys have gone through this! You were definitely right in not giving the rent for this month, especially after paying full rent for the past 3 months without your basic necessities. I would honestly try to sue the landlord to get some of your money back. Especially with the contract that you signed, it should state something about who handles repairs. I would try to get your money back, or even threatening to sue might straighten the landlord out. But if not, I would sue and move somewhere else if possible. If I lived in CO I would try to help you guys, but I am in FL. But I wish you guys all the luck in the world...and hopefully it will all work out for you guys!
@carmella (496)
• United States
22 Aug 07
You are so sweet, thank you for being so kind!
We do not want to sue, although we certainly could, that is just not us. For one thing it would be a major headache, and in all honesty the only thing I want him to pay for is the ridiculous light bill the faulty water heater ran up, and some compensation for all the work we've had to do because of this and the major inconvienence of turning everything on and off and waiting for hot water every night. I'm frustrated, and anoyed, but I really don't want to fight this out in court. Not only would it be a mess, but what kind of reference wpould we get for a new place? It's a mess. But thank you so much for being so kind!
