Tenant says it looks like an explosion down there (basement)
A tenant called and stated the basement looks like there has been an explosion down there. He said he went down into the basement and turned off the water after seeing hot water had been coming out of the overflow valve of the hot water heater. It had been going on long enough that mold was on the drywall. The basement was fairly dry before, not finished but had drywall on edges, studs on the interior, poured cement floor, and luckily a French drain around the perimeter. He said he doesn’t go down there very much. In my lease I have the following
Under Repairs
1. Tenant shall take good care of the premises, it’s fixtures and equipment and keep in good working order. Tenant shall immediately notify landlord when any maintenance or repairs are necessary to the premises. Landlord reserves the right to enter the premises for purposes of maintenance and repair when landlord deems necessary.
2. Tenant shall be responsible for the costs of all maintenance or repairs resulting from tenants neglect, miss use, or failure to take good care of the premises.
3. If tenant fails to immediately notify landlord of the need for repair or maintenance, and additional damage occurs to the premises which could have been prevented if landlord had been able to make prompt repairs, tenant shall be responsible for the cost of repairing the additional damage even if the original damage was not tenants fault.
Would this be a situation where the tenant should pay for all/some of the dry wall needing replacement ? Would you consider it a black and white or gray situation ? My handyman who drives by the place often, thinks the tenant has not been there very much lately.