We Want to Sue Our Landlord. Do We Have a Case?

Question

This going to be a lengthy post, so bear with me and appreciate the time for reading this.

Background: My mother-in-law is having a difficult time with her landlord. She lives in a house in a lot of three homes in Los Angeles. When she first moved in 15 years ago, she paid $1,200 for rent. However, within the last couple of years her and her landlord have not seen eye to eye. There have been several mishaps from her landlord. At the beginning, the tenants consisted of herself, her son, two daughters and her husband. Since then, she had two other children, who are now 8 and 4. Three years ago, her husband moved out and I moved in.

A) Rent Increases for Additional Tenants

However, a year after I had been living there, the landlord decided to increase the rent because according to her, three new tenants were living there: the two kids and myself. As a result, the rent went from $1,200 to $1,485. She had full knowledge that all three of us resided within the home for more than a year. In other words, she cannot legally have my mother-in law pay for the extra $285 correct?

B) Written Notices

The landlord has not been writing any of the rent increases in writing. Just recently, she provided my mother-in-law with a rent increase in writing. Only recently when we brought up this concern with her (a week ago).

C) Entering the Home

The landlord has been sending his contractor to work at the house—3 weeks ago, he was fixing the shower because it was growing mold underneath the shower tiles. He would come very early, 7am, and would leave around 7pm, disrupting neighbors.

D) Responsibility for Repairs

My mother-in-law had to argue with the landlord and constantly tell her to fix the shower—which was growing mold within the walls, thus pushing out the tiles. It took her months to get the contractor to do the work on the house—which, he left unfinished. The side door of the house was replaced by the landlord with a “inside door”, thus causing the door to mess up due to the rain—it is not the right door. It has been a year of my mother-in-law asking the landlord to fix it and she has not.

F) Temporary Relocation

When the contractor was fixing the shower, no one would be able to shower and after much back and forth with the landlord, she finally decided to accommodate the family’s need for a shower and booked a hotel. However, there are 7 people residing in the home; for the first 2 days, she rented out 2 rooms with 2 beds each. However, the contractor said that the work would have to stretch out another day. The landlord lady did not want to pay anymore for the relocation and only rented out one room with one bed….for 7 people on the last day.

G) Guests Staying in Unit

My mother-in-law began dating a nice gentleman a few months ago, and like any couple, he stays over a couple nights a month and visits occasionally to spend time with the family. However, the landlord wants to increase the rent because she believes he is a new tenant—he does not live there, he has his own place. My mother-in-law made it clear that he does not live there, which the landlord lady replied that, even as a guest, he had exceeded his visitation limit. Can she even do this? It is not on the contract. Lastly, there are few important things to mention. (1) All the work the landlord has done on the house, has been done by an unlicensed contractor. (2) The only person she appears to constantly be doing this too, is my mother-in law.

Recently, when my mother-in-law brought all these issues to the landlord’s attention and stated that she only wanted to talk to her about the house issues (the landlord says she is not the owner of the house, that is some other lady, who is not even on the contact is), she retaliated and provided us with another rent increase. This time from $1,485 to $1,634 with a few conditions added. We checked in with the neighbors and their contract appears to indicate that they pay $1,300 for their home—which has 3 bedrooms and a washer and dryer. Our home only has 2 bedrooms and no washer or dryer. What can we do? Can we sue her? It feels like what she is doing is harassment.

Account Closed · Answer

@Diana

@Diana Rendon this is not a pro sue your landlord site. If you don’t like landlords then buy a house for you or who ever you want. Taxes go up so does rents. If you don’t like the landlord then move. If you think the house stinks then move. Everybody wants to sue somebody. The only folks that can afford billboards these days is Attorneys it seems.

George W. · Answer

For $1,485/mo go find another place in la where 7 people can reside. Also 7 people shouldn't be living in a 2 bed room apartment. if anything it acutally probably sounds like your harassing the landlord.

Terrell Garren · Answer

Maybe use your spare time to write your landlord a thank you note instead of practicing tenant law.

Brian Zaug · Answer

Find another apartment to live in. I'm sure this landlord won't mind you moving out

Theresa Harris · Answer

@Diana Rendon A few things going on. You've done a good job looking up the information. The rent increase is a max of 10% per additional person. With 3 additional people the increase is within those guidelines. She can also increase the rent for other reasons.

As for the hotel, you may be 7 people (now 8), but if you are renting a 2 bedroom house, she was not unreasonable when she rented you two rooms with 2 beds each-it isn't any more space than your mother in law currently has.

The fact that there are 7 or 8 people living in a 2 bedroom house is another thing, I'm sure it is crowded. I don't know how old the 3 oldest kids are, but if you've moved in with one (where do all of your sleep??); I'm guessing at least 1 of the 5 kids is over 18 and there are 3 people working in the house. Why not try to find a place that is better suited to having two couples and 4 other kids living under one roof?

Anthony Dooley · Answer

@Diana Rendon Rents increase due to a variety of reasons. Property tax increases, insurance costs, and government regulations just to name a few. Over the past 15 years, don't you expect the rent to increase? Especially in CA? A $285 increase in rent over a 15 year period is a very small increase considering that rents have been increasing 3% annually for a decade now. If you can find a better place for that price in your area, you should move. You could also get your own place, seeing that this is between your mother-in-law and the landlord. I would evict you for exceeding the occupancy for a 2 bedroom house, but CA laws make it more difficult for landlords.

Will Barnard · Answer

I suggest you have your mother in law consult an attorney as I am am not one and my advice here is not to be construed as legal advice.

From your original post, and if all true and accurate, it appears the landlord has failed to properly make efficient and timely repairs (assuming repair requests were sent in writing and you have such documentation to prove it). The interior door install for an exterior door is certainly a violation and a fire and liability hazard. The mold and tile repairs - also sound like the landlord failed to properly and efficiently make the repairs needed - health and safety violations. You can certainly have your mother in law report these alleged violations to the authorities as well.

As to the hotel of two bedrooms, since the home is only two bedrooms, I don't feel that was below par but again, I'm not an attorney. As to rent increases, if the rent increase is labeled in writing as to the reason, i.e. additional occupants, and the proper timelines were not adhered to, you certainly should have a case there as well but do keep in mind that unless this property is under rent control, and unless the current lease agreement states differently, the landlord can raise the rents for any other reason and as such, even if you win the case to lower them back to original, the landlord can subsequently raise them back up for a proper reason and with proper notice.

Going to court should be your last resort in my opinion, but that is just an opinion.

Lastly, the rental amount sounds very cheap as it sits and although I don't know which area of LA this is in, any place in LA for a two bedroom is going to likely be more than that. Hope you can find an amenable solution as moving is never fun or easy!

Account Closed · Answer

@Will Barnard I hope no one encourages someone to consult an attorney against you.

Theresa Harris · Answer

@Diana Rendon It may not be easy for her to move, but going the route of the lawsuit is not going to make her life easier. She can try talking to the landlord about the repairs, but it seems she's done that based on what you wrote. From a landlord's perspective, costs go up and rents increase. Having more people living there means extra costs if the landlord pays for things like water. They could also shoot themselves in the foot and report her as exceeding the capacity of a 2 bedroom house and this could result in her having to move. Plus when the landlord rented to her, it was a family of 5 which then became a family of 7 and is now a single mom with several adult children and their partner living there along with her boyfriend. I know it isn't what you want to hear, but chances are the landlord is hoping she will move.

Joe P. · Answer

I am going to take a different approach than others have -- it seems like there are some repairs that are sorely needed and are not being accomplished. (It sounds like the rest of the items, while undesirable, are not sue-worthy, so to speak).

So ask yourself this -- you have a landlord who is basically not doing what he's supposed to from your vantage point, and you want to sue. For what? Money? How do you think this is going to play out?

Here's what I say -- move. Start the process. If you truly feel like this landlord is not holding up his end of the bargain, and you need to take him to court over it, you're going to waste a lot of time for what I think will be a meager return. Put your energy (and money) to something that will have a better end-result for you, which is moving.

There's definitely some missteps from this landlord, no doubt, and you might have a case...but where? Small claims? What are you going to actually sue him for? And I'm sure the judge is going to ask you some tough questions (and him)...why don't you just move?

We Want to Sue Our Landlord. Do We Have a Case?

We Want to Sue Our Landlord. Do We Have a Case?

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