Landlord Woes

Have you ever wished you picked a different place to live? I do right now. Our landlord is a totally and complete lying idiot.

We were refrerred to him by a person at the parish. We thought we would give him a chance as he was just starting out in the rental business. (We were told he was a good kid though.) That was a dumb mistake.

He told us, as we were looking at the house, that he was working on waterproofing the basement, putting a gutter up over the door (so we don’t get rained on), having the carpets cleaned, and cleaning the garbage left on the deck by the previous occupants. Also, he said that he was going to put a washer and dryer in the basement. This was all in early August. We said we needed to talk about it and we would get back to him.

We called him the next day and told him we would take it. He offered it to us for $100 less per month then he had it listed for and we thanked him. J offered to take care of the lawn in exchange for the lower rent and we also said, don’t worry about the washer and dryer, we were planning on buying a set anyway.

A week later we got a call from him. “Are you still interested in the apartment?” Uh, yes, we told you that a week ago. Agreed to terms and told you our move in date. (Bells going off in my head but I just chalked it up to him being busy with work or something.)

Fast forward to move in date. We call him and to let him know when we will be arriving. He meets us at the house and we sign the lease. I wrote him a check for the first months rent and the deposit (and he seemed surprised that we had it!!). However, we were told that that carpet cleaner person canceled on him. Uh, you knew we were moving in for two weeks and you scheduled the cleaner to come the day we moved in? We told him we needed to return the van and not to worry, not the smartest move, but we couldn’t afford a hotel or to keep the van for an extra day.

The garbage was still on the deck and stunk to high heaven (he did take care of that though, as we were moving things in). The basement hadn’t been touched since the day we looked at the place. He didn’t want us to put a washer/dryer down there until he finished the basement. Oh and no gutter.

We got things moved in. Dealt with the lousy plummer that he uses for some bathroom issues and just tried to deal with it all. Oh, did I mention that he decided to paint the porch the day we moved in? Yep!

J met the girls upstairs and found out that the landlord PROMISED them a washer and dryer in the basement when they moved in six months ago. Of course, J called the him and said that we weren’t going to put a washer/dryer in if he has already promised to do so. Landlord gives a song and dance story about something. J put his foot down and said it needed to be in by the end of the week. They were installed a few days later.

About the lawn mowing. J asked landlord where the lawnmower was. Landlord showed him and said that he would bring a gas can over that week so J could mow the lawn. Two months later, that can finally showed up. AFTER the landlord accused J of not looking for it, or saying that someone stole it out of the garage. Right.

So that pretty much left the gutter issue. Every time it rains and we leave the house, we get soaked. Leaving isn’t as bad as coming back in when we have to stand there and unlock the door. J was told by landlord that the gutter would be up by last week. It wasn’t.

Well, it snowed yesterday, melted and snowed again. The spot in front of our door is sure to become an ice rink in just a matter of time. J called landlord and said, we need the gutter. Landlord said “I am looking to have a new roof put on, so the gutter will have to wait”. At that point J starts (nicely) telling him that we are tired of the lies and the broken promises. Landlord LAUGHED at J. J goes on to say that I am pregnant and I can’t afford to take a spill on the deck. Also, that said baby is due in just a few days and we will have to carry him/her through the icy deck or the drippings off the roof. Landlord laughed.

I would really like to move out, but that isn’t an option right now.