questions & answers

Question: My apartment maintenance man flooded our apartment with toilet water. They did no cleanup. They did dry carpet and replace small area of carpet pad. We now have mold. They denied it till got inspection. Now want to transfer us but make us reapply and pay deposits. What can we legally do?

Answer: Under the Arizona Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, the responsibility to “make all repairs and do whatever is necessary to put and keep the premises in a fit and habitable condition” is the landlord’s alone (A.R.S. 33-1324). The tenant is only responsible if and to whatever extent the tenant either caused or exacerbated the problem. Ordinarily, the landlord will assume costs related to the making of required repairs so long as the current rental agreement continues. If you believe that your landlord is making unfair financial requests, then you may wish to seek legal advice. There are links to free and low-cost legal services on this website (at http://www.azlawhelp.org/accessToJustice).