Landlord and Tenant Rights and Responsibilities

questions & answers

Question: Landlord has an outstanding water bill and City of Tucson Water will not allow me to put water in my name until his is paid. In the meantime we have been with out water for two days and have a baby in the house and I don't know what to do? Can anyone help?

Answer: The following is provided for general information only. To find out how the law applies to a specific situation, contact an attorney directly. “If a landlord fails to provide running water, gas and/or electrical service, or fails to provide reasonable amounts of hot water, heat and/or cooling, then the tenant may give notice to the landlord that he is in breach of the lease. At that point, the tenant has one of the following three options: Option One: The tenant can arrange for utilities on his own and deduct the cost from the rent. With the utility company’s approval, a tenant group or group of tenants can pay a landlord’s delinquent utility bill and deduct that amount from their rent. Option Two: The tenant can file suit and recover damages based on the decreased fair rental value of the residence. Option Three: The tenant can find substitute housing (e.g. a motel) during the period of the landlord’s noncompliance. If this occurs, the tenant is excused from paying rent for as long as the landlord does not provide the essential service” (A.R.S. 33-1364). In addition: “If the landlord fails to comply with the lease in a material way, the tenant can deliver a written notice to the landlord explaining the failure and stating that the lease will terminate in 10 days. If the landlord’s noncompliance is materially affecting the tenant’s health and safety, then the same notice can state that the lease will end in 5 days. There are two exceptions. First, if the problem can be fixed before the date specified on the notice, then the lease will continue. Second, the problem cannot have been cause by the tenant or his guest” (A.R.S. 33-1361). For more information you may want to review the LANDLORDS AND TENANTS RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES ARTICLE. A.R.S. 33-1364 http://www.azleg.gov/FormatDocument.asp?inDoc=/ars/33/01364.htm&Title=33&DocType=ARS A.R.S. 33-1361 http://www.azleg.gov/FormatDocument.asp?inDoc=/ars/33/01361.htm&Title=33&DocType=ARS LANDLORDS AND TENANTS RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES ARTICLE http://www.azlawhelp.org/articles_info.cfm?sc=24&mc=3&articleid=25

QUESTIONS

  • Landlord has an outstanding water bill and City of Tucson Water will not allow me to put water in my name until his is paid. In the meantime we have been with out water for two days and have a baby in the house and I don't know what to do? Can anyone help?

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