questions & answers

Question: My dishwasher stopped turning on just prior to stay at home orders. With respect to maintenance men, & requests from the complex to only submit emergency requests, I didn’t report. However, my garbage disposal has subsequently stopped working & will not drain, leaving water growing increasingly murky & smelly in the sink. Property managers, assistant managers, & online portal request managers have ignored my requests for resolution for over a week now. What can I do?

Answer: Under A.R.S. 33-1361, you may provide the landlord written notice of the breach in writing that the lease will terminate within 10 days after the receipt of the notice if the breach is not remedied. That notice period goes down to 5 days in the event of a breach "materially affecting health and safety". This assumes you want to get out of the lease though. The landlord may just not fix it and let you leave. Another option is "self-help" under the following statute: 33-1363. Self-help for minor defects A. If the landlord fails to comply with section 33-1324, and the reasonable cost of compliance is less than three hundred dollars, or an amount equal to one-half of the monthly rent, whichever amount is greater, the tenant may recover damages for the breach under section 33-1361, subsection B, or may notify the landlord of the tenant's intention to correct the condition at the landlord's expense. After being notified by the tenant in writing, if the landlord fails to comply within ten days or as promptly thereafter as conditions require in case of emergency, the tenant may cause the work to be done by a licensed contractor and, after submitting to the landlord an itemized statement and a waiver of lien, deduct from his rent the actual and reasonable cost of the work, not exceeding the amount specified in this subsection. B. A tenant may not repair at the landlord's expense if the condition was caused by the deliberate or negligent act or omission of the tenant, a member of the tenant's family or other person on the premises with the tenant's consent or if the condition repaired does not constitute a breach of the fit and habitable condition of the premises. If the cost to fix the disposal is less than the greater of $300.00 or 1/2 of your monthly rent, you may notify the landlord in writing and, if not repaired 10 days after notice, you may cause the repair work to be done on your own by a licensed contractor and deduct it from rent after giving the landlord an invoice. Here is a link to the Arizona Residential Landlord Tenant Act containing the statutes I referenced and other helpful statutes. Please do be sure to comply with the specific notice requirements in each statute: https://housing.az.gov/sites/default/files/documents/files/Landlord-Tenant-Act-ADOH-Publication-July-2018_0.pdf