warranty of habitability
The good news: Pennsylvania implies a warranty of habitability into every residential lease contract.
The bad news: It is a pretty limited warranty. Landlords are required to keep the property in a safe, sanitary and livable condition. Only serious issues like the absence of a working toilet or inadequate heat in the winter are covered.
What you can do:
If the problem is still not repaired, you have several options. These options are only available if you can show that the defect created a serious, unsafe condition, the landlord was provided with written notice of the condition and the landlord did not repair the condition within a reasonable period of time.
HINT: These remedies can be risky! If an apartment is uninhabitable, there is usually a fire, safety or housing code that is being violated. Contacting the appropriate municipal agency can help you determine whether the property is really uninhabitable, and can help get the problem fixed more quickly. For the appropriate municipal agency, go to the Centre Region Code Agency website.
The bad news: It is a pretty limited warranty. Landlords are required to keep the property in a safe, sanitary and livable condition. Only serious issues like the absence of a working toilet or inadequate heat in the winter are covered.
What you can do:
- First, notify the landlord of the condition of writing.
- Second, give the landlord reasonable time to fix the problem. 'Reasonable' is not well-defined, but is connected to the seriousness and immediacy of the defect. For example, a hole in the roof in a dry week in the summer doesn't have to be addressed as quickly as a hole in the roof in the middle of a snowstorm.
If the problem is still not repaired, you have several options. These options are only available if you can show that the defect created a serious, unsafe condition, the landlord was provided with written notice of the condition and the landlord did not repair the condition within a reasonable period of time.
- 'Repair and deduct'. You can repair the condition and deduct the cost from your rent.
- Terminate the lease. If you choose this option you must give notice to the landlord and completely move out of the apartment.
- Damages. You can file a lawsuit and request damages you incurred as a result of the uninhabitable property. This suit can be in addition to repairing it yourself or ending the lease, or as its own remedy.
- Specific performance. The tenant can ask the court to force the landlord to make the necessary repairs. This is an unusual remedy, but available if nothing else is adequate.
HINT: These remedies can be risky! If an apartment is uninhabitable, there is usually a fire, safety or housing code that is being violated. Contacting the appropriate municipal agency can help you determine whether the property is really uninhabitable, and can help get the problem fixed more quickly. For the appropriate municipal agency, go to the Centre Region Code Agency website.
Every situation is different. This website is meant to give you only general information, not specific legal advice.
For legal advice, consult an attorney.
For legal advice, consult an attorney.