Can I Sue my Landlord for Water Leak in my Apartment?

Owning a home is no longer an attainable dream for many people, and frankly, it may not be in their interest based on their lifestyle. Unfortunately, it’s getting more and more difficult to find affordable housing, especially in the state of California. That’s why causing problems with your landlord is the last thing you want to do, even if your living quarters are far from ideal.

As a renter, there are many things you have to put up with, but what if your apartment has a water leak from a broken faucet or broken shower? Do you have a right to file a lawsuit against your landlord if they refuse to fix a kitchen sink leak, toilet leak, or shower leak?

In this article, we will explore your right to sue a landlord when they allow conditions in your apartment to become uninhabitable. Keep reading to find out what this means and the legal actions you can take as a tenant that’s suffering from a water leak in your rental unit.

Our lawyers are here for you if you are in the middle of a landlord-tenant dispute. Call the renters rights lawyers of Normandie to schedule a free case evaluation.

Can I Sue my Landlord for Water Leak in my Apartment?

Under California law, your landlord has a legal duty to keep their units inhabitable. What does this mean? Essentially, they have to provide reasonable living conditions, such as heat and running water. They must also make timely repairs to prevent damage to the property, which may have a negative impact on your health and safety. Thus, if a landlord fails to fix a water leak, it may constitute negligence, which would give you the right to sue them for monetary compensation.

To discuss your case with a member of our legal team, contact our office. A landlord tenant lawyer can educate you on your rights and help you take action on a kitchen water leak or water leak in bathroom tenant complaint.

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The Consequences of an Unresolved Water Leaks in Your Apartment

A minor drip from a worn down washer in your faucet may not be a big deal, but a leaking toilet, sink, or shower is a different story. These types of leaks cause significant damage to the floor, walls, and ceiling over time. A puddle of water can also cause you to slip and fall down, which often lead to serious injuries, like broken bones, traumatic brain injury, and dislocated joints.

Water leaks that are not fixed also cause plumbing issues, like bad smells in your drain, clogged drains, and inability to use the shower as intended. As someone who is paying rent, these are unacceptable conditions, and you have the right to sue your landlord for negligence, based on their failure to provide you with habitable living quarters.

What are my Legal Options if my Landlord won’t Fix the Water Leak?

For most tenants living in dangerous conditions, filing an action for breaching the warranty of habitability is the best course of action. Basically, you are asserting:

• The landlord knew of the condition that made the apartment uninhabitable

• In spite of that knowledge, the landlord failed to make the needed repairs.

There may be other actions that you can file against your landlord, such as a tort action for negligence. This type of lawsuit involves injuries or damage to multiple tenants within a property. For example, if there are plumbing issues that are affecting multiple units, those tenants may all be suffering from water leaks in their apartment.

Ultimately, there are multiple avenues you can take if you have been wronged by a landlord in the state of California. Figuring out the right legal strategy requires advice from a seasoned landlord-tenant lawyer. If a water leak in your bathroom or kitchen has made your apartment uninhabitable, contact our law firm immediately.

Negligent Landlord Complaint Case Values

The amount you are due from an apartment water leak lawsuit against your landlord is based on a variety of monetary losses that you can include in your claim. These include value of rent paid, compensation for damaged belongings, out of pocket expenses like cost of hotel stays, and cost of court and lawyer’s fees. You may also have a case for emotional distress, which refers to anxiety, stress, and other mental health issues associated with the problems in your apartment.

Settlements values may be around $10,000 or less for some claimants, while others receive $200,000 or more, Higher payments are possible if you are awarded punitive damages, which is awarded by the court for gross negligence by the landlord. For a detailed explanation on the compensation you can receive, give us a call to schedule a free consultation.

How Long Do I have to File a Lawsuit?

The statute of limitations for a lawsuit against your landlord depends on the type of lease you have with them. If you’ve signed a written contract, you have four years to file a lawsuit against your landlord for breach of warranty of habitability. If the agreement to rent from the landlord was made orally, meaning there is no written lease, the time limit to sue as a tenant is two years.

Questions may arise as to when the statute of limitations begins, considering that serious problems with water leaks take time to develop. These and many other considerations will dictate exactly how much time you have to file a lawsuit, so it’s best to confirm this information with a housing habitability lawyer at our office.

When can I Expect to get Paid on my Case?

There are many factors that play a role in the case settlement process, which are based on the circumstances in your case. Disputes involving uninhabitable conditions are settled in small claims court or the County Superior Court, depending on the amount that’s being requested by the plaintiff

However, not all cases are heard by a judge, since you can certainly negotiate a settlement with your landlord before the trial date. There is a greater chance of this happening if you work with an experienced California renters’ rights lawsuit attorney. With legal representation, your landlord is likely to take you more seriously and offer a settlement to avoid the cost and inconvenience of a court hearing. Sometimes, it can take just weeks to negotiate a fair payment amount on behalf of our clients. If court intervention is needed, it can take one or more years to obtain payment from a lawsuit against your landlord.

Contact the Tenants’ Rights Lawsuit Attorneys of Normandie

When you sign a lease for an apartment, you expect that the landlord will meet their duties and obligations to ensure that the property is safe and free of hazardous conditions. Unfortunately, many landlords are negligent when it comes to their rental properties. California laws provide protection for renters that are suffering from uninhabitable conditions. But making sense of them and prevailing in a tenant-landlord lawsuit can be very difficult for the average person.

Our law firm has decades of experience in the litigation of negligent landlord complaints. We are more than ready for the challenge of representing you and fighting for the payment you deserve. Some of our clients come to us at the beginning of the legal process, when they are forced to admit that a lawsuit is the only option. Others decide to hire us after a second opinion on an existing landlord-tenant dispute. We don’t charge for a second opinion at our law firm, so don’t hesitate to call if you need legal advice on your case from another attorney.

If your landlord has breached the warranty of habitability by failing to fix a water leak in your apartment, please contact our law firm. We look forward to speaking with you during a free case review or free second opinion.

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