Can a Landlord Make You Clean the Carpets
My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: Colorado
Hi, thanks for reading my post.
I recently moved into an apartment, or rather it would be best to clarify it is the bottom floor of my landlord's home (completely separated with my own front door), and she is causing a lot of drama even though I moved in less than a month ago. I would like to go into a bit more detail about the sequence of events but essentially things escalated this week when she called the carpet cleaners against my will and took the money from my deposit. When I moved in 2-3 weeks ago, I spilt some coffee on the carpet and planned to have my girlfriend bring her professional cleaning kit when she came to see me this weekend. My questions are centered around keeping her out of my business/not entering the premises without warning (which she has), how to avoid eviction, and how to avoid future drama. I would also like to attempt to politely renegotiate the lease from 1 year to six months since I can see this will only be issues with her...
Soon after I moved in, I spilt some coffee in an isolated area (2' by 2' about). My landlord emailed me and asked me multiple times about getting it cleaned by her professionals which I politely declined and told her it would be taken care of. She thinks that because the lease says I must get it professionally cleaned at the end of the lease, that extends to right now since there is a stain. She cannot legally call carpet cleaners against my will and remove this money from my deposit, correct?
The place already came furnished when I moved in, however I had my own bed and would rather sleep in that than hers that god knows how many/who has slept in it. I placed her box spring and mattress on their side in the closet next to the water heater and she will not leave me alone about it. Can she legally make me move her mattresses to a different area and if not, how can I get her to leave me alone?
I want to find a political way to handle this situation because I know she ultimately has the power here. Please correct me if I am wrong, but Colorado law states she can evict me for a repeated violation of the lease. I feel if she wanted to she could put the pressure on with small violations of the lease like not shoveling snow (this place is about 10,000 feet in the mountains) amongst other things. Any other precautions I should take to prevent eviction?
She has never given me notice of entering the premises so how could she know about the coffee and mattress? Does the notice to "inspect" the premises have to be written in this state? I e-mailed her about it when she complained and basically told her to please respect my privacy and give me a heads up if she wants to come in to which she responded it was an emergency... I later asked via e-mail what the emergency was (I put it very politely as if I should be concerned about an issue down there) and she never responded. How much flexibility to landlords have over "emergencies"?
Right now I am trying to figure out how to handle this but primarily respond to her email. Just to summarize my last e-mail and hers, I told her to please cancel the carpet appointment as I would take care of it this weekend and asked that she stop harassing me about the matter. We talked in person right after I sent that e-mail (had to turn in rent check) and she threatened to evict me so I said just call the cleaners and have it done (no e-mail record of this btw). She emailed me today and said she was glad she hadn't read that email before our chat and to be careful how I use the term harassment (which I may have misused). She then said she it states in the lease that it "allows the landlord (me) or my agent to come into the apartment, at a reasonable time, with notice, to "make repairs or inspect said promises". I think cleaning a huge coffee stain on a white Berber carpet clearly falls under those specifics." Yes but not to charge me correct? She concluded with "Now that I have read your email, I think we need another discussion. I'm concerned it's not going to work out with you living here. If you would like to look for a place to rent that might be more suitable for you, that is ok with me." I have a seasonal job in the mountains and it will be tough/huge hassle to find another place... I would like to get on better terms with her but have her leave me alone while renegotiating the lease to 6 months so I can get away from her.
I don't know if this will help my case at all but I have handled every confrontation with her respectfully and without getting angry or rude (telling her to stop harassing me about the carpet may have been pushing it?)... The same cannot be said of her however, it's like talking to a brick wall. I told her I have nowhere for her mattresses and she flippeddddd.
Sorry for the super long post, I just want to make sure I have all my bases covered here. I really hate drama and I usually do not end up in situations like this because I'm pretty laid back. Any help about any portion of this would be greatly appreciated, thanks again for your time. :o
Best,
francisv
edit: I have put my main questions in bold because I know it's a bit of a long read, thanks
Re: Control Freak Landlord Wants Me to Move Out
Quote:
Quoting
francisv
My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: Colorado
Hi, thanks for reading my post.
I recently moved into an apartment, or rather it would be best to clarify it is the bottom floor of my landlord's home (completely separated with my own front door), and she is causing a lot of drama even though I moved in less than a month ago. I would like to go into a bit more detail about the sequence of events but essentially things escalated this week when she called the carpet cleaners against my will and took the money from my deposit. When I moved in 2-3 weeks ago, I spilt some coffee on the carpet and planned to have my girlfriend bring her professional cleaning kit when she came to see me this weekend. My questions are centered around keeping her out of my business/not entering the premises without warning (which she has), how to avoid eviction, and how to avoid future drama. I would also like to attempt to politely renegotiate the lease from 1 year to six months since I can see this will only be issues with her...
Soon after I moved in, I spilt some coffee in an isolated area (2' by 2' about). My landlord emailed me and asked me multiple times about getting it cleaned by her professionals which I politely declined and told her it would be taken care of. She thinks that because the lease says I must get it professionally cleaned at the end of the lease, that extends to right now since there is a stain. She cannot legally call carpet cleaners against my will and remove this money from my deposit, correct?
Yes she can call the carpet cleaners and yes, she can make you responsible. Carpet stains are not considered "normal wear and tear" per Colorado law.
Quote:
The place already came furnished when I moved in, however I had my own bed and would rather sleep in that than hers that god knows how many/who has slept in it. I placed her box spring and mattress on their side in the closet next to the water heater and she will not leave me alone about it. Can she legally make me move her mattresses to a different area and if not, how can I get her to leave me alone?
I want to find a political way to handle this situation because I know she ultimately has the power here. Please correct me if I am wrong, but Colorado law states she can evict me for a repeated violation of the lease. I feel if she wanted to she could put the pressure on with small violations of the lease like not shoveling snow (this place is about 10,000 feet in the mountains) amongst other things. Any other precautions I should take to prevent eviction?
She has never given me notice of entering the premises so how could she know about the coffee and mattress? Does the notice to "inspect" the premises have to be written in this state? I e-mailed her about it when she complained and basically told her to please respect my privacy and give me a heads up if she wants to come in to which she responded it was an emergency... I later asked via e-mail what the emergency was (I put it very politely as if I should be concerned about an issue down there) and she never responded. How much flexibility to landlords have over "emergencies"?
Right now I am trying to figure out how to handle this but primarily respond to her email. Just to summarize my last e-mail and hers, I told her to please cancel the carpet appointment as I would take care of it this weekend and asked that she stop harassing me about the matter. We talked in person right after I sent that e-mail (had to turn in rent check) and she threatened to evict me so I said just call the cleaners and have it done (no e-mail record of this btw). She emailed me today and said she was glad she hadn't read that email before our chat and to be careful how I use the term harassment (which I may have misused). She then said she it states in the lease that it "allows the landlord (me) or my agent to come into the apartment, at a reasonable time, with notice, to "make repairs or inspect said promises". I think cleaning a huge coffee stain on a white Berber carpet clearly falls under those specifics." Yes but not to charge me correct? She concluded with "Now that I have read your email, I think we need another discussion. I'm concerned it's not going to work out with you living here. If you would like to look for a place to rent that might be more suitable for you, that is ok with me." I have a seasonal job in the mountains and it will be tough/huge hassle to find another place... I would like to get on better terms with her but have her leave me alone while renegotiating the lease to 6 months so I can get away from her.
I don't know if this will help my case at all but I have handled every confrontation with her respectfully and without getting angry or rude (telling her to stop harassing me about the carpet may have been pushing it?)... The same cannot be said of her however, it's like talking to a brick wall. I told her I have nowhere for her mattresses and she flippeddddd.
Sorry for the super long post, I just want to make sure I have all my bases covered here. I really hate drama and I usually do not end up in situations like this because I'm pretty laid back. Any help about any portion of this would be greatly appreciated, thanks again for your time. :o
Best,
francisv
edit: I have put my main questions in bold because I know it's a bit of a long read, thanks
I do not see you winning this one. As mentioned, "normal wear and tear" does not include carpet stains. It also sounds like the landlady has enough knowledge/experience to know when she's in the right.
With regards to the mattress, did you inform the landlady that you wouldn't need the mattress before you signed the lease?
Re: Control Freak Landlord Wants Me to Move Out
Thanks for the prompt reply. Guess I should have looked into that carpet situation a bit more before arguing with her, perhaps it would be best to apologize in the email then... Good to know for future reference though. She has no grounds for eviction at this point, correct?
Yes, I verbally let her know that I had my own things and would be moving them in and she said it's ok to shuffle things around in there... She never told me prior to moving in I could not place those in the closet, although I don't believe I explicitly stated they would be stored there.
Re: Control Freak Landlord Wants Me to Move Out
It is doubtful she will attempt to evict you unless you start trashing her place again. It is also doubtful she will amend your lease to 1/2 term.
Re: Control Freak Landlord Wants Me to Move Out
Ok, thanks.
As far as the mattress is concerned, can I leave it in there and just ignore her about it? And does she have to give me written notice to inspect premises?
Re: Control Freak Landlord Wants Me to Move Out
On what basis can a landlord legally arrange for the carpet to be cleaned mid-lease period? Under what circumstances can a landlord enter the premises legally at all? I'm sorry, but I don't agree with the advice that has been given. Your landlord can enter without notifying you only in case of emergency and only to deal with the emergency. The only condition of the carpet that the landlord has a interest in is the condition in which you leave it, not any momentary staining. Otherwise, she could clean the carpet weekly (is her son the carpet cleaning company?). If you leave the carpet clean and undamaged, except for normal wear and tear, at the end of your tenancy the landlord has no right to do anything to the carpet. You are responsible for anything beyond ordinary wear and tear upon vacating. Unless, of course, you've agree to something bizarre in your lease.
Keep in mind that not all advice you receive on a message board comes from legally knowledgeable folks. Lot's of emotionalism - for example, I'd hardly call an ordinary spill that happens to everyone "trashing" the place. Your lease and the law of tenancy in Colorado specify what your rights, and what your landlords rights, are. Colorado has a law called the Colorado Security Deposit Act, which provides for treble (triple) damages if a landlord inappropriately withholds or misuses your deposit. Any provision of your lease that contradicts that law is automatically void because it violates public policy. Do a little googling and you should be able to find tenant rights information from the CO bar association.
Re: Control Freak Landlord Wants Me to Move Out
Colorado law requires the tenant maintain the premises in a neat, sanitary, condition. They can use the deposit to repair damages other than normal wear and tear.
http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite...&ssbinary=true
Re: Control Freak Landlord Wants Me to Move Out
Interesting... The price of the cleaning was minimal anyway so I think it may be best just to apologize and let the deposit payment slide either way, not worth the fight. I sort of wanted to make a statement just to stay out of my business down here... I'm young but also a responsible adult and don't need someone micromanaging my tenancy if that makes sense. I don't see any reason she could evict me or make me move that mattress though as long as it is not being damaged. I think my best option at this point is to suck it up and apologize for the carpet, attempt to smooth things over, and discuss if she would like to shorten the lease (wish me luck lol).
Thanks for the link Disagreeable, that is helpful to know.
Bubba Jimmy, thanks for your input too. The emotionalism is not just limited to this board; it's too much in this home as well! I always try to take information I ask for on the internet with a grain of salt, that is some great advice.
It's unfortunate to have problems so soon after moving in but at least there are lessons to be learned... Next time I will try to do a better job screening my landlord, I didn't think it would be such an important consideration when choosing a place until now. Should have been a red flag when she said she had problems with her last two tenants...
Re: Control Freak Landlord Wants Me to Move Out
I actually do feel for you. There are some landlords who shouldn't be left in charge of anything other than a stick of celery.
Re: Control Freak Landlord Wants Me to Move Out
It sounds like your landlord is having a hard time separating "her" house from "your" apartment, it can be hard to let that go when renting out part of your home.
As far as the mattress issue, is it a gas or electric hotwater heater and how close is the mattress to the heater? She could try arguing that the mattress is too close to the heater and causes a fire hazard, so that's an angle to be aware of.
If you feel she is violating your rights as far as her coming into the place unannounced try placing something small behind the door each time you leave so that when the door is opened it will get moved. Keep a written record of every you find someone has entered the apartment and if it really becomes an issue take her to court over it.
She has rights as your landlord but you also have rights as a tenant, you may have to fight for your rights if she is not complying with the law in that regard.