Help With Bed Bugs In New York State
My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: NEW YORK
Hi.. we have been living in a small house in New York State for the past 4 months.. we have been dealing with bed bugs that are coming from the walls. The landlord has been spraying some chemical (though he can't recall the name) in the room on a number of occasions.
The bugs are back and we now have a 5 week old daughter.. any resource on how we can break our year lease because of these critters would be greatly apprechiated !!
THANK YOU
Re: Help With Bed Bugs In New York State
Take a look at this story. I suspect that the problem predates your tenancy, and on the whole that should work in your favor. When a landlord has a duty to act, and the landlord would if the infestation predates your tenancy, according to the Attorney General's Office, "Failure to provide heat or hot water on a regular basis, or to rid an apartment of insect infestation are examples of a violation of [the warranty of habitability]."
Insect policies within the various New York counties depend upon local regulation. New York City provides,
Quote:
Quoting Is my landlord required to exterminate on a regular basis?
According to the City of New York's Housing Maintenance Code (HMC), eradication of rodents or other pests means elimination through the use of traps, poisons, fumigation or any other method of extermination. The HMC states that an owner is required to keep premises free of rodents, and when the premises are subject to infestation, shall apply "continuous eradication measures."
When the department charged with enforcement, in this case the Department of Housing Preservation and Development/ Office of Code Enforcement (via the City's Citizen Service Center by dialing 311), determines that any premises are infested by rodents, it may order "such eradication measures as the department deems necessary."
(Contact information for the HPD is also found here.)Other cities and counties are less demanding of the landlord.For example,
Quote:
Quoting Who is responsible for extermination in rental dwellings?
In one and two family dwellings, the owner/landlord and the occupants are both responsible for the extermination of pests like mice, roaches and other insects, and both will be required to do their part. In multi-unit buildings, the owner/landlord is responsible for extermination and cleanliness in all common areas, and the owner/landlord and occupants are both responsible for extermination of the apartments. In all cases, occupants are responsible for keeping their dwelling free of attractants like food and accumulated trash. The owner/landlord is responsible for pest-proofing the dwelling.
You need to keep proof of the infestation - save insect carcasses and take pictures of your bites.