My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: Massachusetts. In MA, unless a tenant pays the heating bill, the landlord is required to maintain the heat between 64 and 68 during most of the year. Similar laws exist in other states eg NY. My question is, what if a tenant leaves windows or doors wide open? I don't notice any allowance for this scenario in the code, 05 CMR 410.00, but maybe there are some regs I'm unaware of. I am curious about this both as a tenant who has at times wanted to enjoy warmth someone else is footing the bill for and fresh air at the same time; and as a landlord who thinks there must be some duty on the tenant's part, that the law surely can't expect a landlord to require minimum heating no matter what the tenant does. (Indeed, the code that I am reading doesn't even make allowance for the scenario that the tenant does not want the heat to be at 64 and actually turns the thermostat done or shuts down the radiator.) Does anyone have any idea how inspectors or courts look at this situation? Thanks.

