I'm being difficult over $50

[dottyblue]

They need to credit you for 8 days. They are lucky you didn't report them. The entire situation was crazy.

I would stick to your demands.

[v]

FUCK THEM

If I were in your position, I'd be difficult over 50 cents, just because I could. $50? Raise hell.

[arch01]

Nope. They owe you 8 days.

[screwedup]

I'm so sorry you're having all of these issues. I'm having some horrible issues with my condo's property management company and it just makes me want to cry I'm so mad. You have all the sympathy from me!

[UnderProtest]

Nov 19, 2014 13:20:59 GMT -5 superduper said:

Is this too dramatic?

You are joking, right? You are actually trying to put the blame for this on us because your company failed repeatedly to appropriately resolve this issue? You gave us virtually NO notice that you wanted to have someone come to our home to look at the heating system on Tuesday and expected us to drop everything and be home? After I'd already wasted almost my entire Saturday having the problem getting diagnosed the first time? You have a key to our house. You have the alarm code. Someone from YOUR company should have been there. Someone from YOUR company should have answered the phone when Quality Air called repeatedly attempting to get the okay to order the necessary part. Someone from YOUR company should have contacted the owner on Saturday as soon as you were notified that this was a potential warranty issue. Someone from YOUR company should have offered us Space Heaters AND offered to drop them off. Someone from YOUR company should have requested that the part be requested with overnight delivery after we'd already been without heat for 6 days. And you have the audacity to say that if we'd been home Tuesday afternoon this would have all been avoided? No. No. NO! Your fault. I don't care if Christine is your subordinate. I don't care if she's your cousins best friends brothers girlfriend. You all work for the same company and should be ashamed of yourselves that my family was forced to go for EIGHT days without heat. And now, after everything that your company has put my family through you are going to give me push back over $50? $50!!?!? You are lucky that I'm not demanding more. I am not asking for a credit of $413.36, I am telling you, that is what we are owed due to incompetence of your maintenance department

Yes, yes it is.

Stick to the facts.  You called, they delayed getting the part, they inconvenienced you repeatedly, etc.

[LoveTrains]

I think you need to not make it so personal and stick to business-like and professional.

How about something like this:
Your company failed repeatedly to resolve the issue. You did not provide notice that you needed me to be home on Tuesday. You have a key and the alarm code, and someone from your company could have been available. Your company also failed to respond to Quality Air when they needed approval before ordering the part. You did not notify the owner in a timely fashion, and you did not proactively provide space heaters which were necessary to heat my home to the legally required minimum temperature.

As it stands, my family was without heat for 8 days. Heat is a legal requirement in the state of XXX. You owe me a credit of $413.36, which is the rent for 8 days, during which time period my home was uninhabitable and did not meet minimum state requirements.

[Deleted]

A short sweet recitation of the facts will get you further than multiple exclamation points. Save the exclamation points for something not written

[mich1]

Put together a coherent time line of when you called, who you spoke to, and what was done. Tell them that the only acceptable recourse is being reimbursed for the 8 days you were without heat.

However, you need to do it without emotion. I know you are upset, hell, I'd be too. But it is easy to blow off someone's emotional email without considering the facts and your facts are buried.

I'd suggest that you give them a play by play of what happened by date, in bullet form.

For instance:

11/3 - Called and notified that house was without heat. Spoke to XXX at management firm. Was told that they would do YYYYY.
11/4 - Management company called and said they are sending out ZZZZ company to look at heater. ZZZ company said that they would show up on 11/5.
11/5 - ZZZ company said that this was a warranty issue, they needed a part and needed to contact AAAA about how this was going to be dealt with.

Names and times are good. The more info as to who you spoke to, how long you were on the phone, etc. the better.

[LoveTrains]

I am really sorry that you are having these issues, I just don't think these emails are an appropriate way to handle it. I wish you the best of luck in resolving this.

Is there any wya for you to be in touch with the landlord directly? I wonder if they are aware of how much this proprety management company sucks?

As a landlord, I would be APPALLED that my tenants were being treated so poorly.

[msmerymac]

Send a letter to their office, certified mail. If you have times that you called or emails with them, record/print those and attached them. If you have any kind of receipt or confirmation from the company that fixed the problem, include a copy of that, too. Make a copy of the whole packet before you send. Get a signature receipt through the post office.




Dear Management Company,

I am writing in response to the dispute over my rent credit for the days I lived without functioning heat, which, according to XYZ State law rendered my unit uninhabitable. I reported the heating issue on 11/07/2014 at 12:30pm to ______. At that time, the heat had been broken for ___ time. After trying to communicate with your office repeatedly, my heat was fixed on 11/14/2014 at ____. I have attached proof of all communication, as well as proof of when the furnace was fixed, demonstrating that my unit was uninhabitable (falling below 65 degrees) for 8 days. As such, I am deducting a rent credit of $400, which is reflected in this month's rent check.

As a mother of young children and a dog owner, I found the overall response to this emergency situation to be very disconcerting. I felt at times that your office had no regard for the legality, health or comfort that was being affected by this issue. There were times I seriously considered living in a hotel due to the frigid temperatures in my home. I feel that the rent credit is literally the least that can be done to assuage the inconvenience my family went through this month.

[v]

As others said, you need to tone it down and keep it businesslike. What you went through sucked, but you'll get much farther if you state your case firmly but calmly and objectively.

[MDmomof2]

What they put you through is terrible! I think you should write all the angry emails you want, just don't send them. Calling Code Enforcement on them will hurt them more than the $50 will. If you're trying to decide where to put your mental energy, maybe put it there.

[LoveTrains]

Nov 20, 2014 15:51:41 GMT -5 superduper said:

I just don't know how hard I should fight this. I'm furious. I told MH that I want to move LOL I use to own my own home and sold it when I divorced my first husband. I temporarily lived in my Grandfathers house and now have been in this house renting for 2.5 years. I miss home ownership when I had no one to blame but myself. UGh.

Do you have an update for us?

Are you able to contact the landlord instead of property management? What did the county/city/state housing folks say when you talked to them? I want to help you. 

[LoveTrains]

Nov 21, 2014 8:28:30 GMT -5 superduper said:

Nov 20, 2014 21:02:12 GMT -5 LoveTrains said:

Do you have an update for us?

Are you able to contact the landlord instead of property management? What did the county/city/state housing folks say when you talked to them? I want to help you. 

No update really. The PM is flat out refusing to even consider giving us credit for the additional day. I have sent a detailed list, multiple times, of all of the delays caused by them. The owner of the company was copied on several emails, but no response from him, so clearly doesn't care. The owner of the house was also copied on some of the earlier emails, I'm just not sure if contacting him about this would even do anything. MH and I are trying to decide if we want to fight this anymore. I seriously want to move. Between this and all of the other issues that we've had with this company, I'm just done.

So what did the local housing authority say when you mentioned you had no heat for 8 days? I would totally turn them in. They should have a housing advocate that can help advise you. 

[LoveTrains]

Ugh, frustrating. Did they advise you as to what you are due for there not being any heat? They might be able to tell you if you are legally allowed to withhold rent and put it in an escrow account.