As a tenant, your apartment complex and the individuals in charge of it are truly what can either make your apartment a home or a hazard. Unfortunately, not every apartment complex has its tenants’ best interests at heart.
In some unfortunate situations, the management of a particular complex may become more focused on money than keeping the complex in order. In these situations, it may be time you consider hiring an apartment complex negligence attorney.
However, how do you know when it is time to take legal action against an apartment complex for the state of the complex as a whole? Below, are some of the reasons to turn to an attorney for help and why it is so crucial you do so if any of these situations are the case.
- Your Apartment Complex Management has Been Alerted
Once you begin to see property damage or concerning patterns of negligence in your complex, you may try to reach out to management and alert them of the issues. In many cases, the management will then fix the problem, and the situation will be resolved then and there.
However, in other cases, the management will either ignore the issues, try to steer clear of you and your means of contact, or simply shrug it off and not care whatsoever. If this is the situation you are facing, it is most certainly time to take legal action. A landlord is required by law to keep the grounds in shape and not only should the landlord-tenant agreement state this, but the state law should likewise.
- The Negligence has Remained for Over one Month
If your apartment complex management is aware of the damage to the complex or to your particular apartment but chooses not to fix the issue within a month’s time, you are well within your rights to bring an apartment complex negligence attorney into the mix.
In fact, according to Home Guides, “Landlords must arrange for immediate repairs when a tenant’s health or safety is affected. Some examples include a hole in the roof, wall or window; broken water heaters; faulty smoke detectors; bad electrical wiring; rodents or mold. If the repair does not immediately threaten health and safety, the tenant should expect the landlord to make the repairs within a reasonable time, generally 30 days. If the landlord will not take care of serious repairs immediately, tenants can file complaints with various local agencies such as the building safety office, the health department or other city or county offices.”
If you express this information to your landlord or management and they still choose to do nothing despite there being a health hazard or safety hazard involved, take note of this, acquire proof of their negligence regarding the situation, and use this to create a case for damages in court.
- The Complex Negligence is Becoming a Hazard
Finally, if the complex negligence is, in fact, becoming a hazard regarding your health or safety, it doesn’t matter how long it has been or how much warning has been given. Your health and safety should always come first and, if the apartment complex is hindering this in any way, it is time to call a qualified apartment complex negligence attorney immediately.
With this said, if you are in Clay County or any other nearby Florida city looking for representation for your apartment complex’s negligence, don’t hesitate to contact us today. With extensive knowledge about Florida law and experience handling these cases for decades, we at Finnell, McGuinness, Nezami & Andux, P.A. are sure to have your case in order in no time so you can get back to living comfortably in your home.