questions & answers

Question: We have lived in our apartment for just about 9 yrs. my landlord has completely ignored basic maintenance of this place. I have two giant holes in my ceiling (bedroom.) Termites in my son's room. No garbage disposal, which my landlord has bragged about not replacing to other tenants. He always wants to save money, so the few things he does replace are in poor condition or are jerri-rigged. Our main water valve is connected to our neighbor's. Swamp never wrks. He shows up unannounced or doesn't show up for agreed upon time. And more! What are my rights to get my deposit back and move out?

Answer: Under the Arizona Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (ARLTA), a landlord is required by law to (among other things) “comply with the requirements of applicable building codes materially affecting health and safety”; “make all repairs and do whatever is necessary to put and keep the premises in a fit and habitable condition”; “maintain in good and safe working order and condition all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air-conditioning and other facilities and appliances ... supplied or required to be supplied by him”; and “supply running water and reasonable amounts of hot water at all times, reasonable heat and reasonable air-conditioning or cooling where such units are installed and offered, when required by seasonal weather conditions” (A.R.S. 33-1324). A tenant whose landlord is failing to meet the landlord’s obligations under A.R.S. 33-1324 is responsible first and foremost for providing the landlord with formal written notice of the problem – ideally in a signed and dated letter (keeping a copy for the tenant’s own records) – describing the problem(s) in detail and requesting that the problem(s) be fixed as soon as reasonably possible. The tenant must do this regardless of whether the tenant ultimately wants to continue to live in the dwelling or leave. If the tenant wishes to terminate the rental agreement if the landlord fails to make the requested repairs, then the tenant is permitted by the ARLTA to deliver a written notice to the landlord identifying the repairs that the landlord must make under A.R.S. 33-1324 and stating that the rental agreement will terminate ten days after the landlord receives the notice if the repairs are not made within ten days (or, if the problem is materially affecting the tenant’s health and safety, that the rental agreement will terminate five days after receipt of the notice if the repairs are not made within five days) (A.R.S. 33-1361(A)). A tenant who wishes to terminate a rental agreement on these grounds should document carefully both the condition of the dwelling (with photographs or video and witnesses) and the tenant’s attempts to notify the landlord of the problem. The problems in need of repair must be serious ones. It is always recommended that before the tenant moves out, they carefully document the condition of the property and be present when the landlord conducts the move out inspection, which is the tenant’s right under the ARLTA (A.R.S. 33-1321(C)). In order to get their security deposit back from the landlord, the tenant must request its return from their former landlord in writing after the move-out inspection. The landlord then has 14 business days to return whatever deposit is owed plus an itemized list of deductions (if any) (A.R.S. 33-1321(D)). When a landlord claims that their former tenant caused damage to the dwelling that required repairs, it becomes a “he said, she said” situation. This is why it is important for tenants to conduct both their move-in walkthroughs and their move-out walkthroughs with the landlord and/or to take photos and/or video of the condition of the dwelling both as they move in and as they move out. What landlords cannot lawfully charge their tenants for repairing under any circumstance is any damage that predated the tenancy or “ordinary wear and tear.” Under the Arizona Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, a tenant must “exercise diligence to maintain the premises in as good condition as when he took possession, ordinary wear and tear excepted” (A.R.S. 33-321).