NOW WITH PICS at bottom

I have been having the most overwhelming week

About 3-4 weeks ago a water stain, about the size of a bowling ball appeared on my living room ceiling. Now Im a downstairs unit so I was unsure what to make of it, since people live above me...

I called the ER # and the maintenance man told me he couldnt get there until the next day- Sure enough the next morning he came and the water had dried, but there obviously was a stain...

He said the woman from the office would call me to make an apt. to cut open the ceiling, and fix it...

Sure enough the set up an apt. for 1 week later, and they never opened the ceiling to find the problem- they just painted over the stain..

I was furious, but I was assured it was just condensation from the pipes, and since I dont own this- I chocked it up to their "problem" for the future...

Fast forward to last weekend- we go to dinner, come home about 3 hrs later to a much larger soaking wet water stain that ran along the seem of the sheet rock in the ceiling...

The guy comes says hecant fix it that night, blah blah blah, comes back the next morning, then says the plumber cant get there, blah blah blah, so I make an apt. for Monday while Im at work...

Sure enough Monday I come home- NOTHING was done... I was told a plumber came did some test and there is no water... they be back to patch the stain up later in the week...

Yesterday comes- I still hadnt heard anything else, and as you all know I have a small child, therefore Im concerned about mold, mildew, and at this point I dont feel safe (for him or myself)..


I call the manager to ask WT F is going on- she knows nothing about nothing..She tells me they (in the office as well as the maintenance men) have been lying to me, there never was a plumber, and at the first sight of water the ceiling shouldve been opened.

I guess rustling her feathers put a fire under their arse and yesterday they cut open the ceiling in 2 different places. They found the leak behind my BRAND NEW BIG SCREEN TV-

After working all afternoon/evening (which meant we couldnt come home, because its unsafe for baby) they tell me, they cant finish the job, because they gotta drain the water/turn the hot water off in the building, AND they cant do that until tomorrow AM (this morning).

So just take a guess what my apartment looks like right now...

They never covered my furniture so there is 2" of thick sheet rock dust all over EVERYTHING- couches, tables, the babies toys, even my kitchen floor...

There is nothing I can do, since I just started this job and cant take any time off. My childs routine is upside down- which means he is a mess...

Whose problem is this? Who is gonna pay for my carpets and couches to be cleaned? A vaccuum is not going to be enough to get the dust out of there, and we cant be in there breathing that cr@p in..

What about the fact that my home is FILTHY- I should have to come home after working all week and clean it???

I really wanna get a cleaning crew in there and make the apt. foot the bill.... Do I have grounds to do that?

Of course to top it all off- they keep telling me there is no mold or mildew- but since Ive been lied to the whole time I dont know what to believe...

I feel trapped- Im locked into this stupid lease- and I feel so powerless...

Any prayers, advice, suggestions??? ANYTHING- Im so overwhelmed right now

Message edited 8/2/2007 9:47:06 PM.

Re: I just wanna cry!!!

I don't have any advice just

Re: I just wanna cry!!!

I am so sorry this is happening! That sux! I'd be fuming and darn straight, I'd tell them I'm hiring a service and they are footing the bill! It should NOT have to come out of your pocket!

Re: I just wanna cry!!!

I'm so sorry your going through this..... I'm not sure what you are entitled to, but maybe you can try speaking to the same woman who knows you were lied to and see if you can get her to agree to pay for some of the clean up.....

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Wow! Totally ridiculous...at the first sign of water your ceiling should have been opened up to see what the problem is.....and usually they don't patch it right away but have to leave it open to make sure it dries completely so you don't get mold.


I would be totally pi$$ed about being lied to.....you can call and demand they foot the cleaning bill but you may be in for a fight. They will probably say it was your responsibility to cover your possessions

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Posted by Moehick

Wow! Totally ridiculous...at the first sign of water your ceiling should have been opened up to see what the problem is.....and usually they don't patch it right away but have to leave it open to make sure it dries completely so you don't get mold.


I would be totally pi$$ed about being lied to.....you can call and demand they foot the cleaning bill but you may be in for a fight. They will probably say it was your responsibility to cover your possessions

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Posted by Princessmaris

Posted by Moehick

Wow! Totally ridiculous...at the first sign of water your ceiling should have been opened up to see what the problem is.....and usually they don't patch it right away but have to leave it open to make sure it dries completely so you don't get mold.


I would be totally pi$$ed about being lied to.....you can call and demand they foot the cleaning bill but you may be in for a fight. They will probably say it was your responsibility to cover your possessions

They came w/o notification- while I was at work!!!!

After they were in, and I was notified- I offered to leave work and come home to cover everything w/ sheets- and I was told it was unnecessary...

Had I known that, they were coming TRUST ME- everything wouldve been covered!

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Posted by Moehick

Posted by Princessmaris

Posted by Moehick

Wow! Totally ridiculous...at the first sign of water your ceiling should have been opened up to see what the problem is.....and usually they don't patch it right away but have to leave it open to make sure it dries completely so you don't get mold.


I would be totally pi$$ed about being lied to.....you can call and demand they foot the cleaning bill but you may be in for a fight. They will probably say it was your responsibility to cover your possessions

They came w/o notification- while I was at work!!!!

After they were in, and I was notified- I offered to leave work and come home to cover everything w/ sheets- and I was told it was unnecessary...

Had I known that, they were coming TRUST ME- everything wouldve been covered!

Oh well in that case you have a strong case for them to cover the cleaning bill....good luck


Did they patch the ceiling already?

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Sorry this is happening. I would write down a detailed log of all the events, as if you had been keeping it from day 1. I would get an estimate for the cleanup by a professional and present that to them with your justifications. You may have to argue and threaten to sue (sometimes the threat is enough, do you have a friend/family member that is a lawyer and could make a call for you?).

I had a battle with insurance and the condo association for the townhouse we used to own after a car crashed into our kitchen and SUV. These are some of the ideas that helped.

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

I would call building office, explain that your home is not livable, they need to call in a restoration company to clean your home, furniture etc....since you can't live in it they need to put you up in a hotel until the work is finished, and your home is cleaned. We used a restoration company in Ronkonkoma, which I won't recommend, but they are out there....throw it all back in their court since they never explored the problem when they came the first time, they have insurance...good luck!

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

I would definitely take pics of what they've done to the place just so you'll have proof. If anything gets ruined, at least you'll be able to show what you had to deal with. That is unacceptable! Especially with a baby....It's not good to breathe all that dust in, and when they're done working, are they going to vaccuum up all that crap? Ugghg, I hope everything works out for you. Keep us posted!

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

So sorry this is happening! Ok well we had something similar happen, where they ignored the original problem and it got worse because of that. First I would say check your rental agreement and/or their website, ours had a "guarantee" that we used against them- for example, any day that we are not satisfied we don't have to pay rent, so we got a few days worth of rent back (although we fought for more because it was on-going, but they were cheap!). Definitely take pictures, and write down dates, times, names of people you talked to, while it's still fresh in your head.

We got them not only to pay for our hotel, they actually had to move us to a new apt b/c it was so bad, and they paid for movers to pack our stuff for us. Luckily for us our stuff wasn't that damaged but I would say they should definitely pay for the cleanup, especally since they didn't warn cover your stuff and didn't warn you they would be opening the ceiling that day! Again take lots of pictures and make a list of what is dirty/damaged. Remind them you have a small child living in the home and it's unacceptable for you to bring him back in there until it's professionally cleaned.

If you apartment is owned by a larger company you can write a letter to their regional office, and again you could also threaten a lawsuit and/or call the news as a last resort. Good luck!

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

If they don't pay to cover the cleaning costs, I would just withhold the amount that it costs from your next rent check to them.

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

I would take a bunch of pictures and call the manager back to see if you can work something out. If not I would have things cleaned myself and deduct it from the rent. Send the pictures and the bill along with the rent.

Good Luck.

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Posted by Noonie

I would definitely take pics of what they've done to the place just so you'll have proof. If anything gets ruined, at least you'll be able to show what you had to deal with. That is unacceptable! Especially with a baby....It's not good to breathe all that dust in, and when they're done working, are they going to vaccuum up all that crap? Ugghg, I hope everything works out for you. Keep us posted!

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Posted by Noonie

I would definitely take pics of what they've done to the place just so you'll have proof. If anything gets ruined, at least you'll be able to show what you had to deal with. That is unacceptable! Especially with a baby....It's not good to breathe all that dust in, and when they're done working, are they going to vacuum up all that crap? Ugghg, I hope everything works out for you. Keep us posted!

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Maris...they are NOT allowed in your apt without your consent. I know this bc they told me this when I needed them for my washing machine. They said I would have to sign consents to allow them to come in BUT if I didnt sign th consents and I wasnt there, they would bill me for having to come out. They WERE NOT allowed inside. Also, I would call that lady and tell her what is going on. (I forgot her name). I would have told you a few nites back to tell them a week is not okay. They told me a week for my washer and told my brother a week for his toilet. We both had told them no on both units and they came the next day. But what is done is done and they now need to fix and clean up. Easier said then done but you need to keep up the phone calls. I have to see this to believe this. Your place sounds like a mess! I wonder how upstairs is doing? Is it from their shower, toilet? What are they doing up there? OY!

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Paulette- when it comes to water/leaks they dont need your permission to enter....

I wrote everything down in a log- I called and spoke to the manager again- explained what has gone on as far as the cleaning- and TOLD her I was having both a cleaning company and carpet company in to do the apt. and that I would be sending her the bill- she said ok, and that she, herself would stop by my apt. today...

My DH just calls- said she stopped by and told him they have no records of there being any ER calls- My DH said "BS- why would we lie? Its not our problem your guys screwed up!"

My feelings on this are: Even if we were lying (which I AM NOT!!!!) look around our apt. ITS UNSAFE!!!!! You should pay to restore it!!!!

Grrrr- Im beyond fustrated...

I got a quote for a cleaning comp. 85/hr- min. 2 hrs

and then Stanley steamer:
129 for carpets
18/ft for couches and 70 for our recliner

The manager said they have people they use- my DH flat out said- Im sorry, but ive seen how your guys work- and I want nothing to do with them...

Ahhh Im so stressed!!!!

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

It was a pipe(i think the hot water line)- it had nothing to do w/ the people upstairs

I will be faxing the manager my phone records to in fact prove that we did call the ER line when it began back on 7/6/2007

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Leak #1



Leak # 2

Message edited 8/2/2007 9:42:25 PM.

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

Messy home pics:

Look on the tables, on the couch, you can see the dust, even spackle on the door knobs:

Message edited 8/2/2007 9:43:25 PM.

Re: I just wanna cry!!! (very long- but need advice)

more mess:







and yes this is how my home was left yesterday- notice- they didnt put a tarp over anything but the TV... Real safe-right?

Message edited 8/2/2007 9:39:38 PM.

Re: NOW WITH PICS at bottom

WOW
Were you able to work anything out with management?

Re: NOW WITH PICS at bottom

Posted by Mssissy

WOW
Were you able to work anything out with management?

Message edited 8/2/2007 9:57:28 PM.