Renters' rights after a disaster -- Page 2

The catch is, the damage to your unit would have to have been made by a disaster specifically named in your policy. Typically fires and hurricanes (windstorms) are covered; floods and earthquakes are not and would require a separate policy. Before the next disaster strikes, make sure you have purchased renter's coverage that works.

Speaking of financial help, the Federal Emergency Management Agency offers assistance for some displaced renters. FEMA has a special Web page devoted to the agency's Individuals and Households Program, or you can call 1-800-621-FEMA to register for disaster assistance.

Refusal to repair
Before proceeding further, you should make contact with your landlord and describe the damage to your rental unit. To protect your options, it's also a good idea to notify him of the damage in writing. From that point, the landlord is allowed a "reasonable" time to return the unit to a habitable state.

So what exactly is reasonable?

"That's the question every law student and every jury asks," Portman says. "Reasonable is what a reasonable person in the same or similar circumstances would conclude. It's the put-yourself-in-their-shoes test."

The best solution at this point would be to get as much information as you can from your landlord about his efforts to fix your unit. With luck, it will make the less-pleasant options that follow unnecessary.

"There is nothing preventing the landlord and tenant getting together and agreeing to partial rent, say, while the unit is being repaired," says Portman. "You can even set completion deadlines on the repairs."

What are your options when you want to stay, but your landlord won't make the repairs? According to the legal site Nolo.com, depending on your state, you can:

• Pay less rent
• Withhold the entire rent until the problem is fixed
• Make the necessary repairs yourself
• Hire someone to make the repairs and deduct the cost from next month's rent or
• Call the local building inspector, who can usually order the landlord to make repairs.

This is where it gets tricky. For instance, if you have a rental with two bathrooms and a storm renders one of the bathrooms unusable, the unit may still be technically habitable. Also, the landlord may be delayed through no fault of his or her own; often handymen and plumbers are swamped for weeks after a disaster.

You don't want to pay less rent or withhold rent unilaterally unless your state has a statute that permits that. Those that do usually require you to pay your rent into an escrow fund to avoid misuse of the law.

Similarly, you don't want to attempt a so-called "repair and deduct" approach without statutory backing. Roughly half of the states allow for "repair and deduct," but most impose limits on repair amounts and frequency, Portman says.

Even calling your local building inspector, health department or environmental agency to put pressure on your landlord is not to be done in haste.

"A little extra pressure sometimes can do the trick, but often it sours the relationship with the landlord to where you wouldn't want to live there anymore," Portman says.

Your leverage as a tenant will depend on your lease terms, state statutes, local rental market and your relationship with your landlord.

"If you've been a good tenant, the landlord will be very interested in keeping you there. On the other hand, if you've been a pain in the neck, he may consider this a sign from heaven and be very interested in ending your lease agreement," she says.

Before taking any of these steps, it's a good idea to review your lease and consult your state's laws on repair and maintenance responsibilities. Nolo.com provides state-by-state links to landlord-tenant statutes.

Whatever course you ultimately take, Portman says follow the rules to the letter.

"The landlord can attempt to evict you, but if you have followed all the procedures correctly, you have a solid defense," she says.

Jay MacDonald is a contributing editor based in Mississippi.