In addition to many other concerns, many Minneapolis tenants affected by the May 22nd tornado are still facing problems with their housing. In this video posted by the Twin Cities Daily Planet, one resident shares his concerns and frustrations about government officials, non-profits, and the state of disrepair of his mom’s home.
(Unfortunately, HOME Line is not able to offer our free tenant hotline to Minneapolis callers, unless their landlord is in foreclosure. Tenants in Minneapolis should call Minneapolis Housing Services at 612-673-3003 or Legal Aid at 612-332-1441. We can, however, share some basic information that may be of assistance to renters impacted by the tornado, and that information is below.)
MN State Statute 504B.161 states that it is the landlord’s responsibility to keep the property fit for the use intended. This obviously includes things like fixing broken windows and gas lines—or in the case of the gas service, it could mean paying the gas bill if the lease says it is the landlord’s job to do that. It does not cover damage caused by a tenant’s (or tenant guest or family member) intentional, malicious, or irresponsible actions—tenants are responsible for such damages.
Write a 14 Day Letter—Every time
The best practice that Minnesota tenants can and should exercise is to make every repair request in writing (sign it, date it, keep a copy) and mail or deliver it to your landlord. Call or text your landlord if you want to, but make sure that you ALSO put the request in writing. This way, if your repair problems get out of hand, you have the option to go to court and show a judge that the landlord knew about the problem, and still did not fix it. The law allows 14 days for a landlord to make a non-emergency repair before a tenant can take legal steps to enforce the repair.
Other options:
Emergency Tenant Remedies Action for specific kinds of emergency repairs.
Rent Escrow for non-emergency repairs.
Rent Abatements
or rent refunds, or partial refunds, can be requested by the tenant in a rent escrow hearing. When an immediate problem has already been solved, a tenant may still be able to recover damages in Conciliation Court. First, it is up to the tenant to show a judge that they had damages that the landlord knew about and did not fix. Second, the tenant must be able to show a judge the value of their losses while paying rent. Let’s use the destroyed garage as an example for how a tenant can do this. If a tenant’s garage rent is included in the total monthly rent, s/he can find out how much the neighbors pay for garage rent for a similar sized garage. Let’s say the tenant learns that comparable garage rents in the area go for $100/month. So the tenant would be able to ask the judge for $200 in damages for the two months they went without the use of their garage.
