Fingers crossed that it stays fixed!

[missdiane]

I purchased a 9 volt battery from RiteAid and since Emily's sister and nibblings are tall, they came over and since her sister was tall enough using my footstool, the battery is FINALLY changed in the smoke detector and the light blinks and it's currently not blinking.

I honestly am wondering if they're not bothering with fixing things so that I'll move. Well rest assured when I get enough funding to perhaps put a down payment on something better, I will move (probably a few years still, unfortunately). I hope that when I move, they get a super shitty tenant. I rarely ask for anything - we're talking maybe once every few years.

My kitchen faucet is held on with duct tape that I have to change regularly since their "fix" lasted all of two days. I had to beg to get them to do some cleaning on my AC wall unit so that it works just slightly better. This place is really going to shit. Since I know I'm here a while, I swear I'm tempted to hire a handy person to replace the kitchen sink, replace the toilet seat that has a cracked cover and haul out some heavy bits like the non-working portable AC in the bedroom.

As it is, I might take a vacation day next month and pay one of Emily's nieces to come over and help me sort through the craptons of CLUTTER that's driving me crazy and organize and haul or throw away stuff.

Comments

[halfmoon_mollie1]

I think I might know your landlord...or your landlord might be related to the one I had before I moved here. I'm so sorry! Glad you had someone to replace the battery. This makes me, as your friend, very angry.

[missdiane]

Sadly, this complex is still far better than the one I lived in just prior. I had massive camel crickets, ants, TERMITE SWARMS, masses of feral cats, freaky neighbors that vandalized my door, stole my mail and put nails in my tires, barely working appliances, Power bills of hundreds of dollars even if I kept my apartment at 60 degrees in the winter. That complex is owned by the Kushners. Yes THOSE Kushners.

This complex has always had the few issues you get but since they've bought more properties, things have gone downhill. I hope they don't ever hire a different landscaping company, though, because they do a great job of clearing snow and ice in winter.

I appreciate the support but you have lots to fret about on your own *hugs*

[threecee]

With your landlord, it sounds like you need to "go Bronx all over his ass." My friend who is now transplanted from NYC to rural GA, has found it an effective last resort for getting people to do things. It actually helps to be smaller and usually quiet and polite. Has the effect of a rabid chihuahua attacking a Doberman.

You can replace a toilet seat yourself. Not that expensive at Home Depot or Lowe's or wherever. Your landlord will never reimburse you, but if it stays cracked they will charge you for damage when you leave, so you are out the money either way.

[missdiane]

If the seat itself were cracked or if it starts to shift, I'll definitely fix it myself. The kitchen sink is the real annoyance, though.

The landlord's solution is to initially respond and then ignore everything. I think the local town's code enforcement is probably overwhelmed with complaints about the worse place that I lived before I moved here. Three big apartment complexes are owned by a conglomerate called Oxford Realty which it looks like they're now part of the Kushner conglomerate - yep, THAT Kushner. I see absolute horror stories on the local FB group about the former place and it was a horror show when I lived there.

[spiffikins]

I've never had to look into it locally, but is there any provision in your jurisdiction that if the landlord doesn't fix thing in a reasonable timeframe, you are allowed to get it fixed yourself and deduct the cost from the rent?

[missdiane]

Probably but I somehow fear retaliation if I did that. Honestly I just want to get the minor annoyances take care of so that it's less stressful until I can finally get a place of my own. Places in this mobile home community are nice, though I don't have the 10% down payment that's required to buy
https://www.myhomeinedison.com/

That and I need to save up extra for moving costs and things like a full size daybed frame (so I can use my nice expensive mattress again) and a washer/dryer since these places have hookups.

If in that few years, Emily's situation changes if her Mom goes into a long term facility or passes away, then we'd probably get a ranch-style home together.

[spiffikins]

I can totally see where it's not worth the potential retaliation. The kitchen sink sounds like a real annoyance - is it the faucet that needs to be replaced, or the whole sink itself? When I moved in, my friend G replaced my kitchen faucet - it was not that hard, once he had the right tool to remove the old one. Replacing the whole sink seems like it might be harder - but who knows?

Those are nice homes - and I'm always agog at how reasonable housing prices seem, in *normal* markets :D

[missdiane]

Those mobile homes are cheap for the area, which is probably why they go quickly.

This is more typical of the condos in the decent areas
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/165-Essex-Ave-APT-305-Metuchen-NJ-08840/2085376821_zpid/

It could just be a matter of replacing the faucet but I can't physically get under the sink to do what all is needed there This looks similar to what I'd need to replace it with so the parts are pretty cheap
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Project-Source/5014171839

[spiffikins]

I tend to avoid plumbing projects like that as well - contorting under the sink *and* me not feeling confident in making sure things don't leak? I will pay someone!


A 2/2 mobile home here - built in 1968 - this is just down the road from me - https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/4160-Jade-St-SPACE-91-Capitola-CA-95010/82964386_zpid/
another one, a mile away - built in 1966
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1190-7th-Ave-42-Santa-Cruz-CA-95062/2066705624_zpid/

2/2 condo
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1143-30th-Ave-Santa-Cruz-CA-95062/16129096_zpid/
another one in the complex my friend S lives in a few blocks from me
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1925-46th-Ave-APT-142-Capitola-CA-95010/16131575_zpid/

It's absolutely nuts - I could not afford to buy here and am *so* lucky that I bought when I did when the market crashed 13 years ago!