For homeowners, it’s clear who has to pay when an appliance breaks—handling household repairs is one of the many responsibilities that come with owning property. But as a renter, your obligation to appliance upkeep isn’t so black and white.
Under federal law, tenants have the right to a habitable home, or a home that is safe, sanitary, and functional. If the broken appliance is serious—like a furnace in the winter—the home is technically uninhabitable. But if the broken appliance is a refrigerator or oven, the situation is open to interpretation. In fact, each state has its own standards for rental repairs.
In most states, for example, renters can withhold rental payment to a landlord who hasn’t made repairs necessary for a unit to be habitable. However, in Alabama, tenants have to put their repair requests in writing and landlords have 14 days to make the situation right. And in Mississippi, if a landlord fails to make a necessary repair within 30 days, tenants can pay for the repairs out of their own pocket and deduct the cost from their rent.
As a renter, you’re bound to have an appliance bust on you at some point. Below, we clarify who’s on the hook for the repair and what your best course of action is—no matter where you live.
The landlord is responsible if…
In most rental situations, the landlord is going to be left holding the bag if an appliance breaks because, ultimately, it is their property.
“Even if it is outlined in the lease that the tenant is responsible for repairs, if they’re not taking care of it, the landlord will have to make the repair eventually,” says Christopher Avallon, a real estate broker at the Avallon Real Estate Group in central New Jersey. “A landlord may choose to add the cost of repair to the rent or deduct it from the security deposit.”
The renter is responsible if…
In specific cases, however, the tenant is responsible for appliance repairs.
“If the appliances are supplied by the tenants, they are supposed to pay for the repairs and maintenance,” says Kenneth Reed, a real estate investor at Better Home Buyers in Smyrna, GA. “Then when the lease is terminated, the tenant can also take the appliances.”
This is most likely to happen with washers and dryers or refrigerators, but it’s far less likely to be the case with appliances like ovens since they usually come with a rental property.
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Landlord or Renter? Who Is Responsible for Paying for a Broken Appliance? appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com®.