Many landlords in California charge fair rent to provide tenants with safe living spaces. Some, unfortunately, do not. Slumlords generally put money above safety, forcing tenants to live in conditions that could jeopardize their safety or make them sick.
Fortunately, California law prohibits landlords from providing slum housing and requires every rental property to meet certain basic minimum standards. When a landlord, property owner, or property manager falls short of fulfilling their obligations, tenants who suffer harm as a result have legal rights. In fact, if this failure makes you sick, you can actually hold those responsible accountable for medical care costs and other economic and non-financial damages.
Navigating the legal system can be complicated, though, and you need an advocate on your side who understands landlord-tenant laws, as well as personal injury laws, and who can help you bring an injury claim in appropriate situations.
Matthew de Lira can help. Our legal team has fought for renters for decades and recovered substantial compensation from those who provide unsafe housing. You can call our experienced San Diego injury lawyers any time or fill out our contact form if you or someone you love has been harmed to learn what a San Diego slum housing lawyer can do to help you.
What is slum housing?
Slum housing in California is housing that does not meet the state’s minimum requirements. The housing violates the implied warranty of habitability. While this technical legal term may sound complicated, it’s actually very basic. Your landlord is expected to make sure that your house is safe for you to live in by ensuring that conditions are reasonable.
The California Department of Justice lists specific requirements that must be met in order for your property to be considered habitable. These requirements include:
- Plumbing that works, which means that you have both hot and cold water and that sewage is disposed of safely
- Electrical equipment, including wiring and lighting, that works appropriately
- Heating that allows you to maintain a safe temperature in your home
- Walls that prevent rain and wind from coming into your home
- Doors and windows that are not broken
- Working locks
- Fully functioning smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors
- Safe fire and emergency exits
- Adequate pest control to keep rodents like rats and mice and insects like roaches and bed bugs out of your home
- Adequate sanitation, which means that common areas are clean and there are enough places to dispose of trash properly
- Stairways, floors, and railings that are in good repair
- A space free from clear health hazards, including visible mold and dampness
- A space free from fire hazards
If your landlord fails to fulfill any or all of these obligations, they are in violation of the law. When a rental property has multiple violations, it may be considered to be slum housing.
What are your rights if you’re living in slum housing?
If you are living in slum housing, you have legal rights. Some of those rights are guaranteed under landlord-tenant law, and some of those rights are guaranteed under personal injury laws that prohibit others from making you sick through their negligence or wrongdoing.
When there is a problem in your space, you should report the issue to the landlord and document both the problem and your attempts to communicate it. You have the right to expect that the landlord will take appropriate steps to fix the issue and restore your property to habitability in a timely manner.
If your landlord fails to respond to unsafe conditions, you may be able to withhold rent until they make repairs, or you may be able to pay for repairs yourself and deduct that amount from the rent you are paying.
You may also be able to break your lease early without legal penalty because your landlord has essentially forced you to move out due to the problems at your home (this is called constructive eviction).
It’s important to have documentation before you do things like withhold rent or break your lease, as your landlord may try to pursue legal action against you. You want to prove you acted appropriately. You should also know that your landlord is not allowed to evict you or retaliate against you for demanding a safe living space. They violate the law if they do this.
What if you are made sick or injured by unsafe conditions at your home?
Living in a slum can put you at serious risk of illness or injury. Risks include:
- Suffering a slip and fall or other injury because of unsafe property conditions
- Getting hurt in a fire due to fire hazards at your home
- Getting sick because of mold, sewage, inadequate pest control, or other health hazards
- Suffering an act of violence because of doors or windows that don’t provide secure entry
- Experiencing health complications due to weather exposure because the property provides inadequate shelter
Children are often at very high risk of getting sick because they are less able to withstand unsafe conditions and more susceptible to lasting developmental harm due to things like lead or mold exposure. But any tenant of a slum apartment faces serious risks and needs to understand their rights.
Matthew de Lira has helped many clients who were made sick to obtain full and fair compensation for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and other damages resulting from the harm to their health.
Contact a San Diego slum housing lawyer today
You deserve a safe place to live, and your landlord must be held accountable if they failed to provide one. Attorney Matthew de Lira will work from day one to gather evidence of how your landlord failed, what your damages were, and what compensation you should collect.
We can negotiate with the landlord or property owner’s insurer on your behalf, or go to court if needed to help you get the money you deserve. To find out more about how we can help you, give us a call or contact us online today to schedule your free consultation with a San Diego slum housing lawyer.