Tenant Union University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign A unit of the Office of the Dean of Students

Transcription

1 COMPLAINT SUMMARIES FOR CAMPUS PROPERTY MANAGEMENT: Campus Property Management had 23 complaints in the last 5 years: 4 complaints in 2013, 3 complaints in 2012, 5 complaints in 2011, 2 complaints in 2010, and 9 complaints in One complaint from 2013 is still open and is not summarized below. COMPLAINT - 8/23/13: The tenant said the landlord has failed to address the following problems. 1. Water leaks from the drain under the kitchen sink and has to be caught in a bucket. 2. Mold is now accumulating from the leak. Tenant said the landlord was notified of the problem the week of August 5, again on August 10 when work was promised to be done August 12 but was not. 3. Bathroom ceiling leaking with water from the apartment above; the ceiling is damaged and pieces of ceiling keep falling into the bathtub. Promised work has not been done. Close to three weeks after the complaint was filed, on September 11, Campus Property Management responded that the sink had been fixed, the cause of the leak had been fixed and the ceiling would be repaired September 12. At the end of September, the work was all done. COMPLAINT - 8/21/13: The tenant said that management has still not responded to maintenance requests he made four months ago when he first moved in and has repeated to management monthly since then. Problems include: -bug infestation and tenants have bug bites -bedroom window can t open because the crank is broken -holes in the carpet in the living room and bedroom -kitchen counter edging is coming off as is the kick plate under the cabinets -living room door and bedroom door are damaged and rake heavily against the carpet The Urbana Housing Inspector cited the infestation, window and a few other code violations. On September 11, Campus Property Management responded to this complaint saying all work was done and the city inspector confirmed that. COMPLAINT - 6/3/13: Tenants say they have had an ongoing leak problem from the clothes washer in their apartment since January. CPM has attempted to fix it several times, and also replaced the washer in March, but the washer still continues to leak. The leaking had resulted in mold in May, which CPM sprayed for, but they did not fix the leak (there have been past mold issues at this building, 408 E. Healey). Landlord did not respond to this complaint, but the washer did get fixed after this complaint was filed. COMPLAINT - 10/29/12: Tenant says when she moved into the apartment one of the windows would not close, so she reported this to CPM twice at the beginning of the lease. She says CPM promised to fix the window but never did. On September 22, after heavy rain and wind, the window actually was blown out. CPM came and covered the window with wood and promised to fix it within 3 weeks. Now, over 3 weeks later and after the tenant has contacted the office several times again, the window is still boarded up and she says CPM told her they did not know when the window would be fixed. The window was replaced on November 1 st, 3 days after this complaint was filed. COMPLAINT - 10/8/12: Tenant says the windows in her apartment are in poor condition: they do not stay up, there are no screens on any of them, they all show water damage, and they leaked the last time it rained. She also says the heat in her apartment does not work. When she contacted CPM about the

2 heat, they provided 2 space heaters, but she says they blow a fuse every time she uses them. The tenant also reported that there was a ceiling leak at the beginning of the lease term that took a week and a half and several reports to the office to get fixed, and when it was fixed the maintenance workers did not clean up after themselves; she had to clean up their mess. The city inspected the apartment on October 15 th and found 19 code violations at this property, including the windows and heat issue. The tenant also reported that workers entered her apartment on October 15 th when she wasn t there and did not leave a note, which is in violation of Urbana Landlord-Tenant Ordinance. At the beginning of January 2013, after this complaint had been closed, the tenant contacted the Tenant Union again and said there had been a gas leak in the apartment which CPM took care of right away. However, she said the Ameren worker who inspected the gas leak told her the pipes with the gas leak had been previously marked as needing to be repaired and evidently had not been. She also stated at this time that the ceiling leak had reappeared, and again reported the ceiling leaked on February 12th. The tenant also reported that the heat had been turned off in April, when it was still getting into the 30 s at night (CPM turned the heat back on after Tenant Union called & sent a letter). This is 504 W. Elm, Urbana. On October 15 th, the heat was turned on, but it was too hot. The landlord said they would turn the heat on during the day and off at night until the situation was resolved. On October 18 th, the tenant reported that the heat had not been turned back on, and then on October 22 nd it was too hot again. The landlord offered to release the tenant from her lease, but the tenant was unable to find a suitable place in the campus district so she stayed in the apartment. On December 10 th the tenant reported that the heat was working and she had not had any more problems with the windows leaking. As noted above, the tenant reported the ceiling started leaking again in January and February. In March, after it had rained again, she said it had not leaked. COMPLAINT - 9/18/12: This tenant dealt with water leaking through the ceiling at her apartment for 8 months. The tenant said she reported to CPM at the beginning of the lease that there was a broken tile in the ceiling of her apartment, through which she could see a hole in the roof. She said someone came out to fix the drop ceiling tile, but apparently not the roof, because over Labor Day weekend she said water poured through the ceiling of the living room and bedroom. She said when she called the emergency number she was told it was not an emergency. She said, at the time this complaint was filed, there are 4 holes in the ceiling, water continues to come in when it rains, and the ceiling tiles move whenever there is a breeze (apparently due to the holes in the roof). She said she also reported that the living room window does not close. This tenant continued to have roof leaks the entire time this complaint was open, from September 2012 through April, 2013 (see pictures). In October, one of the drop ceiling tiles that was saturated with rain fell and crashed onto a desk in her apartment. In March 2013, she reported a new leak in her bathroom. In April, water started coming through the ceiling near a light fixture, and a section of the bathroom ceiling became saturated, started sagging, and the tenant feared that it would fall. In September, the city housing inspector cited 14 code violations, including the roof leaks. In October the tenant said the heat was not working properly. In April, the tenant reported that the city housing inspector condemned the apartment and gave her 5 days to get out of the apartment due to the roof leaks. This is 502 W. Elm, Urbana. The landlord called and said repairs had been made to the roof, but as stated above, the roof continued to leak throughout the lease term.

3 In October, the landlord offered to release the tenant from the lease and refund all rent and deposits paid up until that date, but the tenant refused the offer. The tenant moved out of the apartment in April after the housing inspector said it would be condemned in 5 days. CPM refunded the tenant all rent and deposits she had paid up until that date. COMPLAINT - 12/27/11: Tenant said all of these problems were reported either at move-in four months ago and/or two months ago on October 12 but CPM has failed to perform needed repairs. -Severe water damage to ceiling of upstairs bedroom on right tenant says the ceiling is crumbling and falling. This indicates a more serious problem that caused this damage needs to be addressed. -Similar ceiling damage in upstairs bathroom and smell of mold -Severe water damage to ceiling in stairwell; tenant said walls and ceiling are crumbling. -Tenant reported on October 12 and in subsequent in-person visits to the CPM office that the dryer wasn t working properly. A worker said the vent was clogged and he didn t have the right-sized ladder for the job so he d be back the next week. Then someone came out and removed the dryer vent but did not reattach it causing lint and exhaust from the dryer to be blown directly into the apartment. Tenant reported that problem but no one from CPM ever returned to fix it. -Dishwasher is missing a knob and she has to use a scissors to turn it on. -Cable/telephone hook-up in upstairs bedroom (on left) is broken and cables exposed -Blinds for balcony door are broken -Rubber coming off balcony door -Microwave door is broken and the plastic at the bottom is burnt and mangled. -Kitchen drawer has broken wood -Refrigerator has broken plastic that prevents drawer from hanging as it should -Freezer shelf bar and freezer door bent -Writing etched into the fan cover above the stove and on cabinet door above sink -Door frame on bedroom (downstairs on right) missing a piece of wood -Unable to hang light fixture because of missing screw -Towel rods missing in upstairs bathroom -Broken toilet paper holder in upstairs bathroom -Door for washer/dryer closet is broken -Cannot get cold water in washing machine -Broken coffee table -Broken end table -Carpet is dirty, stained and coming up in places -Stairs need to be painted Many repairs and replacement of all appliances were done in the first few days after the complaint was filed at the Tenant Union (landlord responded to Tenant Union in writing the day after the complaint was filed). The second week of January, the ceiling was properly repaired and the tenant reported that by January 13, three weeks after she filed the complaint, all work was done except replacement of the carpet which is scheduled for February. COMPLAINT - 11/22/11: The ceiling has been leaking every time it rains since the tenants first moved in three months ago. The tenant said CPM responded to each of three maintenance requests by painting over the damage rather than fixing it. It leaked again in the most recent rain and tenants want proper repair. December 13 the tenant reported that the leak problem first reported almost 4 months ago now appears to have been corrected.

4 COMPLAINT - 10/21/11: When the tenants moved in they found that the apartment had not been cleaned and smelled like beer, dishes had been left in the dishwasher, many items of furniture were broken and there were many serious repair needs that were not corrected until several months after the lease started. -Water rained into the apartment through the balcony door in August, October and November, soaking the living room carpet and leaving a bad odor. Response: CPM caulked between the balcony door and concrete in August, but rain poured in again on October 20. CPM caulked again and cleaned the carpet. The carpet cleaners broke the tenant s water filter and CPM reimbursed the tenants for it. The next time it rained, November 3, more water leaked in through the balcony door. It was fixed again, which finally prevented rain from getting into the apartment but also prevented the door from opening and shutting unless two people pulled on it very hard. After tenants and Tenant Union s repeated requests, CPM sent someone out to look at the door on November 28 and it was finally fixed 12/5/11. -Dishwasher leaks onto the floor when used. Response: CPM repaired it 8/20 but it still leaked; second repair 9/10 didn t work and repair 9/22/11 stopped the leaking but the door seal is still split and tenants said the dishwasher smells so they won t use it. -Fire started on stove top the first time tenants tried to use it; one burner doesn t work at all. Response: worker wiped some grease off of a drip pan and said that would work but a fire started the next time the tenants tried to use it. CPM replaced the stove top after Tenant Union called 8/23/11. - Only hot water comes out of the bathroom sink. Bathroom sink/vanity replaced 8/24/11. -Balcony screen door doesn t fit and is detached; after CPM tried four different times over a 2 month period to fit the old door into place, they finally replaced it on 10/13/11. -Cable TV jack is broken. Repaired 8/24/11 after Tenant Union called CPM. -Knob on front door is loose. Repaired 8/24/11. -Large water leak stain on kitchen ceiling -Broken furniture: coffee table cracked, kitchen table cracked, kitchen chair missing seat, dresser missing a drawer and small sofa broken. One piece replaced 8/25, others 8/30 and dresser replaced in October. -Closet doors off the tracks. Repaired 11/4/11. -Broken mirror. Replaced 10/14/11. -One electrical outlet in kitchen doesn t work. Repaired 8/29/11. Tenants worked with Tenant Union and the landlord for two months after they moved in trying to get these problems resolved without filing a complaint but finally filed in October 21 because rain was still getting into the apartment and they felt that it should not have taken more than 2 months for repairs that should have been done before they moved in. Public relations manager for CPM said that every time the tenants or Tenant Union contacted CPM, a worker was sent out and he provided a list of 22 visits maintenance staff made to the apartment from August 22 to October 21 to address move-in problems. COMPLAINT - 4/29/11: Tenant said that at the start of the lease, the apartment was in very bad condition. He provided Tenant Union with a copy of his move-in condition report and showed 53 photographs taken at move in. The walls were in need of painting, living room window broken, screen torn, blinds broken, sliding door broken, electrical outlet covers cracked, bedroom door knob broken, carpet was stained and nothing had been cleaned. He said he called the management office to request cleaning and says his request was refused and he was told to complete the apartment condition report. The tenant said he cleaned thoroughly at the end of the lease, despite the fact that CPM never cleaned the apartment before he moved in and Campus Property Management deducted charges for cleaning and

5 painting and for the damaged door knob and broken electrical outlet covers that were both broken when he moved in. Three days later, after receiving this complaint, Campus Property Management refunded the money deducted from the tenant s damage deposit for cleaning, painting and repairs. COMPLAINT - 3/14/11: Tenant complained about several violations of her privacy rights under Urbana law and about notice she received of CPM s intent to enter her apartment without specific notice at some, unspecified time this month. She said: 1 - In January, a CPM agent knocked on her door, she called out for him to wait a minute (she had just gotten out of the shower and wanted to put on a robe) and he walked in before she got to the door. The law requires that a landlord give a tenant a reasonable opportunity to answer the door after knocking on it before entering the apartment. 2 - When the apartment has been entered while she was not home, a note was left but it did not say who entered (the law requires the landlord to leave a note saying who entered). 3 - The law prohibits entry before 11:00 a.m. on weekends but the tenant received a notice saying that CPM would be showing her apartment between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. on several Sundays. 4 - Last Thursday, the tenant received a general notice given to all tenants stating that from March 12 to March 30, CPM will be entering apartments to inspect at some time between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. No specific date or time of the entry was listed. Hence, this is notice that CPM will be entering without giving the notice required by law. Campus Property Management responded to this complaint with a letter from an attorney that states: 1 - Reasonable opportunity to answer is the subject of interpretation. The tenant stated in the complaint that she yelled twice that she was coming. The attorney said certainly it would be reasonable to proceed if she did not in fact come to the door after indicating twice that she would do so. 2 - The law requires a note indicating the names of those who entered be left but when the tenant is present, it is only reasonable to conclude that the tenant ask for name or other identification 3 The lawyer said that CPM has no intention of entering apartments before 11:00 a.m. on weekends 4 The lawyer said that CPM s intent of the notice was to minimize any burden on the tenant of the inspection process by offering a time frame for the inspection. He said the Ordinance itself does not mention that a single specified date and time be provided and I do not interpret Urbana s Ordinance as requiring a specific 1-hour time frame on a single pre-specified day. He stated that the notice provided complies with the law but also said it is probably appropriate to come up with a more limited time frame for such inspections and clarify that my client has no intention of conducting such inspections on weekends until after 11 am. On March 18, a representative of CPM called the Tenant Union to respond to this complaint and said there would be no inspection necessary for this tenant s apartment and that other tenants would receive another notice telling them the date their apartment would be inspected. One week later, on March 25, the tenant who filed this complaint called the Tenant Union to report that a CPM agent showed up at her apartment that morning, without notice, to inspect it. Tenant was referred to Student Legal Services to pursue this matter. COMPLAINT - 9/10/10: Tenant said she has reported these repair problems to CPM in person and by telephone several times since moving in 20 days ago: 1. Washing machine does not drain 2. Dryer does not dry clothes 3. Apartment was not cleaned before the tenant moved in and tenant said the furniture, carpet and flooring are worn and dirty

6 4. Excessive amount of bird feces on the balcony 5. Dinette chair is broken, coffee table missing and end table has a broken leg. CPM responded to the complaint three days later. The washer/dryer was replaced September 14 and in the week after that, the rest of the repairs were done and CPM cleaned the balcony. COMPLAINT - 8/30/10: Air conditioning has not been working properly since the tenants moved in 9 days ago. Outside temperatures are in the 80 s and 90 s and the tenants have been unable to stay in the apartment because it is so hot, even with the air conditioning set on high and running all day. CPM has sent a worker out three times and each time, tenants say the worker says he doesn t know what can be done to fix the problem. The CPM manager responded to this complaint the next day, said the problem had to do with air circulation and brought the tenants a fan. The tenants said the next door neighbors apartment is identical and their a/c maintains a comfortable temperature. The manager said that the neighbors have a newer system installed 2 or 3 years ago but CPM would not install a new system for these tenants and nothing more would be done for them. COMPLAINT - 11/13/09: Tenant moved from one CPM apartment to another. When the matter of her deposit was addressed, CPM deducted from her deposit $75 for cleaning and $95 for painting. Tenant spoke with the manager who agreed to cut the cleaning charge in half but would not drop the painting charge. Tenant said there was no damage to the walls beyond normal wear and she wants credit for the $95 that was deducted for painting. Also, tenant had paid the full year s sanitary tax in advance so she wants a $44 credit for the unused portion since she paid the tax again for the apartment to which she was transferred. November 16, CPM agreed to remove the $95 painting charge from tenant s account and to credit her $44 for the unused balance of sanitary tax payment. COMPLAINT - 9/28/09: Tenant complained about poor property maintenance, specifically: 1. Electrical outlet in living room sparks when anything is plugged into it which causes the breaker to flip off (tenant s laptop computer was ruined when she plugged it in before knowing about this problem) 2. Light fixture fell from the kitchen ceiling and shattered on the table. 3. Water damage on living room ceiling. 4. Windows in two bedrooms do not open. 5. Toilet runs constantly. 6. Apartment was filthy at the start of the lease. Tenant said she made repeated requests for repair in person at the office and in writing but none of these problems have been addressed. The first direct reply to the Tenant Union about this complaint was more than 2 months later when the manager called to follow up on Tenant Union s record of the status of the repair needs. Two weeks after tenants filed this complaint, a maintenance worker fixed the electrical problem. December 8, tenant reported that Campus Property Management offered a half month s rent credit and moved the tenants to a different apartment. COMPLAINT - 9/25/09: Tenant said that for several weeks she has repeatedly requested repair to the sliding balcony door. It does not fit in the frame, is broken and leaves a gap which allows rain to leak in, could cause heat bills to be higher and poses a safety risk. There is also a wet, moldy spot in the living room ceiling that the landlord had filled in and painted over but nothing was done to prevent the cause of the mold. (Tenant Union has been receiving complaints about roof leaks and water-related issues at this building for the last 11 years). Tenant also said the parking garage has flooded several times and her car

7 was totaled the last time it happened. On December 3, three months after the tenant first requested repairs, the work was done. COMPLAINT - 9/2/09: Ceiling started leaking in the first rain on August 27. There was a hole in the ceiling and water poured through the hole. Tenant said he called the maintenance office and was told someone would come out the next day but no one came. Tenant called the landlord the next day and the day after that. Five days later, a maintenance worker came out to the apartment. When this building was only 1 year old in 1997, the roof was leaking and in 2000, a balcony fell off the building because water damage had rotted the supports for the balcony. On September 8, repair was done to the ceiling. In the next rain after that, there was no water leaking. COMPLAINT - 8/27/09: At move in, the tenant found that the walls had substantial water damage, paint was peeling off the walls, a pipe in the utility closet was leaking and the apartment had a bad odor. Despite the carpet having been cleaned, the odor persisted. The tenant said the carpet was old and worn and he thinks that is the source of the mildew odor. He also said that much of the furniture was damaged included the kitchen table and chairs, coffee table, closet doors, blinds and kitchen cabinets. Some of the walls were warped which was probably related to the water damage. On August 18, the city inspector cited several code violations related to the water problems. Manager replied to the complaint on August 27 and said that wall resurfacing and painting was done and the carpe had been cleaned twice. He said that the housing inspector told him the carpet smells very bad and needs to be replaced. He said he replaced it the day this tenant filed the complaint (tenant said it wasn t replaced until September 1) and the plumber was out the next day to fix the leaky pipe. He said he would replace the broken furniture but also stated that the CPM lease gives him one month after the tenant moves in to do repairs. Carpet was replaced on September 1 and some furniture and blinds were replaced on September 8. By December 10, tenant said all broken furniture was still not replaced and all code violations that were to be corrected by September 30 had still not been corrected. January 25 the tenant said that the crack behind the toilet and the warped wall still needed to be repaired. Repairs were completed by March 29 except the warped wall. The CPM manager said the warped wall was not cited as a code violation and no work would be done on it. COMPLAINT - 6/8/09: Tenant said she has made 5 requests in the last month for repair to her air conditioner. It leaks onto the carpet and is damaging the carpet. The leak shorts out the unit and it stops working. She wants the air conditioning fixed and something done about the damaged carpet. On June 15, CPM manager said he sent someone out to look at it and it runs fine. Tenant said it runs for 10 minutes, leaks and then the leak seems to shut the unit off. Manager was asked to have someone look at it again and after that, he said it was malfunctioning and would be replaced. Three weeks after the complaint was filed and seven weeks after tenant first reported the problem to the landlord, the air conditioner was replaced. COMPLAINT - 4/20/09: Tenant said that he has been complaining about mold on the walls since moving in 8 months ago. He said a worker sprayed something on the walls to make the mold go away but it came back. He said he complained again in December and nothing was done. Tenant said now the bathroom and one of the bedrooms has mold on the walls and it has gotten continuously worse. He said the tenant who lives in that bedroom has gotten sick from the mold. The mold also damaged a $120 framed painting and tenant wants compensation for that. April 22, Campus Property Management representative said the mold has been cleaned up and claims that no repair request has been made since

8 September. Tenant is concerned about mold coming back again. He is consulting with Student Legal Services about compensation for the damaged painting and frame. COMPLAINT - 2/24/09: Dishwasher has been broken for more than a month. It is leaking water on the floor and into the living room making the carpet wet. Tenant says she submitted a written work request and has called the management office several times but repair has not been done. After the Tenant Union contacted Campus Property Management, the repair was done a week later. COMPLAINT - 1/21/09: Tenants said a pipe burst and flooded the apartment on January 17 th. Although CPM came and extracted the water from the carpet that evening, the carpet smells like mildew and needs to be cleaned. Tenants are also asking for $75 compensation for the 2 days they could not stay in the apartment due to having no water from the burst pipe. Tenants also complained that inadequate maintenance response has been an ongoing problem: On October 23, tenant reported to CPM a growing water mark on the ceiling. CPM staff looked at it but didn t fix the leak. Three weeks later the living room floor was soaked. CPM sent staff out to repair but they didn t clean the carpet until 6 days later. Carpets smelled like mildew so tenants called the city inspector. Three weeks after that, ceiling leaked again and CPM workers put a garbage can under the leak and said they would be back to fix it. Another week later, tenant found a hole cut in the ceiling, called CPM to inquire and was told that CPM had no maintenance record for the apartment since October 24. Improper behavior by maintenance staff: Tenants returned from winter break and discovered the hole in the ceiling had been fixed, furnace filters had been changed, and pest control had been in. They also discovered several items were missing from the apartment and contacted the police, who confirmed there had been no forced entry. The maintenance staff who had been in the apartment left plaster all over the floor in one bedroom and ruined the tenants rug in the bathroom (Urbana city code requires that workers clean up after themselves). Landlord claims they responded immediately when the leak was reported, water was extracted that night, and the carpets had been cleaned and treated with microban on 1/18 and 1/23 (tenants say it did not get cleaned until the 23 rd ). Landlord agreed to give tenants $75 rent credit. Carpets were cleaned and tenants received $75 compensation.