RENTERS BEWARE
OSPIRG's renter's rights project has documented
hundreds of instances of dissatisfied tenants
By Sheldon Traver • Freelance Reporter
Walking up the steps of
her Eugene apartment,
senior Alyson Harding
expected confrontation. She
inched closer to the door and
heard the footsteps of the beast
she was about to confront: 60
pounds of matted black lab with
growling, dirty yellow teeth
snarling in the window.
"I end up crying and shaking
every time I see it," Harding
said. "It's the spawn of Satan."
Harding said her fear of
various dogs that have shared
her living space has forced her
to move.
"I've had to move eight
times in four years," she said.
To avoid situations such as
this, renters should be wary of
the housing situations they
may be considering.
OSPIRG is working on a
renter's rights project at the
University and Lane Commu
nity College. Oregon Student
Public Interest Research
Group Campus Organizer Kit
Douglass said the group re
ceived 150 calls on its renter's
rights hotline in April.
"We had one renter who
had a toilet that would back
up constantly and overflow
into the kitchen and kitchen
cabinets," Douglass said.
She said OSPIRG has seei
houses with enough structure
damage that the front doo
would not close, and addec
that it is important for renter
to be assertive when choosinj
a rental.
"The landlord — accordinj
to law — is supposed to pro
vide a habitable place to live,'
Douglass said.
History major Jerom}
French said he wishes h<
would have known mor<
about his rights prior to mov
ing into an old apartment.
"The roof was rotting, anc
there was a hole in the come
of my roof," French said.
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i To remedy the problem, he
I bought plastic to make a fiin
r nel for the torrent of water that
I would come when it rained.
> "One evening I came home,
1 and it had funneled into a cor
ner and onto my roommate's
; bed downstairs,* French said.
Fortunately, his roommate
was able to find a dry spot to
sleep until the mattress dried.
r "The owners said they
■ would get to it; however, it was
never very high on their priori
ty list." French said.
He lived with the problem
| for a year before finally mov
ing out.
OSPIRG suggests students
carefully examine their poten
tial rental and write down any
necessary repairs and when
they will be fixed. For housing
questions, call 346-HELP for
free assistance.
Harding said she will meet
her neighbors before signing
any new agreements. For
now, she said she hopes oth
ers will learn from her bad
experiences.
"I live in a place where my
neighbor's dog is evil and
tries to kill me," Harding
said. "It can't get much worse
than this."
Sheldon Traver is a freelance
reporter for the Emerald.
DEPOSITS
continued from page 2B
prior to moving in. The report
allows renters to list damages
that already exist.
Alecia Yenter, 24, said she
has always had her deposit re
turned.
"The most important
thing to do is walk through
with your landlord before
you move in and again when
you move out," she said.
"Make copies of the agree
ments and even take pictures
if you need to."
Yenter said to take time to
walk through the house with
the landlord and document
damages to avoid paying later
for them. Then, ask for a copy
of the initial damage report
and keep it.
She added that taking pic
tures is a valuable tool in
avoiding paying for damages
made prior to moving in.
Sign and date the pictures
upon moving in and again
when moving out. Landlords
can charge for damage be
yond normal wear and tear,
which can be an issue of in
terpretation.
Some landlords offer the al
ternative of a separate non-re
fundable deposit for allowing
pets to live in the unit.
Landlord Kathy Re said typ
ically this deposit is signifi
cantly less than the security
deposit.
"We charge a separate $200
non-refundable deposit for
pets," she said.
The non-refundable animal
fee will usually cover the cost
of carpet cleaning upon the
tenant moving out.
If a landlord finds a pet
when the lease doesn't permit
animals, the renter risks losing
a larger amount of money
from the security deposit. It is
better to pay the initial pet
deposit.
Renters have options if they
feel they have wrongfully been
denied the return of a deposit.
ASUO provides free legal
services for these types of situ
ations.
Linda Miller, assistant direc
tor of ASUO Legal Services,
said renters need to make an
appointment to talk about the
situation. She said these cases
are common and rarely result
in a court case.
"We are usually able to ne
gotiate and get a satisfactory
settlement for students with
out going to court," Miller
said.
Renting advocates said the
first thing to do is notify the
management in writing that
there is a disagreement with
the charges and why. Send the
letter with a return receipt re
quested, and keep the receipt.
Student Chrystal Price, 21,
said the $200 carpet damage
charge she received when she
moved out of her apartment
last year was unreasonable.
Price contacted her mother
and lawyer.
"I wrote them a letter saying
that I had contacted my lawyer
and refused to pay the dam
ages," she said, adding that
she reached an out-of-court
settlement.
The last resort is small
claims court. The Oregon
State Landlord Tenant Securi
ty Deposit Law states that in
Oregon, landlords must re
turn deposits to their tenants
within 30 days, but they do
have the right to withhold a
reasonable amount from the
security deposit for damages
claimed. The reasonable
amount usually cannot ex
ceed the cost of the repairs
and the time needed to repair
the damages.
Lauren Wilson is a freelance
reporter for the Emerald.
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