{"id":393,"date":"2024-09-26T19:36:10","date_gmt":"2024-09-26T19:36:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/davewassermansf.com\/articles\/?p=393"},"modified":"2024-09-26T19:36:12","modified_gmt":"2024-09-26T19:36:12","slug":"constructive-eviction-issues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/davewassermansf.com\/articles\/constructive-eviction-issues\/","title":{"rendered":"Constructive Eviction Issues"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>A previous resident who constantly lodged complaints about what I perceived to be minor issues like lightbulb replacement, leaking faucets, and difficulty opening windows is now claiming constructive eviction, arguing that the repairs were not undertaken promptly.&nbsp; What is my best defense?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Constructive eviction lawsuits are increasingly common now in California.&nbsp; And, as you undoubtedly have been hearing, insurance coverage for these claims has become more and more scarce, cost prohibitive, and in many cases nonexistent.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By law, every resident has the right to live peacefully in their rental housing.&nbsp; They are entitled to basic health and safety standards known as the implied warranty of habitability.&nbsp; If a housing provider fails to maintain rental housing in a safe and usable condition, and the renter feels compelled to move out and actually does so because of this failing, a claim for constructive eviction may be pursued in superior court.&nbsp; These cases typically cost the owner anywhere from a couple of hundred thousand to several million dollars depending on the facts and circumstances.&nbsp; Common examples giving rise to constructive eviction actions include:&nbsp; (i) failing to make necessary or agreed upon repairs; (ii) failing to provide required housing services such as heat, hot water, safe electricity, and weatherproofing; (iii) failing to remediate mold or to eradicate a pest\/bed bug infestation; (iv) refusing to confront and address bad behavior by other residents in the building that are adversely impacting others; (v) undertaking construction work at the property that creates a dangerous or unsafe environment; (vi) failing to relocate residents during major construction projects; and\/or (vii) imposing a rent increase designed to force the tenant to leave (e.g., a rent increase that exceeds a fair market value for this rental).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>California law allows constructively evicted tenants to be awarded moving costs, emotional distress damages, and the value of their lost tenancy.&nbsp; Indeed, this last category, the value of the tenancy, can be quite serious.&nbsp; Assume for example that the tenancy was 20 or 30 years old, and monthly rent was about $2,000 below market.&nbsp; The displaced renter could claim damages as follows:&nbsp; $2,000 per month for the next ten years, or $240,000.&nbsp; The San Francisco Rent Ordinance then permits this amount to be trebled, making the judgment $720,000.&nbsp; The court may then award attorney fees and other damages to be added to this sum, thereby making the final judgment quite daunting.&nbsp; Add to your woes the distinct possibility that insurance may not cover some or all your losses and you have a recipe for disaster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The lesson to be learned here is to promptly attend to all complaints lodged by your tenants, even if you suspect that they are minor or frivolous.&nbsp; You are better served wasting time on maintenance errands as opposed to being straddled with potentially devastating financial liability in a constructive eviction lawsuit.&nbsp; Thus, it\u2019s best not to take a gamble that the complainer will quietly depart, and if you feel overwhelmed, consider hiring a professional property management company to take the reins.&nbsp; The bottom line is that our laws require consistent proactive interaction with renters, and failing to do so may result in extremely unpleasant outcomes.&nbsp; Use this advice as your best defense!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A previous resident who constantly lodged complaints about what I perceived to be minor issues like lightbulb replacement, leaking faucets, and difficulty opening windows is now claiming constructive eviction, arguing that the repairs were not undertaken promptly.&nbsp; What is my best defense? Constructive eviction lawsuits are increasingly common now in California.&nbsp; And, as you undoubtedly [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Constructive Eviction Issues - Davewassermansf<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/davewassermansf.com\/articles\/constructive-eviction-issues\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Constructive Eviction Issues - Davewassermansf\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A previous resident who constantly lodged complaints about what I perceived to be minor issues like lightbulb replacement, leaking faucets, and difficulty opening windows is now claiming constructive eviction, arguing that the repairs were not undertaken promptly.&nbsp; What is my best defense? 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