Quickest way to deal with landlord not providing heat?

amother

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 6:29 pm

Whats the quickest and most effective way to deal with a landlord not providing heat?

Its a 2 family house.

Even if the family (with infant) moves, it takes time to find another apartment.

amother

Wheat

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 6:30 pm

Maybe to fix the issue yourself and deduct it from your rent?

amother

Almond

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 6:30 pm

Call 311. (you might get into trouble though)

Buy a heater (electric) and pay less of the bill (if allowed)

amother

DarkRed

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 6:30 pm

Get a space heater for meanwhile
It's not safe for a baby

amother

Bronze

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 6:31 pm

Tell him you are calling 311 if there is no heat by law he has to give you heat if the temp. drops below a certon degree.

amother

Burlywood

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 6:31 pm

amother Almond wrote:

Call 311. (you might get into trouble though)

Buy a heater (electric) and pay less of the bill (if allowed)

You are legally protected the landlord can’t retaliate and if they do you can take legal action

amother

Almond

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 6:35 pm

amother Burlywood wrote:

You are legally protected the landlord can’t retaliate and if they do you can take legal action

Yeah I know that but if the landlord is jewish.... you know the rest...

amother

Chambray

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 7:16 pm

Call 311. That’s very dangerous for a small baby.

amother

Leaf

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 7:46 pm

Are you sure there’s no heat?
What’s the temp in your home?
Becuase our tenants call ALL THE TIME while their heat is running. They sit near a window with a draft or keep their window ac uncovered so they only feel the cold.

losingweight

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 7:53 pm

Put your rent into an escrow account till the issue is resolved. Take a temp reading and send it to the landlord. And respectfully tell him he will get the whole amount of rent as soon as youre not cold.

amother

Ghostwhite

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 8:28 pm

You have to tell them it's illegal and you will report to the dept of health if not rectified immediately. Better if you use a room thermometer, as someone suggested earlier, and send them a picture of the reading as proof.

amother

Ginger

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 8:30 pm

I would suggest you keep a log of actual Temps with time taken. Not a quick fix, but good to have for the long term. Then compare it to the legal requirements where you live & present it to the landlord.

amother

NeonBlue

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 8:35 pm

If the apartment is not legal, you can't take legal action. If the heating system is broken, you can fix it on your own. Sometimes it's a minor issue. Not all landlords take responsibility for repairs.

amother

Lightcyan

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 8:48 pm

amother NeonBlue wrote:

If the apartment is illegal then she doesnt have to pay rent at all. The landlord is still required to put on the heat so she should still follow the steps mentioned upthread even if she isnt paying rent.

https://nycourts.gov/courts/ny.....t.pdf

https://www.justfix.org/en/learn/nyc-heat-law

amother

Chambray

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 9:10 pm

amother Lightcyan wrote:

This. Op is in NY. If she were elsewhere then she might not be as lucky.

amother

Aster

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 9:12 pm

You have no heat at all? I don't mean to doubt, but with the temps we've been having, if you had no heat, you would not be able to stay in the apartment.

amother

Leaf

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 10:03 pm

amother Aster wrote:

You have no heat at all? I don't mean to doubt, but with the temps we've been having, if you had no heat, you would not be able to stay in the apartment.

This.
OP isn’t responding but something doesn’t seem right.

amother

Electricblue

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 10:11 pm

amother Leaf wrote:

This.
OP isn’t responding but something doesn’t seem right.

I believe her. On shabbos we had temps of -3 and we didn’t have the heat on for some reason. It was cold but manageable. It depends on the structure of the house. We are sandwiched in from all sides. Back when we had open space around the entire house we couldn’t stay at the apartment until the heat was fixed. Our fingers and noses would get frozen.

out-of-towner

Mon, Dec 26 2022, 10:15 pm

I believe that NYC has done some kind of restricted gas flow thing due to concerns of too much use on the city system. I don't know what to answer OP, but this may be a factor.