apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Unfortunately, I don't know the answer to this question, but I did do a little searching on the LA County Consumer Affairs site.

http://consumer-affairs.co.la.ca.us/mnRenters.htm

According to the "Landlord Entering Your Unit" page, a landlord may enter "To make repairs or alterations that are necessary or that you have agreed to."

Oops, the last part got cut off...

This seems to indicate that if the repairs would be cosmetic, and you have not agreed to them, you can keep the landlord out?

This may be silly but perhaps gather info, cut out photos, stage your kitchen with some retro items and invite him around for a style lesson - on how hot retro modernism is in LA and convince him it will be a better investment to leave the current kitchen. Maybe even direct him to apartmenttherapy to show how we (all potential renters) love that Jetsons stove.
I am probably being too idealistic but sometimes the human appeal works better than the legal on landlords as they hate to feel cornered.

Could he be prepping people for a rent hike - siting the reifurbished kitchens?

You would lose if this ever went to court. You RENT, you do not OWN. They own the appliances in the kitchen. If they wish to replace them and remodel, they are legally allowed to do so as they own the facilities. However, they MUST schedule a time that is conveinent for both parties; which means you might end up having to stay at a friend's or a family member's house while they do the work considering the situation with your husband if an amicable schedule cannot be agreed to.

@Emily:

No that clause means that the renter must abide by the landlord's rules; and if the landlord deems the remodel necessary, then the renter would have to abide the landlord, legally.

Hmmm.... After reading the post from 'just me' above (great suggestion, by the way) I'm thinking maybe he does know what he has and that is why he is gutting the kitchens... he is selling the ovens off to a local dealer... I find it hard to believe a landlord wouldn't know any better.

Check out "Every Landlord's Legal Guide". It's a great book, and you can find it pretty much anywhere. Laws for this sort of thing change depending on the city, county or state that you live, but the key point here is the "Warranty of Habitability" and it can work for you or against you. The basic idea is that both you and your landlord have an obligation to keep your unit and the building habitable. That means that your landlord has to take (reasonably) immediate action on things like a hole in your roof or a gas leak--because it prevents your place from being habitable. It also means you can't start a compost heap that might attract rats and cockroaches--for the same reasons. Your kitchen falls into a question, I believe, of safety or upgrade. If the landlord has a justifiable reason to upgrade the kitchen because it is unsafe, then I believe you have no recourse. If, however, the landlord merely wishes to upgrade because it increases (in his eyes, if not any other AT readers') the value of the property, you may have a bona fide reason to demand that he wait until you move out. The upshot? No one on AT can answer this for you, but here is some advice:

1) PUT EVERYTHING IN WRITING. All communications regarding this should be put RESPECTFULLY in writing. Remember, this may be read by a judge, so this is not the place for a flame war or a rant.

2) Call an inspector from the Department of Housing. Inform your landlord that you are doing so, and this will at least temporarily keep him at bay.

3) Seek an attorney's help. Just ask them to research the case for you; they may ask for payment; offer only something modest and remember: all attornies negotiate.

Good luck!

Gracegrl's question brings up one of my own. Backstory: my landlord has been rennovating apartments as people move out. My unit was the first to be rennovated, and in all of the units after mine, he has removed a wall between the eating nook and kitchen. This not only makes the space much more open and useable, but also allows for much better airflow (cooler in summer / warmer in winter). I've lived in my apt. for 2 1/2 yrs and he has told me numerous times that he will remove my wall "as soon as this unit is finished". He has even told me I could move into a newly rennovated unit and then rented it out to someone else. How can I get him to actually get the work done? I've already gotten a quote from a carpenter, but he has told me that he only wants his guy to do the work which is rediculous as I've seen his guy and crew drinking on the job!). I am desparate to get that damn wall removed - it creates an small and claustrophobic room of about 5' x 5'.

Thanks for any suggestions! aiisa

AG -- you use Craigslist and the newspaper to check the prevailing rent in your neighborhood. If it has dropped since you moved in, you threaten to move if you don't get your wall fixed.

If it has gone up substantially, the landlord has every reason to annoy you into leaving so he can re-rent at a higher rate. At that point, you may need to offer to pay the cost of removing the wall yourself. He really has no obligation to do it, so you have to find a way in which getting it done improves *his* life.

Wende,

Regarding your suggestion that I offer to pay for it, I have, and he still wants to have his guys do the work. As far as rents, the have shot up considerably hear in LA, even in the "edgy" neighborhoods. I think if I just went ahead and did it myself, it could invalidate my lease.

I work for a large developement company in Orange County (property management side). Just renovated our 245 unit community. We started out by asking our residence to move to a newly renovated apartment. Not everyone was happy about it of course. So we did as many as we could then as people moved out we did more. We value our residence and wanted to keep people happy. In a small complex of 19 units it may be a little different. I would talk to your landlord face to face. I would not get legal on your landlord... We have the right to give a 60 day non-renewal when your lease is up. FYI Good luck and I love the stove!

How horrible!! I know you have little rights to keep things as is- since you rent. BUT maybe you can get to keep that oven (in storage perhaps) until you move out. I know i would kill to keep that!

Gragegrl here, renter of the kitchen....

Thanks to everyone for their advice. I was hoping for some better news but, yes it does appear we are quite stuck.

We have written the owner (never met her) and building manager (he's the one we always deal with) a nice note explaining to them how much we love the kitchen and our predicament with my husband's third shift. Hopefully they will be nice and leave it be. It is certainly not a hazzard, it's in really good shape.


As if losing my precious kitchen isn't bad enough, we have one of those slacker managers who takes forever to do something. Some of the other tenants in my building have told me it took him two weeks to a month to redo the kitchen, the whole time making the kitchen and dining room unusable.

If it does have to be done in the end, how are we supposed to eat? Two weeks to a month of no kitchen is going to be expensive, we should at least get a reduction in rent or subsidy.

Anyway...I'll keep you all updated, if you're interested.

One other thing...We apparently live in a rent controlled building. I didn't know when we moved in, but that's what we've been told by the manager. Recently our building owner died (the rennnovations were taking place long before she died) and when we asked about the future of the building that's when the bldg. mngr. said we were living in rent control and not to worry. I live in Pasadena and am not sure what the laws are specific to our city, I need to go down to the library and do some research.