Charges for Garbage pickup

Dog4aday

New Member
Jurisdiction
Georgia
Hi
I live in Gwinnett county GA and I have been renting a house for over a year. The property management was always very prompt to fix any problems however they recently merged with a new company. We had a tree fall on the house and requested repairs of the damages. The rental company kept putting me off telling me that they needed more estimates they had at least 5 the first week.. It has now been over a month and I sent them a letter that basically said put me in another property and pay moving expense, terminate my lease and allow me reasonable time to find a new residence or Fix the damages and reduce my rent for the time and space I was without the use of at the property. I really wanted to stay here so I was extremely happy when I got a call that repairs were approved and going to start.

Now I have received an email that states we are now going to have to pay for trash pickup. I have never been charged this before. I contacted waste management and was advised that the billing is paid a year in advance as part of the property tax and the balance is paid in full for the year. I feel like they are looking to just add charges to recoup expenses.

Is there anything I can do or are they within their rights to suddenly charge me for an expense that is already paid?? (2015 was paid by the previous owner and 2016 was paid by the previous management company in the Annual Property Tax Bill).

Also how do I figure out what how much they should be reducing my rent?
 
I live in Gwinnett county GA and I have been renting a house for over a year. The property management was always very prompt to fix any problems however they recently merged with a new company. We had a tree fall on the house and requested repairs of the damages. The rental company kept putting me off telling me that they needed more estimates they had at least 5 the first week.. It has now been over a month and I sent them a letter that basically said put me in another property and pay moving expense, terminate my lease and allow me reasonable time to find a new residence or Fix the damages and reduce my rent for the time and space I was without the use of at the property. I really wanted to stay here so I was extremely happy when I got a call that repairs were approved and going to start.

That paragraph seems to imply that only part of the house was damaged and it was only part of the house that you couldn't use and have still been living in the house through all this.

If that's the case then I do not believe that the landlord is obligated to do any of that for you because the house isn't uninhabitable.

That being said, please study the GA landlord tenant statute and see if there is any recourse for your inconvenience.

2014 Georgia Code :: Title 44 - PROPERTY :: Chapter 7 - LANDLORD AND TENANT

Now I have received an email that states we are now going to have to pay for trash pickup.

Your first paragraph implies that your lease is still in effect and that it has not yet expired. If yes to that, and there is nothing in the lease that requires you to pay for trash pickup than the landlord cannot charge you for it until your current lease expires and he adds the charge to your next lease.

If he adds the charge to your lease renewal, your option is to decline to renew and then find another place to live.
 
I agree with @adjusterjack and you should carefully look at your lease. Unless you have something like a triple net lease (where the lessee pays for expenses related to the property), the property owner would be responsible for taxes and the other related expenses. Your responsibilities should be carefully delineated within the lease, such as monthly rent, utilities and any other fees or amounts. You could be right that the owner / rental company is trying to find ways to recoup on their investment. The property owner would need to pay for the taxes and other real estate fees and expenses. Be wary of what you receive for a lease renewal and carefully compare it to the current lease, assuming you get that far. Good luck.
 
Back
Top