Tenant who caused fire loses damage deposit

Q Our company has apartments in St. Paul and one tenant started a fire in her apartment by leaving a candle unattended when she was not home. This fire damaged her unit and two others. Hers has been condemned.

Do we have a right to keep her damage deposit because she caused the fire?

A Yes, you have the right to keep the damage deposit to cover damages and any other amounts you think you may be owed by the tenant. 

Under Minnesota Statute 504B.178, you need to provide a written statement showing the specific reasons for withholding the deposit or any portion of it.

The statute states that you have three weeks to provide this letter if the tenant moves out under normal circumstances, but only five days if the tenant moves due to condemnation that is not the tenant's fault.

I would recommend sending the letter as soon as possible. If you believe the damages caused by the tenant exceed the deposit, you may also want to include a statement notifying the tenant that she may owe more, and that you are not waiving any rights to pursue these amounts.

Q My fiancé and I have been tenants of an apartment in Uptown Minneapolis since July 2005.

We were on a one-year lease and were told that at the end of that year, we could re-sign or stay on a month-to-month basis.

Because we had tentative plans to move out of state, we did not re-sign and have lived in the unit on the aforementioned month-to-month basis.

However, during that time ownership of the building changed and though we requested a new lease agreement, our request was ignored. I mention this because it may be relevant to the greater issue: Over the past winters, our heat has been unreliable. For the first several winters, it would go out occasionally and usually we could remedy the situation ourselves, asking (bothering) our next-door tenant to manually "bleed" his heater so that the water-based heat could reach our unit.

The problem has reached a far more chronic level. Since the beginning of indoor heat season, we have been losing heat almost daily. We have taken to contacting emergency maintenance each time the heat fails.

Maintenance and management have speculated that the problem is due to a leak that is decreasing the boiler pressure daily, but that, as of yet, cannot be found.

Meanwhile, we continue to lose heat every 18 to 48 hours.

A Under Minnesota Statute 504B.385, tenants can file a rent escrow action in the county where they live after first giving the landlord 14 days to remedy the problem. Tenants need to send a letter informing the landlord of the problem and asking that it be fixed within 14 days.

If the problem isn't fixed within 14 days, the tenant can then file the necessary paperwork for a rent escrow action. 

In your case, the landlord is fixing your heat problem, but it's a recurring maintenance issue.

Therefore, if you end up filing a rent escrow action because the problem isn't being adequately repaired, you should ask for rent abatement for the days you had no heat. This will reduce your rent amount for the weeks you were inconvenienced by renting an apartment that isn't habitable during the winter months.

Kelly Klein is a Minneapolis attorney. Do not rely on advice in this column regarding a legal situation until you consult a qualified attorney; information provided by readers is not confidential; participation in this column does not create an attorney/client relationship, and no such relationship is created without a retainer agreement with Klein. If you have questions concerning renting, you can e-mail her at kklein@kleinpa.com, post your questions at www.startribune.com/kellyklein or write in care of Star Tribune, 425 Portland Av. S., Minneapolis, MN 55488.

This state office works on behalf of consumers to ensure that state trade regulations and consumer laws are enforced. Staff takes complaints on a variety of consumer matters and can help consumers resolve problems with businesses. The office also can refer consumers to the government agencies that can best address their problems or explain what options a consumer might have in pursuing a claim. For information, call the citizen's assistance line, 651-296-3353 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. Or visit the website at www.ag.state.mn.us/consumer/housing/default.asp or write the consumer division at 1400 Bremer Tower, 445 Minnesota St., St. Paul, MN 55101 for free publications on housing topics such as "The Home Buyer's Handbook" and "Landlords and Tenants: Rights and Responsibilities.''

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This nonprofit company builds, renovates and manages rental apartments and townhouses throughout the metro area. For information about locations and vacancies, call 651-291-1750; for information about new housing developments, call 651-290-6228. Visit the website at www.commonbond.org .

The Minnesota Association of Community Mediation Programs offers mediation services for a variety of disputes, including issues between tenants and between landlords and tenants. Services are offered at offices throughout the metro area and are low-cost or free.

• Dispute Resolution Center in St. Paul, 651-292-7791.

• Mediation Services for Anoka County, 763-422-8878.

• Minneapolis Mediation Program, 612-822-9883.

• Community Mediation Services, 763-561-0033.

HUD is a federal agency that funds and monitors housing projects and housing subsidies, insures home loans, investigates housing discrimination and provides lists of subsidized rental housing in the metro and outstate areas. There are fees for some services. For information, call 612-370-3000 or write to HUD at Suite 1300, 920 2nd Av. S., Minneapolis, MN 55402 or visit www.hud.gov.