How much rent do I withhold for heat outage?

[WIT]

My apartment didn't have heat for 3 weeks this past winter. How much rent should we withhold from our landlord to cover this?

Is it the pro-rated value of the 21 days, or a percentage of that value?

Any experience or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

[shahpel]

Before you hold your rent, make sure you give your lanlord ample notice by certified mail. Send about 2 notices. Make sure you create a log that states the days and time you were without heat and/or hot water. Try to get other tenants to verify this in a notorize letter. If done properly, you may be rewarded with a rent abatement by the courts.

[Chimera]

In other words: Do not withhold rent unless ordered by a judge.

[mjr203]

Originally posted by Chimera:
In other words: Do not withhold rent unless ordered by a judge.

why do you keep insisting on this advice?

rent withholding is a risky but sometimes useful strategy to force a non-payment proceeding and countersuit for repairs etc. as well as the most dramatic thing a tenant can do to protest shabby treatment at the hands of a landlord.

your blanket "don't withhold unless ordered by a judge" is just not correct.

[Cranky Tenant]

I agree with pointerout. The purpose of this board is to inform tenants and help guide them through the legal system as it pertains to hosuing- not to instill fear of the legal system.

[Cranky Tenant]

Originally posted by WIT:
My apartment didn't have heat for 3 weeks this past winter. How much rent should we withhold from our landlord to cover this?

Is it the pro-rated value of the 21 days, or a percentage of that value?

Any experience or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Ideally you should keep a record of days when heat was required but not provided. There's a sample form at http://tenant.net/Court/Howcourt/heat.html

Sometime back when I was in housing court, the judge awarded me a 1/3 rent abatement for each month without an essential service. In this case it was gas.

Personally I feel heat is a bit mor subjective. Not having heat when it's 40 degrees out is very different from not having heat when it's 10 degrees. Also your ability to provide heat, with a stove or electric heater, and the cost of using those utilities, might also factor into any deduction.

We once spent the coldest week of the year without heat or water so we deducted half of our rent. The LL didn't like it but didn't bother taking us to court.

[Chimera]

WIT isn't withholding rent to force his landlord to make repairs. He's withholding it as compensation. He isn't legally entitled to decide what and how to be compensated, it requires a trip to housing court.