Having worked in the property management industry for a quarter-century, I occasionally receive requests to serve as an expert witness in lawsuits. What that typically means is that I’m going to learn about a habitability claim that has turned into a costly lawsuit for the property owner.
Typically, I get a call from an attorney who’s vetted my background, and they invite me to an apartment complex where they walk me through the property as tenants point out various issues — this plumbing problem has gone unrepaired, that splotch looks like mold and so on. Sometimes the claim of inhabitability is valid, and sometimes it’s merely an attorney’s attempt to drum up business.
Regardless, habitability lawsuits pose a real threat to owners, and they’re one of the easiest ways owners can wind up liable for hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt. Hiring a professional property manager can be the key for property owners looking for protection from liability.
In the most recent case I served on, an attorney walked me around a property in Reseda where tenants highlighted maintenance issues. But something stood out to me as strange: Even though there were multiple complaints concerning mold, not a single tenant mentioned mold to me. They pointed out problems here and there that the owner should have fixed and had neglected, but it became clear to me that the suing attorney had spearheaded the lawsuit, having seen an opportunity and gone door to door to get tenants on board. I could also tell that he was likely going to win, and it was going to cost the owner thousands of dollars.
The Reality Of Predatory Lawsuits
Walking this building reminded me that there are people who make their living by suing property owners, and they’re good at their jobs. So even though the owner of this building could rightfully bemoan the ethics of the lawsuit against him, the truth was that he could only blame himself, because it was his responsibility to do everything in his power to maintain his property to the legal standard and to eliminate his vulnerability to this type of action, which he had not done.
As a manager myself, I’ve heard these stories from countless owners, always unfortunately after the fact and before they hire us, which means the damage is already done. That’s a shame, because in almost every instance, I can see how diligent property management would’ve prevented the entire headache.
Mold: The ‘M’ Word
When it comes to mold, a property manager should always err on the side of caution. Though the exact effects of mold exposure are still the subject of scientific debate, according to the CDC, “In 2004 the Institute of Medicine (IOM) found there was sufficient evidence to link indoor exposure to mold with upper respiratory tract symptoms, cough, and wheeze in otherwise healthy people; with asthma symptoms in people with asthma; and with hypersensitivity pneumonitis in individuals susceptible to that immune-mediated condition.”
Juries in court cases have also awarded money to plaintiffs suing companies and home owners for mold exposure. If a tenant even says what we call “the ‘M’ word,” property managers should know to test for it immediately. Management should also formally demand that tenants let them know of any water-related problems in apartment units as soon as they occur to eliminate the possibility of mold growth. This helps limit the liability of both the owner and manager.
Unreported Issues And The Importance Of Walking Units
In the case of the building in Reseda, a professional property management company would have repaired all the reported issues in a timely manner — that’s just proper service — and furthermore would’ve spotted the unreported issues during their regularly scheduled, twice-annual walkthrough of every unit. I’ve written before about some of the shocking discoveries I’ve made in my time as a manager just by taking the time to walk units with owners.
You can formally require tenants to report damages and issues, but you can’t always guarantee that they’ll do so. Often, the problems that don’t get reported are the ones that cost owners money or put others in danger, like broken smoke alarms left hanging off the walls or leaks left to run into bathtubs. Hiring a management company committed to walking the units on a regular schedule can save owners money and reduce liability.
Swimming Pool Code
In another case I served on, I brought our director of construction, Juan Quezada, along with me to the site we were observing downtown. This was for another lawsuit regarding the habitability of apartment units self-managed by the owner, but while walking from one unit to another, we noticed something that nobody involved in the suit had addressed: The courtyard swimming pool had no fencing whatsoever surrounding it.
This is extremely dangerous — think of the young children in the building and the obvious way this could end in tragedy. It’s also entirely illegal, and thus makes the owner of the building liable for any number of the terrible possible outcomes that could result from it. The Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety specifies that a pool must have a perimeter enclosure completely surrounding it, with a gate that self-closes. Any property manager worth their salt would pick up on this indiscretion immediately, recognize its violation of building and safety code and correct it for both the safety of the tenants and the protection of the owner from liability.
The fact of the matter is that owning an apartment building comes with a complex legal burden of responsibility. If you’re not well-versed in the legal language of building and safety code or prepared to enforce critical legal standards to a T on your property, your best bet for limiting your liability is hiring a property management service. The surest way to keep your tenants safe and keep you out of court is to entrust this responsibility to professionals whose job it is to prevent such disasters.