Your home, while not perfect, has been your sanctuary for years. You’ve paid your rent, you’ve taken care of the unit, despite its many imperfections. You’ve complained about habitability defects profusely, for years, including the a conspicuously dilapidated floor that the landlord has neglected for years. Despite your prudence, the landlord has not made repairs, and your home remains uninhabitable through no fault of your own, including your dangerous and dilapidated floor. The floor has been dilapidated for years. However, you begin to feel that it is not fair. Why should you, the upstanding & rent paying tenant, have paid rent for a home with a dangerous floor that poses a life and safety threat to you and your family members. You could trip and fall while walking in your home, which would undoubtedly cause you to suffer great peril. You begin to wonder; Does my landlord have to repair or replace a dilapidated and hazardous floor?
Yes, your landlord has to repair or replace a dilapidated stairwell. Knight v. Hallsthammar, (1981) 29 Cal. 3d 46, 58 (Dilapidated floors not maintained in good repair constitutes a breach of the warranty of habitability); California Civil Code § 1941.1(a)(8); California Health & Safety Code § 17920.3(b). Provided it is not de minimis (minor or not severe), a dilapidated floor, protruding nails, and other hazardous issues constitutes a defective condition that substantially affects habitability. Id.; CACI No. 4350 (Additionally, CACI No. 4350 expressly references defective floors as constituting a condition that constitutes a breach of the warranty of habitability.). Thus, a substantially dilapidated floor is more than an inconvenience—it is a habitability concern that your landlord must remedy.
Repeated complaints and broken promises should not define your experience at home. When habitability defects persist and requests for repairs go unanswered, pursuing a habitability claim may be an important step toward holding those responsible accountable and seeking compensation for the harm you have suffered. Your complaints, photographs, inspection reports, and records of losses can help tell that story, and help you as you litigate your timely filed breach of the implied warranty of habitability claim (not making repairs) in a court of law, including for a dilapidated and hazardous floor.