With the end of spring term in sight, many students are bound to be moving around.
Mark Tritt, an enforcement inspector for the rental housing code in Eugene, which establishes minimum standards that rental housing must meet, has some basic recommendations and city code tips for renters who want to find a safe and healthy spot to live.
The city’s Rental Housing Program, which writes the city code, is a complaint-based program that forms policies based on the number of complaints. Tritt suggests that any renter who wants to file a complaint should do so with the landlord. After 10 days, if the request has not been met, the renter should file with the City of Eugene.
He recommended that complaints to the landlord be in written form.
“Verbal communication is great,” he said, “but you should always follow up in writing so you have a copy of it.”
Tritt said most of the complaints he receives from renters around the Eugene area fall under six main areas.
Weatherproofing, he said, is a particularly important part of housing code in Oregon. Tritt suggests checking ceilings for water stains, checking the condition of weatherstripping around the doors and windows and considering how livable a spot might be in suboptimal weather.
“If you’re renting in the good weather, you may not think about how things are going to hold up when it gets wet,” he said, “but it’s something to keep in mind.”
Tritt said plumbing complaints are frequent, and it can be beneficial to check that the plumbing of a home looks up to par before renting.
“Try all faucets, check the hot water, close them off and make sure they don’t drip,” he suggested. “In the kitchen, take a peek under the sink.”
Heating was another area that Tritt said might be overlooked by renters shopping around in the summer and fall, but the city has strict standards requiring that all “habitable rooms have a permanently installed source of heat (i.e. a space heater) that is capable of heating to at least 68 degrees Fahrenheit.”
City code mandates smoke detectors, as well. Tritt warned that rental agreements often put the burden of keeping smoke detectors functional on the tenant. He suggested using a regularly recurring date in the year, such as the daylight and standard time switch, to remember to check the batteries and functionality of smoke detectors.
Security and structural integrity are the final two areas Tritt considers fundamental to the health and safety considerations renters should have when considering new homes. The code mandates that rental units have locks on all externally exposed windows and doors for security. It also mandates that the structural integrity of a unit’s roofs, floors and walls all be sound.
“Especially when comparing one property to another, people should be keen on these things,” he said.
Tritt suggested ASUO’s student legal services and the city’s Web site as resources for tenants looking for more information on housing standards and renters’ rights.
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City guru explains code of the streets
Daily Emerald
April 22, 2010
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