Tenants' rights

To the Editor:

As a junior, I expected hardships as part and parcel of the transition from a University dorm to an off-campus apartment ("Landlords ignore tenant concerns," DP, 3/28/06). However, I was not prepared for the bureaucracy of a tenant-landlord relationship when I signed a lease with University City Housing.

My complaint of a 41-degree bedroom in the winter months was largely ignored by an evasive landlord and an unresponsive maintenance staff. In an effort to learn more about my rights as a tenant, I attended a civic meeting held by the Tenant Union Representative Network.

Through this three-hour workshop, I learned that residents of the Philadelphia community were encountering a similar maze of red tape in response to concerns such as collapsed ceilings, no running water, raw sewage in the bathtub, holes in the floor, rat infestation and more.

A court case in 1948, Pugh v. Homes, established that landlords are obligated, by contract of a residential lease, to provide a safe and habitable environment for all tenants. Clearly, the landlords of Philadelphia are exploiting citizens' lack of awareness about their rights as tenants.

It's time we made tenants' rights a more integral part of the community's discussion through public awareness and education.

Let's empower citizens to assert their legal rights as tenants in order to hold landlords responsible for their negligence and create safe housing conditions for Philadelphia residents.

Lisa Charnitski

College junior

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