ADDRESSING PROBLEMS IN YOUR APARTMENT
According to DC law, a rental property owner must maintain your apartment and all common areas in compliance with the DC housing code. The District of Columbia Tenant Bill of Rights, which summarizes tenant rights in an easy-to-read format, states that:
“The landlord must maintain your apartment and all common areas of the building in compliance with the housing code, including keeping the premises
safe and secure and free of rodents and pests, keeping the structure and facilities of the building in good repair, and ensuring adequate heat, lighting, and ventilation.”
If you have any of the problems listed above, or any other obvious issues that fall under these broad categories, you should take steps to get them remedied.
#1 — SUBMIT A COMPLAINT in writing TO EQUITY residential
Send an email to building manager Dan Burkes, cc’ing the tenant association at vnsta@vnsta.org.
Save all subsequent emails — it is important to have a paper trail.
NOTE: Do not simply call the front desk or the leasing office. Unless the situation is a true five-alarm fire emergency, this will not yield results. Also, do not only submit a maintenance request via Equity’s resident portal. While it is OK to use the portal, it does not give you a receipt with the text of your complaint. If you do use the portal, we recommend that you also email Dan Burkes and cc: the tenant association as described above.
#2 — REQUEST AN INSPECTION FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF BUILDINGS
If management hasn’t completely fixed your problem within a reasonable time period, you can request an official inspection from the DC Department of Buildings.
Fortunately, requesting an inspection from DOB is very easy to do — just fill out the form on the DOB’s homepage. DOB should respond to you within a week.
If the Department of Buildings finds housing code violations, it will fine the company — sometimes $1,000 or more. This gives Equity a strong reason to correct the problem.
If you file a request for an inspection from the Department of Buildings, be sure to alert the tenant association via email at vnsta@vnsta.org.
The steps described above should fix most problems. However, if your problems still are not resolved, you may want to take additional steps.
#3 — ASK FOR HELP FORM OUR DC COUNCILMEMBER
DC Councilmember Matt Frumin, who represents Northwest DC, has been very responsive on various tenant issues. His office may be able to help you with intractable problems.
You can contact Councilmember Frumin’s constituent services representative, Ashley Mercer, via email at amercer@dccouncil.gov. You can cc: Councilmember Frumin at mfrumin@dccouncil.gov. Also be sure to cc: the tenant association at vnsta@vnsta.org.
Or call Councilmember Frumin’s office at (202) 724-8062.
#4 (LEGAL OPTION A) — FILE A TENANT PETITION IN HOUSING CONDITIONS COURT
If your problem has to do with a violation of the housing code (e.g., mice, inspects, mold, water damage, dust, etc.) you can file a simple complaint in DC Housing Conditions Court. This is a part of DC Superior Court, but it is designed specifically to help tenants with housing code violations — so it is relatively easy to deal with, even without an attorney. You cannot win monetary damages in Housing Conditions Court, but the court can force the landlord to fix the problems or face serious fines.
The tenant association has a pro-bono (free) attorney who has volunteered to help with Housing Conditions Court complaints. While it is possible to file a complaint through the link above without an attorney, some of the paperwork requires attention to detail so you may want to take advantage of this generous offer of our pro bono attorney’s time.
To initiate the process, please first read the information at the Housing Conditions Court webpage. The instructions specifically state that you must show that you have made an effort to alert the landlord about the problems. If you would like to proceed with a complaint, you can follow the directions or contact the tenant association for information about getting free legal assistance.
#4 (LEGAL OPTION B) — FILING A TENANT PETITION IN THE OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS
If your problem hasn’t been solved by steps 1-4 below, and it has to do with a problem not related to the housing code, you may want to file a “tenant petition” with the DC Office of Administrative Hearings. For example, complaints about illegal rent increases go to OAH, not to Housing conditions Court.
Filing a tenant petition in OAH is similar to filing a complaint in small claims court. You can file a complaint online, and theoretically, you should be able to represent yourself (without an attorney).
However, the reality of the situation is more complicated. If you represent yourself, the landlord likely will send a corporate attorney to oppose you at the OAH hearing. If your complaint is simple and you are indisputably correct, you may prevail. However, if it is complicated, the case may drag out.
For this reason, we highly recommend that you contact the DC Office of the Tenant Advocate (OTA) for advice before you file a tenant petition in the Office of Administrative Hearings. OTA has staff attorneys who can advise you about whether it makes sense to file a tenant petition in OAH.
#5 — GO TO THE PRESS
One of the options above should help you resolve your problem. However, nothing is guaranteed, and if you don’t get satisfaction in a timely manner, you may want to go to the press. The tenant association can advise you about whether such an action is appropriate and about how to do it with some chance of success. See some of our past successes at this link.