I have the down stairs unit of a condo and the hot water/ac drain keeps getting clogged every summer. Who pays?
May 18, 2010 by
Filed under condo water damage
Does the condo association pay because it’s inside the wall and share with another unit? It’s not like I can block her use of the outlet. Do I because it’s my unit the gets the damage each year? Does she because my air condition isn’t on but 89 and hers is probable at 78? Do we both pay half because we share the pipe? It’s not fair because I paid the last 4 yr.
Depends on your agreement with your landlord, all that type of repair is usually the landlords problem, but as it’s jointly used you may both have to share the cost, check your agreement first, if it’s not covered then you will have to make a verbal agreement and come to an arrangement between the three of you.
There are a couple of levels to this question. First, you need to determine who has maintenance responsibility for pipes between the walls. You’ll need to check the Association’s governing documents to determine this. There is a document called the Declaration, or the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions (CC&Rs). It can also be called the Condominium Declaration or even the Master Deed. Whatever it’s called, this is the document that spells out who takes care of what. And some of them are not that clear. You’ll want to look at a few different sections, such as the definition of the Unit (i.e. where are the boundaries) and the maintenance sections. Some documents say that Owners are responsible for the maintenance of utilities such as sewer pipes beginning at the point at which those utilities enter the Unit. In that case, the Association would be responsible for your problem. Other documents say that the Owner is responsible for the pipes beginning at the point where they serve that Unit, alone. Again, this probably means that the Association is responsible, but it will depend on the exact location of the clog.
The second level to this question is the cause of the problem. If your upstairs neighbor is doing something negligent, like flushing stuff down a toilet that doesn’t belong down a toilet, then whoever is responsible for the maintenance under the governing documents can go back on her for it. But it sounds like it’s just normal use that makes it plug up. I would definitely research your governing documents and go to the Association and ask them to perform the maintenance if its their duty. You might consider writing them a letter so that you have a record of asking them. Then, if the failure to maintain the pipe causes any damage you can make them pay for that, as well.
Good Luck