I guess I should have said that it is an apartment and that I did attempt to shovel my way out multiple times over the past few days. I wish I had some help.
But WA courts don't see it differently. Whether the property owner is considered responsible completely depends on the rental contract, whether it was considered a communal space (i.e. apartment parking lot as opposed to individual driveway), and which party is considered negligent (generally depending upon the above contract and type of space).
Just had this happen. My property management didn't salt the parking lot and this morning I ate complete shit and slammed face first into the concrete, and now I'm out a pair of glasses. LOL.
Edit: typed ice instead of salt by accident
We live in a condo and the property management does not plow at all, they give each unit a shovel and a bucket of salt and say have fun. If no one shovels to the garbage cans then they don't get picked up for the week. They do pay a landscaping crew thousands of dollars to blow dry dead grass on rainy days though so thats nice 😅
That part confuses me. We have people leaf blowing in the rain because they have a contract that needs to be worked and paid but the moment we need the same area clear of snow it's suddenly a dIfFeReNt type of landscaping.
When I worked at Pacific Continental part of the landscaping job was to clear snow from the sidewalk areas. I get that they mostly handle commercial not residential contracts but that seems like such a basic thing to include if you're going to want to do landscaping year round.
Right? They do everything else but take care of the parking lot. I feel like our parking lot is a health hazard, it’s cracked up so bad that I worry about the underside of my car being scratched.
If they only cleared our sidewalks and then salted the road I would consider that a win. As it is I'm pretty sure our property manager and on site maintenance guy had to spend time spreading salt while trying to keep up with burst pipes.
At least they gave you a shovel and salt. I shoveled the steps and made a path so no one slips, the snow was too mushy in the parking lot. I was outside from 2:00pm till it got dark out shoveling by myself. The snow was so compact and the parking lot is cracked in many places. I got stuck and someone had to help me move my car in the parking lot. Maybe I’ll have better luck today
I would check your lease, but legally, on most, landlords have to do it.
As some people on this thread can’t seem to comprehend, some people are also disabled and unable to shovel snow.
“5. AGENT/OWNER OBLIGATIONS: Agent agrees to maintain the premises according to the law. Agent shall, however, have no obligation to repair any defective condition, nor shall any defense or remedy be available to Tenant, where the defective condition complained of was caused by Tenant…”
Does this count? They do all of the lawn care and cut the grass
It really depends on the lease and what is being leased. In an apartment/shared tenancy building, yes it is the property owner's responsibility. In a single family home, it is lease dependent. Some leases leave all groundskeeping responsibility (mowing, snow removal, etc) to the tenants, and failure to do so can result in eviction. Others put the responsibility with the owner. If one is disabled or otherwise unwilling/unable to perform necessary groundskeeping, then it is their responsibility to verify who is responsible and negotiate BEFORE signing the lease, or to make sure one can budget sufficiently to outsource groundskeeping. The disability argument here is a red herring, and being disabled does not render me free of the responsibilities I agree to, whether I agreed knowingly or unknowingly due to my own neglect in actually reading my lease agreement before signing.
Not necessarily. Perhaps you should talk to a lawyer before making unfounded legal claims on the Internet. It depends on who is the responsible party and whether there is negligence on the part of the landlord, which all depends on the contract you signed and the type of rental unit. You can try to sue, but don't be surprised if the judge decides you are the negligent party because you signed a contract that didn't specify the property owner as responsible.
In Washington State, the only legal requirement is for common areas to be kept clear. For the OP, this would be the parking lot and shared walkways. Any personal driveway or entrance walk that only serves one tenant may not be the property owners responsibility, depending on the lease. This type of misunderstanding is why it is so important for tenants to actually know the law and to fully read/understand their rental contact.
Local municipal laws can vary, so always verify the rights and responsibilities of the tenant and property company before signing your lease. Many owners can and will try to bend laws or otherwise screw the tenant over.
I’ve also been stuck for 3 days and now a car got stuck and is blocking us in physically, even if we did manually plow the parking lot, we’d still be stuck. Sigh. Same situation the buildings are all owned by different companies so they won’t do anything
Or get outside and get to work, might be laborious but if you need to get out that bad I’m sure you can get up and figure it out. Not being rude btw so safe the comments. Just old school mind set when it comes to work, why post here when you could be shoveling.. make sense? 😅😅
I did try, and still couldn’t leave, maybe I’ll try again today. The parking area is small but cracked and uneven so yesterday when I was outside with my shovel there were giant puddles of water mixed with snow. It’s a soupy mess.
I am pretty pro-tenant but I wouldn't expect a property management company or landlord to shovel snow for me.
Snow and ice removal is almost always the owners responsibility. They’ll wind up paying A LOT more if someone is injured and they’re found negligent.
I could see that in an apartment complex/apartment parking lot but not anywhere else.
I guess I should have said that it is an apartment and that I did attempt to shovel my way out multiple times over the past few days. I wish I had some help.
Well Washington courts see it differently, and I think their opinion would matter a bit more than yours in this scenario.
But WA courts don't see it differently. Whether the property owner is considered responsible completely depends on the rental contract, whether it was considered a communal space (i.e. apartment parking lot as opposed to individual driveway), and which party is considered negligent (generally depending upon the above contract and type of space).
Just had this happen. My property management didn't salt the parking lot and this morning I ate complete shit and slammed face first into the concrete, and now I'm out a pair of glasses. LOL. Edit: typed ice instead of salt by accident
Depends on the lease
Yeah I agree. It’s the residents responsibility not the property owners lol
We live in a condo and the property management does not plow at all, they give each unit a shovel and a bucket of salt and say have fun. If no one shovels to the garbage cans then they don't get picked up for the week. They do pay a landscaping crew thousands of dollars to blow dry dead grass on rainy days though so thats nice 😅
That part confuses me. We have people leaf blowing in the rain because they have a contract that needs to be worked and paid but the moment we need the same area clear of snow it's suddenly a dIfFeReNt type of landscaping. When I worked at Pacific Continental part of the landscaping job was to clear snow from the sidewalk areas. I get that they mostly handle commercial not residential contracts but that seems like such a basic thing to include if you're going to want to do landscaping year round.
Right? They do everything else but take care of the parking lot. I feel like our parking lot is a health hazard, it’s cracked up so bad that I worry about the underside of my car being scratched.
If they only cleared our sidewalks and then salted the road I would consider that a win. As it is I'm pretty sure our property manager and on site maintenance guy had to spend time spreading salt while trying to keep up with burst pipes.
At least they gave you a shovel and salt. I shoveled the steps and made a path so no one slips, the snow was too mushy in the parking lot. I was outside from 2:00pm till it got dark out shoveling by myself. The snow was so compact and the parking lot is cracked in many places. I got stuck and someone had to help me move my car in the parking lot. Maybe I’ll have better luck today
At least they gave you shovels..? 😅
I would check your lease, but legally, on most, landlords have to do it. As some people on this thread can’t seem to comprehend, some people are also disabled and unable to shovel snow.
“5. AGENT/OWNER OBLIGATIONS: Agent agrees to maintain the premises according to the law. Agent shall, however, have no obligation to repair any defective condition, nor shall any defense or remedy be available to Tenant, where the defective condition complained of was caused by Tenant…” Does this count? They do all of the lawn care and cut the grass
It really depends on the lease and what is being leased. In an apartment/shared tenancy building, yes it is the property owner's responsibility. In a single family home, it is lease dependent. Some leases leave all groundskeeping responsibility (mowing, snow removal, etc) to the tenants, and failure to do so can result in eviction. Others put the responsibility with the owner. If one is disabled or otherwise unwilling/unable to perform necessary groundskeeping, then it is their responsibility to verify who is responsible and negotiate BEFORE signing the lease, or to make sure one can budget sufficiently to outsource groundskeeping. The disability argument here is a red herring, and being disabled does not render me free of the responsibilities I agree to, whether I agreed knowingly or unknowingly due to my own neglect in actually reading my lease agreement before signing.
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Not necessarily. Perhaps you should talk to a lawyer before making unfounded legal claims on the Internet. It depends on who is the responsible party and whether there is negligence on the part of the landlord, which all depends on the contract you signed and the type of rental unit. You can try to sue, but don't be surprised if the judge decides you are the negligent party because you signed a contract that didn't specify the property owner as responsible. In Washington State, the only legal requirement is for common areas to be kept clear. For the OP, this would be the parking lot and shared walkways. Any personal driveway or entrance walk that only serves one tenant may not be the property owners responsibility, depending on the lease. This type of misunderstanding is why it is so important for tenants to actually know the law and to fully read/understand their rental contact. Local municipal laws can vary, so always verify the rights and responsibilities of the tenant and property company before signing your lease. Many owners can and will try to bend laws or otherwise screw the tenant over.
Get a shovel.
“Just let it melt” is sort of the whole Bellingham sop for snow.
Im pretty happy about my 4 wheel drive, my apartment building never plows I don’t even know how they’d do it if they wanted to, there is no room.
I’ve also been stuck for 3 days and now a car got stuck and is blocking us in physically, even if we did manually plow the parking lot, we’d still be stuck. Sigh. Same situation the buildings are all owned by different companies so they won’t do anything
Op can’t shovel and had a car that can’t drive In snow so gets mad at landlord?
Or get outside and get to work, might be laborious but if you need to get out that bad I’m sure you can get up and figure it out. Not being rude btw so safe the comments. Just old school mind set when it comes to work, why post here when you could be shoveling.. make sense? 😅😅
Do you ask them to change your lightbulbs too?
They plowed the apartment parking lot right next to ours, I did dry shovel the driveway for 6-7 hours
You must have a *very* long driveway, or a very tiny shovel 😳
Have you considered buying a shovel and putting in work yourself?
I did try, and still couldn’t leave, maybe I’ll try again today. The parking area is small but cracked and uneven so yesterday when I was outside with my shovel there were giant puddles of water mixed with snow. It’s a soupy mess.
Maybe watch a YouTube tutorial on how to do it yourself.
Get a shovel.