The Friendly Landlord: Stupid Renting Mistake #1

Imagine: Long weekend away. Hamptons. Your cousin’s wedding in Akron. Wherever. You arrive back at your apartment late Sunday evening, toss your keys in that little ceramic leaf thing you got at Ikea and set your suitcase down… in water.

Uh oh. A brief investigation reveals a very leaky radiator, and judging from the warping in the hardwood floor, this has been going on for at least a few days. Even worse, the antique Persian rug your mom proudly gave you when you finished law school is not only soaked, but horribly stinky: mildew, mold, something foul.

And, wait. Aw, no!! Your Wii, which you had on the floor for some reason you now can’t remember, is totally fried.

You drag your Superintendent out of bed. He manages to stop the leak, vacuums up the water and tells you to call Management tomorrow to discuss the rug and the Wii.

Pop Quiz: Tomorrow, your Landlord is going to say:

a) His insurance will cover everything: the hardwood floor, the rug and the Wii, after all, the leak came from the radiator, which is his responsibility.
b) He’ll take care of the floor, but the rug and the Wii are all you. His insurance won’t cover your stuff unless you can prove negligence on his part.
c) He’s got the hardwood floor, and he’ll pay half for the rug and the Wii.
d) All of the above, even though that doesn’t make any sense.

Sorry, folks. The answer is B. He’ll replace the floor, but since he wasn’t negligent in responding, he doesn’t have to pay diddly for your items. Nothing. Zero. Zilch.

Unfair? Maybe. But it’s why not getting Renter’s Insurance is one of the absolute craziest things you can do as a New York Tenant. Let me phrase that another way: if you don’t have Renter’s Insurance, drop what you are doing right now, and get it!

It’s outrageously cheap—I pay about $150 per year to cover up to $30,000 in damage—and you can set it up over the phone in 15 minutes.

Burglary, leaks, fires, we’ve all heard the horror stories. And I can’t tell you how many people I know who’ve lost thousands of dollars worth of furniture, electronics and even food in some freak apartment event. All of them assumed the Landlord would take care of them. He didn’t. Because he didn’t have to.

So if your box of First Edition books or your $2000 Tempur-Pedic mattress are ruined in a leak, you can be glad you have the insurance to cover it… all because I gave you the heads up here. Hey. Like a good neighbor, The Friendly Landlord is there.

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