HOUSTON – For one north Houston family, everyday routines like showering and getting children ready for school became difficult after they said the hot water at their apartment complex stopped working for more than a week.
Residents at the Arden Greenwood apartment complex told KPRC 2 they became increasingly frustrated as the outage dragged on.
“It’s not even that hot,” one resident said while running water inside the apartment.
The man, who asked not to be identified out of fear of retaliation, said multiple residents had been complaining about the issue.
“I just thought maybe the hot water tank was messing up, but then other residents were complaining as well,” he said.
When asked how long the issue had been going on, he responded: “About a week.”
The resident described the outage as more than just an inconvenience.
“First things first, hygiene is a must,” he said.
During KPRC 2’s interview at the apartment complex, the hot water appeared to begin working again.
KPRC 2 later went to the leasing office to ask management why residents had been without hot water and whether the issue had been fully resolved.
“I have no comment right now because I’m not the manager of the property. She’s not here right now,” an employee said.
To better understand renters’ rights, KPRC 2 spoke with attorney Samuel Milledge II, managing partner at Milledge Law Group.
Milledge said tenants dealing with utility outages should begin by creating a documented paper trail.
“First things first, they should notify [management] with a certified letter — or corporate, better yet — saying, ‘Hey, I’m having an issue with my utilities,’” Milledge said.
He explained that certified letters formally place landlords on notice and can become important if legal action is eventually needed.
Milledge said landlords generally have a reasonable amount of time — often seven to 10 business days — to acknowledge the issue and provide a plan to fix it.
If the problem continues, he said tenants may be able to seek help through the courts.
“You would go down to your justice of the peace, whatever precinct you’re in,” Milledge said.
Milledge said tenants can file paperwork known as a “writ of restoration of utilities,” which can involve the court directly.
“Now the court is involved,” he said. “The court, with that writ, is saying, ‘Hey, we’re now ordering you to get this person’s utilities on.’ Now, if they don’t do that, there might be some type of civil penalties.”
Attorneys also recommend renters keep records of maintenance requests, emails, photos and receipts — especially if they plan to seek reimbursement or pursue legal action.