The Badger Herald

NEWS

There’s no place like home

Looking for a print version?
Simply choose ‘Print’ on your computer and a printer-friendly document will be generated.

Also by Jessi Polsky:

Senate passes 'Frankenstein' veto bill (December 12, 2007)
Labor history 101 in high schools? (December 11, 2007)
'Holiday Tree' no more? (November 28, 2007)
There's no place like home (November 15, 2007)
Senate to hear pros, cons of legalizing medical marijuana (November 14, 2007)

by Jessi Polsky

Thursday, November 15, 2007

When University of Wisconsin senior Becca MacAskill signed her 2007-08 apartment lease, she expected to be living with one other girl this semester.

But in October, MacAskill found herself living with four roommates — one UW student, and three mice.

With the vast majority of UW students living in university residence halls as freshmen, finding a house or apartment for the following year inevitably becomes another task students begrudgingly pencil into the November and December months of their already busy calendars.

Ed and Jeff Tallard, co-owners of Tallard Apartments, said Nov. 15 is the first day they and most other rental companies in Madison show apartments to potential renters. However, the Tallards said 40 percent of the properties in their approximately 90 buildings are already rented for the 2008-09 year.

"People who are staying and people who are friends of other people in our houses have the advantage to get in [and see the unit] before other people could," the Tallards said.

As many of the “better” downtown apartments had been snatched up early last fall for 2007-08, MacAskill said when Nov. 15 rolled around, she felt pressure to find an affordable apartment — and fast.

"We came in, and we were looking really fast for something less than $500 [per person] per month," MacAskill said. "We were kind of desperate for an apartment."

Mice and mold and mildew — Oh my!

MacAskill was not home the first time a mouse darted across her living room floor. However, she said her roommate — who saw the mouse — called the rental company to complain.

Following the incident, MacAskill said the rental company promised to follow up on the complaint. The rental company did not keep its promise, but MacAskill said she was not concerned because the mouse did not return — for a while.

"It was like a week later. … I was just sitting here doing my homework in the middle of the day and I saw at least two or three mice," MacAskill said. "They were coming out of underneath the fridge and they'd keep going back and forth. Every time they came out, I screamed and they'd go away."

The rental company, MacAskill said, requires tenants to report problems online. This is not an effective way to convey apartment issues, MacAskill added, because it took about one full week and numerous phone calls for the company to respond to the complaint.

"I called the emergency [line] saying, ‘This is ridiculous,’ because we complained several times throughout the week and nothing happened. I think I did a good job complaining — we were not very nice," MacAskill said. "We stuffed towels underneath our doors trying to keep the mice in one room because we didn't want them in our bedrooms."

The situation, MacAskill said, was finally resolved when pest control came to the apartment and planted poisonous pellets around the unit. The entire ordeal lasted almost three weeks, she said.

Yet substandard downtown housing does not stop with rodents, and MacAskill’s experience serves as one example of a large number of students living with housing violations.

Nora Berdelle, who graduated from UW last spring, said she was woken up four times by water dripping from pipes down into her Lakelawn Place bedroom as a tenant in a CHT Apartment Rentals unit last year. The pipes providing hot water to the entire building, Berdelle said, would leak down the wall, ruining her TV, waterlogging her carpet, and drenching her dresser.

"We would wake up and the carpet would be soaking wet," Berdelle said. "The carpet had to be pulled up; it was just annoying."

Berdelle said the wet carpet in her room eventually molded. The moldy smell permeating the room was so bad, Berdelle said, she could not sleep in her own bedroom.

"They brought a fan and tried to dry it, but for days after it still smelled like mold. They didn’t believe us and wouldn’t come [back] in," Berdelle said. "The whole carpet eventually had to be taken up and we couldn’t live there for a week."

CHT Apartment Rentals, Berdelle said, did not take the original complaint seriously, forcing her parents to get involved.

"They weren’t coming over and helping," she said. "My dad the lawyer had to threaten to take legal action against them."

Berdelle said after the lawsuit threat, CHT came in and fixed the apartment.

Where there’s demand…

Welcome to Langdon Street — where hoards of sorority girls make their way toward campus. Turn the corner and a Latin book can be seen peeking out of an overstuffed Jansport backpack. A football, thrown by guys adorning red Bucky T-shirts, whizzes by.

The home to hundreds of students and most of the UW Greek community, Langdon Street houses some of the priciest apartments in downtown Madison. The picturesque old houses coupled with weekend Badger-induced hysteria make Langdon Street a desirable location for many students to live.

UW sophomore Amy Sommers, who recently signed her first apartment lease, said she heard some of the nicer units are located on Langdon and Gorham Streets, adding they "cost more than other downtown housing" options.

As students line up outside of rental companies to sign leases today, Morris Davis, UW assistant professor of real estate and urban land economics, said the high level of demand for units in certain downtown areas drives prices up.

"There is going to be a premium for [being able to] walk to campus," Davis said. "If we want prices of student housing to fall, we have to allow construction of new housing units."

The more apartments available downtown, Davis said, the more options students will have, thus forcing rental companies to invest in their properties to make them competitive.

Yet Davis mentioned other options for students who do not want to pay premium rent.

"Cars are cheap," Davis said. "And there is a bus system, so if prices were really high close to campus, people have options."

UW law professor Richard Heymann said landlords must assess the risk involved in renting to students and judge the level of protection — often in the form of a co-signer or security deposit — that they need.

"That’s what a bank does when it loans money to an applicant," Heymann said.

But Davis said the sky-high downtown prices are not only influenced by the number of units available but also by the students living in them. Students should take some responsibility for driving up the cost of downtown housing, he said, as they "tend to destroy the capital moreso than an upper-income renter would."

"When student takes out the trash and it falls on the ground, that would lend itself to raccoons and rodents and such," Davis added.

Rental companies — like all other businesses — want to see a return on their investment, Davis said. As some students do not respect the properties they rent, companies are forced to charge all students a higher price to ensure any potential large-scale damage is covered.

"Landlords may have to charge a premium if students are going to destroy the unit," Davis said.

The Tallards said the vast majority of their student renters do not trash their apartments. However, the small percentage of students who destroy their units often do so by hosting large parties.

"The drinking parties cause the most havoc, [when students] have half-barrels and 150 people in a five-bedroom house," they said.

To combat this issue, the Tallards said they have clauses in all of their leases to try to prevent drunken debauchery from occurring at their properties.

"We've sent eviction notices that say, 'If you continue this type of behavior, [there will be consequences,' but] I don't think we've had to kick anyone out," the Tallards said.

What can you do?

Renters have rights, and although it serves as a last resort, the city of Madison Building Inspection Unit can force landlords to repair housing violations, according to Housing Inspections Supervisor Tom Adamowicz.

While they receive complaints throughout the year, Adamowicz said most potential violations are reported in the weeks directly following move-in.

Within three days of filing a complaint, Adamowicz said an inspector comes to the property to check for violations.

"We set a due date for the landlord to fix the violation," Adamowicz said. "If the violation is not fixed in the designated time period legal action can be taken."

The window of time granted to a landlord to fix violations depends on a number of factors "depending on the severity and the situation," Adamowicz said.

"If it’s no heat and it’s the middle of January, they may get to the end of the day, [but] if it’s a missing storm window they may get six weeks or even more," he added.

The Tallards said tenants can avoid tiffs with their rental companies by fully understanding their housing contract when they first enter into the agreement. Students can face consequences if they do not abide by a contract they willfully entered into, they added.

"There are kids who don’t know a lot about living in a house," the Tallards said. "There are extensive things [in our leases], but that doesn’t mean people follow them."

Living without parents is an integral part of the typical college experience, and with independence comes responsibility. Some students, however, have trouble remembering to take care of logistical housing concerns previously dealt with by their parents.

Aberdeen office manager Kelly Witkins said the Aberdeen prides itself in helping students successfully transition to life on their own.

"Living on their own is a whole new experience in general and we pride ourselves in helping them," Witkins said. "They can come down and ask for help with just about anything. Not everyone knows how to work the washing machine."

Students are customers, too

Both Berdelle and MacAskill feel, as students, they were taken advantage of by their rental companies. Companies know they are dealing with students, Berdelle said, and sometimes utilize their potential vulnerability.

After her carpet ordeal, Berdelle recommends students in similar situations be assertive and take advantage of third-party agencies available to aid renters.

"They know they are dealing with students," Berdelle said. "There are people to work [on students’] behalf."

MacAskill said the rodent infestation in her apartment left her feeling helpless.

"I feel like they’re really rich people who own these, like Mr. Steve Brown and Mr. Palisades," MacAskill said. "They’re so profitable, what can we do about it?"

J. Michael Real Estate, Steve Brown Apartments, Madison Property Management and Central Properties did not return phone calls seeking comment.

Feedback

Show all comments

Hide anonymous comments

Anonymous (November 15, 2007 @ 11:26am):

Central Properties is the WORST ever- go figure they didnt return your phone calls..they dont even return their tenant's calls!

Jeff Tallard (November 15, 2007 @ 7:44pm):

Excellent article. The best advice is for students to find their housing early and deal with a reputable company. If the rental company does not help you with your repairs in a reasonable time, contact the city building inspection department for assistance with your issue. They are very proactive and the orders they issue have teeth and deadlines. Keep in mind that rodents are usually in the property for a reason, and that often has to do with a lack of cleanliness. They need food to survive so keep everything closed up tight. Keep trash in the city containers outside. Mice will also make their way in just to keep warm. Happy house hunting!

Anonymous (December 3, 2007 @ 6:23pm):

CHT is an unresponsive, unhelpful and uncompassionate "management" company. I stand strongly behind my advice... LIVE SOMEWHERE ELSE!!!

Add a comment

We welcome your thoughts, but please keep your feedback thoughtful, on-topic and respectful. Offensive language, personal attacks, or irrelevant comments may be deleted.