Two years ago, Lucas Kraft came home to find three inches of water in his living room and kitchen when the sprinkler system broke in his Campus Village apartment. He then confronted his landlord at JSM Properties.

“JSM threatened that we could be held responsible for the damage and an investigation was underway,” Kraft said.

Two weeks later, maintenance crews were still fixing the problem when, Kraft said, the men told him the sprinkler malfunctioned because a part had been recalled but JSM failed to replace it.

“I went to JSM again, who said the investigation was continuing, denied the recall, but in the same meeting said we wouldn’t be held accountable for the damages,” Kraft said.

In a statement sent to The Badger Herald, JSM Properties said they were never notified in writing that any of the sprinkler heads in their properties were being recalled, adding the sprinkler can only be activated if tampered with by an outside force.

According to the statement from JSM, the cleanup process was complete “the day after the incident.” The statement continued, “JSM Properties did not charge Mr. Kraft and his co-tenants for any of the damage or resulting necessary parts. All representatives of JSM Properties were forthright and honest when explaining the situation to any of the occupants of Mr. Kraft’s apartment.

“While Mr. Kraft would certainly be correct in stating that the situation was inconvenient for all parties involved, his recent allegations are untrue, as well as unproveable.”

Problems such as Kraft’s are common among student tenants because they do not know what rights they have, Cynthia Campos of the Tenant Resource Center said.

“The Tenant Resource Center offers mediation services for a very minimal fee,” Campos said, adding it can help both tenants and landlords handle difficult situations.

Former UW student Julie Boone also had communication problems with her landlord when she sublet an apartment from CHT Apartment Rentals last summer.

“When I moved in, the old tenants were passed out on the living-room floor and had not started packing yet,” Boone said, adding the apartment was covered in dirt.

“I spent $100 of my own money on cleaning supplies,” Boone said. “CHT was never available and wouldn’t directly answer any of my questions.”

Campos explained subletting issues are complicated, especially when the new tenant is only there temporarily.

“In this case, the new or temporary tenant has no rights to invoke,” Campos said. “Before people enter into a subletting situation, they may want to consider making a separate agreement in addition to the regular lease where they can specify what they want done prior to moving in, such as having a clean apartment, getting free cable or whatever they are able to negotiate.”

In addition to reading leases carefully before signing, prospective tenants should talk to current or former tenants and research past complaints, James Rabbitt, acting administrator for the Division of Trade and Consumer Protections, said.

“Students should check with Consumer Protection to see if others have complained. With the amount of time and effort it takes to actually write a complaint, if there has been one complaint, there have probably been 100,” Rabbitt said.

Rabbitt and Campos agreed repair issues are difficult to handle. Both said the best place to turn if landlords are not properly handling maintenance requests is the housing inspector, who can measure the gravity of the problem and determine if there is a violation.

Landlords are also required to give new tenants a list of charges taken from the last tenant’s security deposit upon request, Rabbitt said.

Marsha Mansfield, Clinical Assistant Professor for the UW Law School, suggested several other ways for students to ensure their landlord has a good reputation with members of the community.

“A student can check with the Building Inspection Office to see records for the address where the student is considering renting,” Mansfield said. “The Tenant Resource Center has a landlord-evaluation file, where tenants can record their opinions of their landlords.”