Re: Pa heat laws, how low can I go? - Landlord Forum thread 271020

Re: Pa heat laws, how low can I go? by Jack (Pa) on November 20, 2012 @20:55

Sorry, typing on iPhone and didn't see the typo. T has not paid last month (November) rent. I'll admit I waited too long for the eviction but I've learned better than to not file for it. I'm looking at this purely as a business. I'm not trying to screw anyone. Who is to say they are going to leave the end of this month? In the meantime I have to think of ways to not loose any more money. What are some of the smarter things I can do?

[ Reply ] [ Return to forum ]

Re: Pa heat laws, how low can I go? by Bill on November 20, 2012 @21:34	[ Reply ]

Did you post a P/Q notice and follow up with a notice of eviction?

Re: Pa heat laws, how low can I go? by Jack (Pa) on November 20, 2012 @23:27	[ Reply ]

No need for a P/Q. Pa allows for a waiver of notice which I use in my lease.

Re: Pa heat laws, how low can I go? by Bill on November 21, 2012 @09:25	[ Reply ]

Do you have an eviction in progress?

Re: Pa heat laws, how low can I go? by Al (CT) on November 20, 2012 @21:36	[ Reply ]

The smart and ONLY things you should do are the legal things. If the tenant does not pay rent, evict. If the tenant doesn't move out at the end of the lease, evict for holdover. Don't mess with the utilities, don't harass the tenant, don't do anything stupid or you'll end up on the wrong side of a judge's wrath.

Re: Pa heat laws, how low can I go? by Jack (Pa) on November 20, 2012 @23:55	[ Reply ]

I completely agree with you. I feel like shutting off every breaker in the panel except fridge, stove, and lights but I know that's not the right thing to do. My OP asks a question that still has not been answered. What is min temp, required by law, in pa? This question has struck my intrest because of this T but could also be useful for the future. I currently have 7 units, all set at 68. If I could legally take them down a few deg I could save a couple hundred bucks a year.

Re: Pa heat laws, how low can I go? by Anon E. Mouse (California) on November 21, 2012 @00:44	[ Reply ]

There may not be a minimum set out by ordinance or statute. That said, don't mess with the heating. Turning the heat down puts you at risk of "accidentally" constructively evicting your tenants. That is, because you have made the units uninhabitable, the tenants can not only leave without any further obligation to pay you rent, but they can also sue you for violating the lease agreement. Extreme? Maybe. All it takes is for a judge to agree that in the absence of a statute giving you a bare-minimum standard, the particular temperature you set it at was too cold. Don't mess with the heat.

Re: Pa heat laws, how low can I go? by OK-LL on November 21, 2012 @00:21	[ Reply ]

You may get your answer by contacting a local tenant advocate agency and posing as a tenant with this question. I could find no useful response with a quick Google search.