Grounded Outlets Not Necessarily Landlord's Responsibility

Robert S. Griswold | Steven R. Kellman | Ted Smith
19-January-2003 Sunday

This column on issues confronting renters and landlords is written by Counselor of Real Estate and Certified Property Manager Robert Griswold, host of Real Estate Today! with Robert Griswold (9 a.m. Saturdays on AM1130 - KSDO radio, or on the Internet at www.retodayradio.com), and by attorneys Steven R. Kellman, director of the Tenants' Legal Center, and Ted Smith, principal in a law firm representing landlords.

QUESTION: I have been living in the same apartment since January 1981. During that time, the building has had four owners. The building was built in the '30s or '40s.

I need to purchase a CPAP machine for sleep apnea as prescribed by my doctor. The machine pushes air through my airway at a pressure high enough to keep it open during sleep. This machine requires a grounded electrical outlet, of which there are none in this apartment. Actually, my microwave and my computer also required grounded outlets, but I have been using adapters for them. The refrigerator was replaced several years ago and the then-owner/ maintenance man merely snipped off the grounding part of its plug and plugged it into an ungrounded outlet.

Are there any building code requirements that would require the owner to change all or some of the outlets to be grounded? Does my medical need hold any weight in asking for a grounded outlet at least in my bedroom?

ANSWER: Tenants' attorney Kellman: The dwelling must be maintained in a safe and habitable condition. The code specifically provides that the electrical system must conform "with applicable law at the time of installation, maintained in good working order."

In your case, this is an older home and probably built well before grounded circuits were required. Therefore, absent a significant upgrade of the home or unless there is a dangerous condition created by the use of the electrical system, the landlord may not be required to modify any wiring or add grounding plugs throughout the house.

As to the use of the medical device, however, the rules change a bit. Under fair housing and discrimination laws, a landlord must make reasonable accommodations for a person based on a disability. This only means that the landlord may be required to allow permission for certain alterations or modifications to accommodate the disability.

Unfortunately, the law requires the tenant to pay the costs of those changes to the home. Under some situations, the tenant must even restore the unit back to the way it was (before the modification) when they move out.

Again, in your case, the landlord would probably have to allow the alteration of at least one circuit to add a grounding wire for the medical device. Of course, when the alteration or modification is an improvement (as in your case) the landlord should reimburse the tenant for those costs if it will remain after the tenant leaves.

Landlords' attorney Smith: From the landlord's point of view, there is no requirement for additional grounding of outlets so long as the outlets were installed to code and function properly. These two requirements being met, the landlord has complied with California's rental habitability laws.

My view is that the landlord does not have to concede to your special requirements unless your sleep disorder qualifies as a disability defined by the Americans With Disability Act. Although it stretches it a bit, it is conceivable that this could be the case.

Let's dish

Question: About a year ago, we switched from cable TV to satellite service, making a point to first get permission from the building manager to mount the dish on the roof. Recently, the building owner saw the dish for the first time and demanded that it be removed or relocated to a nonpermanent location, e.g., a tripod. As we had been granted permission by an agent of the owner, shouldn't we be allowed to keep the dish where it is? If not, shouldn't the owner or manager be required to pay for reinstallation?

Tenants' attorney Kellman: The FCC made some rules making it illegal to restrict certain dish antennas in situations with zoning and condominium association regulations. Those rules were later changed to cover and protect tenants who wish to install a dish antenna (1 meter or less in diameter) to receive TV or access the Internet.

The dish may be mounted inside the unit or outside on a part which is for your use only such as a balcony, terrace, deck or patio area. Tenants generally may not use common areas like the roof, hallways, walkways or exterior walls. A landlord may make restrictions over dish antennas for legitimate safety reasons (such as impairing the use of fire escapes, etc.).

In your case, it appears that you are renting an apartment in a multi-unit building. If so, the landlord may restrict the mounting of an antenna on the roof since that is a common area (and may arguably impact safety). The landlord may not, however, demand that you use a tripod. You may still use a fixed "permanent" mount for the antenna, but in a location set aside for your use only with the rental.

If the permission was given in a provable manner, and you have a lease, the landlord will have to wait until the lease ends to revoke that permission. If you are renting month-to-month, the tenancy rules may be changed with an appropriate notice as long as those new rules do not violate the FCC regulations.

Landlord's attorney Smith: The apartment manager miscued by granting permission to install the dish on the roof. This is a direct violation of Federal Communications Commission regulations. The manager may now require the roof dish to be removed but only after proper notice. This will occur when the lease expires. If it is month-to-month, then 30 day change in terms of tenancy notice will do the job.

After expiration of the notice, the dish must be removed from the roof. Otherwise, the tenant could be evicted for violation of the agreement. Once removed, the dish must be relocated to be within the confines of the tenant's living area or the private balcony or patio. It may neither protrude over nor be affixed to the balcony or patio railing.

If the notice period for removal of the antenna from the roof has expired, the landlord, in my view, would be under no legal obligation to compensate the resident for removal.

Airing dirty laundry

Question: I am extremely unhappy at my new apartment. There are things about the apartment that I didn't know about. For example, I work late at night on the weekends and get awakened when people do their laundry at 7 a.m. I was unaware that my bedroom was right above the laundry room.

There are many other things that I am very unhappy about; is there any way I can get out of my one-year lease because of these things?

Landlord's attorney Smith: As the landlord's attorney, I do not see facts here that would justify you getting out of your one-year lease of the apartment. The landlord's covenant of quiet enjoyment does not extend to providing a perfectly sound-free environment. The noises you refer to -- walking, normal talking, and moderate sounds from the laundry room -- are inherent in multi-unit apartment housing.

I note that you are the one with the unusual hours. The other tenants apparently work normal hours. Use of the laundry room at 7 a.m. is reasonable. The law requires substantial, even unbearable noise or very significant deficiencies in the rental unit to constitute a violation of the quiet enjoyment covenant or implied warranty of habitability.

You are falling short of these requirements. As a result, there is no justification for breaking the lease. Try to work it out with the apartment manager. From a customer service standpoint, they might agree to move you to another location in the complex, but are not legally required to.

IF YOU'RE A TENANT OR LANDLORD, the authors stand ready to answer your questions in this column, although letters cannot be answered individually. Write them at: Rental Roundtable, Homes Section, San Diego Union-Tribune, P.O. Box 120191, San Diego, CA, 92112-0191. Or you may e-mail them at rgriswold.sdut@retodayradio.com

Copyright Union-Tribune Publishing Co.

Back to 2003 Rental Roundtable Index

Robert Griswold and the Real Estate Today! radio show strongly support the intent and the letter of all federal and state fair housing laws. As a reminder to all owners and managers of real estate, note that all real estate advertised is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act, which makes it illegal to advertise "any preference, limitation, discrimination because of race, color, national origin or ancestry, religion, sex, physical disability, or familial status, or intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination." Additional state and/or local fair housing laws may also apply. Be sure to inform all persons that all dwellings offered or advertised are on an equal opportunity basis.

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Revised and Updated - Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Robert S. Griswold, CRE, CPM, CCIM, PCAM, GRI, ARM
Griswold Corporate Center
Griswold Real Estate Management, Inc.
5703 Oberlin Drive, Suite 300
San Diego, CA 92121-1743
Phone: (858) 597-6100
Fax: (858) 597-6161
Email: rgriswold.ret@retodayradio.com