“Apartment Complex Tenants Compelled to Queue and Share One Bathroom Amid Repairs and Rent Increase”

A GROUP of renters have revealed they were forced to “stand in line” to share a “single bathroom” even after paying more rent.

Residents living at 2770-80 Kingsbridge Terrace complained that their apartment complex’s bathrooms were left in poor condition after the landlord performed inadequate repairs.

And instead of decreasing the rent to compensate the inconvenience, the owner hiked the rent by almost $200 a month. 

Residents say it was the worst year of their lives: being forced to share one bathroom and waiting endlessly for their turn.

Yeniset Estrella, one of the renters, said her kitchen and bathroom pipes were constantly leaking, damaging the walls and the flat below.

This came after the landlord shut down all the bathrooms of the apartment to fix them.

But instead, they were left even more damaged.

Estrella said: “There’s no freedom, either I had to wake up really extremely early when no one’s there or get in line like everybody else.”

Juan Nunez, who lived there for almost a decade, added: “I have no way to explain it other than it was one of the worst experiences of our lives.

Furthermore, they expressed frustration over having to endure rent hikes despite the substandard repairs over the past seven years since 2018.

After a year of surviving what they described as a nightmare, the group of renters decided to move the matter to court.

According to ABC7, a state judge sided with the tenants in a recent ruling, instructing the landlord to compensate the residents for the damages and revert the rents back to their original lower rates.

Councilmember Pierina Sanchez. said: “This is a precedent that says you cannot commit fraud and then use that fraud to hike up rents for residents.”

It comes after another renter was left scrambling for a new place to live after she was forced to leave her home of nine years because of an abrupt change.

Stacey Matthews said she was just given days to get out of the place after her landlord’s property was suddenly sold.

Residents of OU motel in Norman are being forced to find new homes after the affordable housing option was sold to a builder.

And they were only given a 30-day notice to vacate the property.

Stacey Matthews said: ” A lot of us don’t have a lot of options. We made some of the best friends we’ve ever had here.

“This is it. We became a family.”

Matthews moved into the motel nine years ago with her mum but has been living alone since her mum passed away.

She now plans to get an apartment with her neighbor for the time being.

Another resident Bryan Poindexter said: “Here we are starting all over again.

No place to live

It comes after another renter was forced to find a new place after he was slapped with an eviction notice following years without hot water.

Resident Jimmy Thompson said he’s never had consistent hot water in the six years he’s lived in his apartment building in Houston, Texas.

He said even when the water is hot, it’s rarely hot enough.

The renter pulled out a thermometer to prove the lukewarm water – and the temperature didn’t go above 78 degrees Fahrenheit, according to NBC affiliate KPRC-TV.

“When I have to boil water just to bathe, it still doesn’t get as hot as it should,” Thompson explained to the outlet.

“Plus, I have to watch my light bill.”

After years of getting cold water out of his faucets on and off, Thompson decided to raise the issue with his property managers at the Falls of Edgebrook apartment complex.

After bringing up the concerns, Thompson was served a 30-day notice to vacate his apartment.

“Due to this ongoing issue with the temperature of the water not satisfying you, we will be releasing you from the lease agreement,” the email said.

Thompson and his sister are now left scrambling for a place to live.