Our ceiling leaks and the wall in our bathroom is rotted. Would it be illegal to move, breaking our lease?

I have reported these and numerous other problems since we moved in August of 2007. I also have pictures of damage and copies of work orders I have turned in to the office. Can the owner charge us the $800 for breaking lease and moving? There is broken glass on a patio door that is withing crawling reach of my baby. In total I turned in 9 work order requests. Do we have any control of our situation or do my husband and I just have be patient and wait of the lease to expire?

Becky, I would report this to the city officials. They need to know when a landlord has property that may be a hazard to the safety of the public and tenants.

Yes I would move, but make sure you have documented everything. Understand that by law, they have certain time limits to return your deposit, it won't happen over night. But I would also ask at the city offices what the law's are governing this area of rental properties.

I would contact the local housing commission that over sees this.

If there is broken glass, I would clean it up!

Contact your local tenants rights board, and health department (rotting walls can be a bigger health issue than some broken glass)

They will notify your building of the repairs and give a limitation. This is an entirely free service and unfortunately the one of the few ways to go about breaking a lease legally.

Turn them in to the health department. Then contact a lawyer. I would imagine taking these steps and having documentation of everything would cause a judge to rule in your favor. You could always propose to your lanlord that if he writes written documentation okaying you to break your lease you won't turn him in for the health code violations. It could be quite likely that the wall has mold, if this is the case the health dept may condemn the home.