Bangor couple suing landlord over needed repairs, skunk living under their steps
A Bangor couple has sued their landlord claiming that B & L Properties LLC has failed to make needed repairs to the roof, install gutters, replace a rotting back deck and remove a skunk that is living in a hole at one of its Valley View Lane apartment buildings.
Molly Fox, 31, and Patrick Kelley, 32, took the unusual step of taking their demands to court after the couple claimed the Bangor firm failed to make timely repairs despite repeated requests. They also alleged the company raised their rent in retaliation for their complaining to the Bangor Code Enforcement office.
“Your home is supposed to be a safe place but this hasn’t felt safe or comfortable to us in a very long time,” Fox said earlier this month.
Fox also said that because of the hole in the roof, pigeons and other animals can get into the attic.
The property is one of 24 that B & L Properties owns in Bangor, making it one of the largest owners of rental properties in the city, according to Code Enforcement.
The couple moved into the two-story, two-bedroom building in summer 2020. Their rent that first year was $975 a month. It increased the following year to $1,025 a month. In August, it increased to $1,600 a month. Fox said that she has seen similar units in the same complex advertised online for $1,400.
The couple has considered moving but the tight housing market in Greater Bangor and much of Maine has made that almost impossible.
Jim Moore, a retired federal prosecutor who now works for Pine Tree Legal Assistance in Bangor, filed the lawsuit May 11 in Penobscot County Superior Court.
B & L Properties denied the allegations in its answer to the lawsuit filed June 15.
“The allegations in the complaint amount to baseless retaliation against a landlord for raising rent,” Kady Huff, the attorney for B & L Properties. “B & L Properties takes tenant concerns seriously and timely responds to maintenance requests.”
Huff also filed a counterclaim alleging that the couple owes back rent for the month of October and is responsible for the cost of replacing a large casement window. The counterclaim also says that the couple “inspected” the apartment before moving in and did not mention a problem with the casement window or any other issues.
Moore said that suing a landlord is unusual for the organization that represents low-income Mainers in civil matters, including housing issues.
“In most of our cases, we are able to reach an acceptable resolution working together,” he said.
In October, Jeff Wallace, the director of Bangor’s Code Enforcement Division, issued an order of abatement to B & L Properties. It said the company had 14 days to make the necessary repairs to the front and rear decks, to an inoperable casement window in the living room and the elimination of insect infestation at a disconnected oil vent and fill pipe.
The front deck to the four-unit building has been replaced and the insect infestation has been addressed, according to Moore. The application for the building permit to replace the front decks in the building is dated May 17, seven months after the order was issued.
On Oct. 14, a flash flood caused water damage in the basement of the building as torrential rain and heavy winds hit the state. Fox and Kelley said that they lost clothes, pictures and painting, a guitar and sentimental objects. Prior to that, they had a small amount of water in the basement during heavy rains. Their renters’ insurance covered the loss but they claim it could have been prevented if there were gutters on the building.
Wallace agreed in a letter dated Oct. 21 in which he said: “It is my belief that installation of gutters would be enough to keep the slight amount of
Water that normally enters the basement from doing so, thus protecting your investment and improving living conditions for all tenants.”
The couple suspected that animals were getting in the building under the front steps so they borrowed a game camera and discovered a skunk was living in the hole. Skunks do not fall under the jurisdiction of Bangor’s animal control office, Wallace said last week.
B & L Properties falls in the middle of landlords when it comes to being responsive in a timely manner to orders from code enforcement, he said.
“Some are faster, some are notoriously slower,” Wallace said.
Enforcement about a Hemlock Street property owned by B & L Properties was sent out in November, but most of the properties have not generated complaints in more than a decade, according to information provided by the code enforcement office.
The city only sues a landlord as a last resort, Wallace said. Only a judge can order a landlord to pay a fine for not keeping properties up to code. Municipalities don’t have that authority.
“I bug people to get things done,” he said.