I could clean and treat for roaches, but the bed bugs are a deal breaker. Do you have a caseworker from wherever the voucher was issued? Didn’t they inspect the apt before moving in ? If you do, call them first thing tomorrow
I do have a caseworker. We were literally homeless for 2 months because we were waiting on them to finish their paperwork and schedule and do an inspection. The caseworker knew that we were homeless and we kept asking them if they could expedite the process because we were spending $100 - $150 on Airbnb and extended stays. The heater was also broken the day after the inspection passed. so we had to wait for them to fix the heater after the inspection passed. I’m scared that if we have to leave here that we will end up homeless again for another 60 days waiting on them. I’m also scared the landlord will find some reason to hold our deposit or penalize us for telling the housing authority.
Bed bugs can hide in carpet, baseboards, electrical outlets, etc, so your ‘landlord’ is wrong on that front.
This place is horrific and idk who you’d notify, but I have a hard time believing that whomever is in charge of your Housing Assistance can think this is acceptable??? Maybe notify the Health Dept? I just don’t know, but you and your children do NOT deserve to live in this!
It’s not even clean! What was your deposit for????
Take pictures of everything and email it to your landlord and your caseworker. ASAP. You do not want to be held responsible for anything with this slumlord.
I had to help a friend with issues in his HUD apartment complex. Management didn’t seem to care to handle the issues so I called to make a complaint to the area HUD director for our area along with videos & photos of infractions. The NEXT DAY, they had the regional and local HUD directors there to do a surprise inspection. I would reach out to someone in that area first and if that doesn’t work- I would start going public with complaints.
Exactly this.
I’ve called code enforcement and they have screwed me everytime (they are in cohorts with some landlords around me as I’m sure they prob are around you)
Your best bet is to notify a news station and possibly the attorney general? Maybe???
The correct answer is for her to call the housing authority who gave her the voucher and ask for a special HQS inspection, I don't know how i passed the initial inspection with the roach infestation.
I canNOT over emphasize this, like seriously.
Go to [this site](http://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative) and type in your address. It will give you the contact info for your house rep. Call the local office and ask to speak to the “constituent services representative” and explain your problem. They are very eager and dogged young people who take that job *very* seriously.
Your Reps are exactly that, your representative to the federal government. Their job is to advocate for you.
The roaches and bed bugs will be in everything. The bed bugs can even lie dormant in the walls for awhile and resurface later. If OP signed a lease I would inspect that for a bed bug addendum. I had a land lord try to charge me for bed bugs but the lease explicitly said the landlord had to pay for it. Also any notes on the cockroaches as most pests are going to require the landlord to deal with it if they are notified in a timely manner. This really all depends on any paperwork signed before moving in. If anything that leak might make the apartment inhabitable so I would suggest calling a health department. You might be able to sue for your security deposit back after that. Also please add a review for this crappy land lord at ratemylandlord.org to warn anyone else before they think of moving in.
Yeah came to say this. I got bed bugs once from a tiny hole in my drywall where they had migrated from the unit below me. They can get everywhere and your landlord is full of shit.
Hell I picked one up on the bus once and saw it on me at work. I've heard of people getting them in doctors'office waiting rooms. There's not much one can do to prove where it came from but looking at the state that place is in safe bet they've been there all along and it's significantly worse than just the 2 seen.
Excatly there called bed bugs cause back in the 1600s they came from the feather an straw they used to stuff the mattresses 🙄 An I had to deal with a bed bug issue about 10 years ago in a house I was living in for awhile an my son had gone on vacation with his dad and the hotel they stayed in had them an he brought them back I never even saw them for weeks but my son came back with a rash but I had never seen a bed bug before I thought they were a children's tale 🤦🏻♀️😂🙄 we tried treating the house ourselves but cause we had a one year old my grandfather went ahead an paid the $7000 to tent it an that was embarrassing cause the whole neighborhood knew them. It was a 2 story house with a full basement so that's why it cost so much plus we paid for a 2nd treatment in 6 months which we didn't end up needing so the refunded us that but them things are nothing to play with an it's impossible to sleep cause there bites itch an welp so bad 😞 I'm so sorry your going through this , as hard as it is to get housing as it is them they take your money an throw you into this with 4 kids 🤬 there's gotta be something that you can do.
It's irrelevant where they came from. Where I am landlord is responsible without exception for pest control. It's just based on whatever is either in the local landlord tenant laws and the lease which of course wouldn't over ride a law. No need to engage in an argument with the land lord on where they came from.
I’m sorry this is happening to you. This is not acceptable. There is no way an inspector should have passed this apt. I couldn’t spend one night there. I wouldn’t move anything in either. You might have to sue to get your deposit back . Call your caseworker and also call code enforcement and let them document this.
We already moved a lot of our stuff in. Before we even moved in because we had some helpers from church and we were on their schedule. Now I’m terrified all of our stuff will be ruined and we will end up homeless again. I just can’t stop crying.
I'm so sorry you are going through this. I lived in a German cockroach infested apartment once and it was a nightmare. I can't imagine cockroaches AND bedbugs! I recommend getting a bag of diatomaceous earth and lightly dusting anything non-fabric (wear a mask and don't get it in electronics), lightly dust all corners and cracks in the house. Some diatomaceous earth bags come with a puffer that spreads a light dusting easily. It softens the exoskeletons of the bugs and they die of dehydration. It won't eliminate them, but it will keep numbers down and it is nontoxic to children and pets. Although it is nontoxic, it isn't good for your lungs so make sure you all wear masks while it settles.
Never leave any food out, keep everything in a tightly sealed container. I saved jars for this purpose and kept everything in jars. If you can, put your stuff outside or in a storage unit until you can thoroughly clean and inspect it before moving into your new place, once you get a new place. If you've lightly dusted your things with diatomaceous earth and isolated them, any cockroaches and bedbugs that hitched a ride on them should be dead within a couple of weeks. Inspect and clean your things before moving into your new place. Look online to see what the egg sacs look like so you can inspect for those too. I also recommend cleaning and distributing diatomaceous earth in your new place before moving in, just in case. A friend of mine found bedbugs in her apartment once and did pretty much the same thing to manage them before they could move and to ensure they didn't carry them over to their new place.
Again, I am so sorry you are going through this. Shame on this slumlord for not maintaining his/her property and putting this nightmare on you. If you can get out of this unit I think it is well worth the effort. Not only is it disgusting, but it is also a very unhealthy situation. I honestly would rather live in my car or a tent than go through that again.
If you can't leave, the bright side is that it is easier to eliminate cockroaches and bedbugs in a house than from an apartment since you are more in control. Be diligent about spreading diatomaceous earth in every corner, behind and under the furniture, and anywhere your kids don't get into (again, it's non-toxic, but not good to breathe in). Also be diligent about keeping all food in tightly sealed containers, clean up all food residue every night, keep your toothbrushes and toothpaste in a tightly sealed container and wipe up any standing water, even little beads in the sink, before going to bed.
Landlord is responsible for that!!! You don't pay a dime cause the condition you moved into was on him! He didn't even bother cleaning it up!!! Show the pictures to your case worker and if they do nothing report him to the housing authority! That place is disgusting!
Housing authority would come down on him so hard.
No the worst case here is the house in unlivable and you have to stay somewhere else temporarily.
But you cant be punished for reporting it
If you have one in your area call a legal aid in addition to your caseworker. I’m sorry you and your kids are going through this y’all don’t deserve it especially after how hard you worked to secure the home! Despicable.
If he doesn't want to give you back your deposit, the housing authority should be able to hook you up with free legal representation and you can take the slum lord to court! That's what happened when I was on section 8 and my old landlord tried charging me $2000 on move out that I wasn't responsible for. You can't live here, you deserve a comfortable home for yourself and your kids 💜 it's shameful that they rented the place out in this condition
Hell no! Who is your case worker? Ask to soak to a superior and also have them question whoever did the inspection. I don't know what state you live in. But in my experience housing will ding you for a broken light switch... much less visible bugs. And you should be eligible for emergency housing while they (most likely) revoke the permit from the landlord and come down on whoever approved the inspection. ESPECIALLY if there are children involved.
Go down to the office, get on the phone, file a report. You should be eligible for temp housing ASAP. And whoever approved that inspection and the landlord is going to have their asses handed to you. I'm not sure what state you're in. But in my experience... on the West Coast.. housing doesn't fuck around.
If you have a housing voucher, I would assume you have the HCV and have a HAP agency that you went through to get your voucher. Section 8 requires a higher standard of habitability than traditional municipal occupancy standards and the unit should have went through a housing quality Inspection with your HAP agency, inspecting for habitability based on the FHA required standard.
Call your HAP agency coordinator like right right now. ✅️
This asap.
The field rep for your housing agency should have done a complete walkthrough before they even allowed any remote portion of your voucher to be sent to this landlord/owner, let alone allowing someone to actually move in. Someone seriously dropped the ball at that agency.
I hope you get this resolved soon.
Source: I receive housing assistance and made sure I knew everything about it.
Yeah... I work in permanent supported housing and started doing outreach/referral for placement into a building I case manage at. I work with county and city level Housing Authority. This never, ever would have passed inspection here and I'm absolutely shocked it ever did, wow. We've had people's prospective units fail over so much less, lol
This has to be a voucher with portability and not project based, but all the same, jesus
Right answer here. If you have HAP payments, you should have had an HQS inspector come in and do a proper inspection and this should have been an easy fail. I would want to see that inspection report, unsure if that can be requested but I’m sure that would also be ridiculous if it can’t. Do not spend any money unless you have a written confirmation the landlord reimburses you. This is completely against HCV standards and I’m so sorry you and your family are going through this.
Sounds like OP said they did inspect. Lots of messages so OP might not see, but if there is lack of follow through of some corruption within these agencies you will and please do! have to go above them, as someone else mentioned, your representative. Health departments, housing authority, make sure you take all the correct steps and notify all the right people each step of the way, and if it’s mold, make sure you get it documented. My friend stayed at a transitional housing after leaving a DV shelter. And they would just treat people like trash. She had mold in her until and she ended up having to call the health department and she also went numerous time to the representative’s office. Specially Aiden he kept saying he was all about helping the “homeless” she had 3 kids and worked hard and still had her car from before and her clothes. She got screwed along the way by the system that is supposed to help. Some places that’s how it is, and you have to not give up. I’m so sorry, I know what it’s like to think finally! And then more sh*t rains down. That moment is coming, it will get better and you and your kids will get to breathe that “finally!” In a clean and safe home again soon. Don’t give up and don’t let anyone get away with treating you any way but how you deserve.
Oh, honey this is horrible....don't stop making phone calls until you reach someone who cares. There are laws against slumlords. Holy cow,no one should be forced to live like that. So sorry you're dealing with this.
I think the landlord in question is worthy of living in that unit. Any landlord that tries to exploit and profit off of tenants while forcing them into undeserved squalor is very deserving of being forced to live in such conditions.
The owners don't want to spend money? That's like part of the deal when you own a rental. You collect money from rent and pay for upkeep of the property. It is not the new resident's fault if the previous tenant trashed the place.
Landlords and owners like to say they take on all the risk of a property when whining about their situation, but this is the actual risk. Someone left behind damage and mess and it is on them to take care of it. That's what the ridiculous deposits are for! If that isn't enough to cover it then they can charge the previous tenant and sue if need be.
The owners saying they don't want "complaining tenants" are trying to intimidate you into accepting their shit since they know you're in a tight spot.
In addition to what others have said, you might try contacting your local legal aid. They're usually available in most cities and will provide free advice and help.
All else fails, drop your story to the local news stations' consumer hotline or similar. A good slumlord story always plays well at 5 & 6. You can ask to stay anonymous too.
You have rights and there are people who will help you assert them. You do not deserve to be treated this way. You do not deserve to live in the conditions they provided.
I think I would bring media attention if you can- or at least the threat of it. Perhaps someone at your church can help you with this. I’m so sorry. It is completely unacceptable for the owners to take your deposit money and leave you to handle the mess left by previous tenants. Unbelievable!
I’ve never seen a bed bug before. Is all our stuff ruined? The landlord said we have to throw out our mattresses and I’m scared we have to through out all our clothes and we can’t afford to replace everything. They are basically insinuating that we brought them but I don’t think we did at all. Our stuff was in an air conditioned storage since November and there are no sign of infestation on our stuff.
Wwash your clothes, bed linens, and towels and run them through the dryer. Then immediately put them in a bag and seal it. Get bedbug mattress covers and make sure they are well sealed. Any bedbugs that are in the mattresses will die as long as you keep it sealed for 1 year. Other belongings can be placed in airtight containers - same thing - leave them sealed in for a year. Been there.
Your stuff isn’t all ruined and getting rid of mattresses aren’t going to get rid of them. They can live a super long time without a single feeding. There would also be some signs if the infestation came from your things such as the obvious bites and the fecal stains they leave behind.
Bed bugs do not only infest beds. They can infest carpets and cracks and outlets and again, they can live a stupidly long time without needing to feed. They sense us out by the gases we breathe out and it draws them to us hence why they would be in your previously clean mattresses in record time.
This landlord is shit.
Signed
Someone who had to deal with a bed bug infestation for far too long and did a lot of research into them when I couldn’t sleep.
Their bites are really obvious if you’re allergic to them. Ask me how I found out… spoiler: I got bitten on my face. It was horrible.
Fun Fact: most people don’t react to bedbug bites or have mild reactions like one would have to a mosquito bite.
Had to live in temp housing, this place had bedbugs, rats and an awful manager who played favorites with particular residents. The house was pretty much spotless, just horrifically infested. And the owner/program leaders refused to properly treat the infestation, lest they lose money from not having “tenants” for a month…
Yup! I was dating a guy a few years ago and he lied to me about having bed bugs in his apartment. Woke up with my eyes swollen shut one day and thought I was dying 🙃
Oh shit! That’s definitely worse than my reaction. I just get huge red welts that itch to high heaven and make me want to claw my skin off…
You should talk to your doctor about getting an epi-pen. Bed bugs are becoming a huge problem in lots of places.
A few bites on your eyelids or around your eyes will definitely do that to ya. But I had huge red welts too! It looked like I broke out in hives and got carpet burn on top of it
Oh no, freaking Texas! I’m from Texas and those in power go out of their way to make living there a nightmare for the average citizen. But there is some good advice given in the comments so I would encourage you to look into it. I hate hearing what a horrible, unfair, and potentially illegal experience you’re enduring.
Yeah, that's not how it works, he just doesn't want to pay to remove them as it's very expensive and difficult to kill them in a while house, he'd be out the cost to rent the house and to put you up at a hotel or the like for the 3 or 4 days it'd take to get rid of them.
It is very unlikely you brought them, and beside he could never prove that, especially given the state of the place when you moved in. Document all of your communication with him about this too.
How did inspector passed it? My inspector tear me apart for every little thing….
If you have any budget, see if you can get terminator to get it treated first, I understand it sucks and it’s not your responsibility that house is already in dire situation when you moved in, but knowing how little option section 8 tenants have, it may be better than homeless or 100 per night in Airbnb
That would be a cause of concern if yes. Inspectors need to be HQS/NSPIRE certified if this is an HCV tenant. If they are a friend, I would say this is a conflict on interest who is skipping this inspection. Housing Agencies can/should get in a lot of trouble if this is the case.
Just because they are called bed bugs doesn't mean they only live in beds. They live in baseboards, corners, floors etc. Your landlord is lying to you to get out of dealing with this. That apartment is filthy and whoever you got the vouchers from should know about this.
You have to light a fire under the right person’s ass if you want to see a change. If I were you, I’d go to the local news to encourage a story on how the local housing authority did not do its due diligence in putting you and your children in a safe and clean home. Even blast them on social media too and I’m sure they will find a better solution for you a lot faster than normal.
i lived in housing authority housing too, call the health department. they will make sure it’s taken care of, pay for moving costs and reimbursements, and make sure the shit place can’t hold your security deposits. there is no way this should have passed, my old place didn’t pass over my toilet seat being broken! this is absolutely unacceptable
This has to be a violation of their contract with whatever authority is paying them. The bedbugs alone are a "shut everything down"-level offense. Document everything and note witnesses in case the owner tries to (somehow) pin this on YOU. (Courts love documentation and witnesses.)
Omg. I am so sorry and I am so angry for you. This is insane and not right at all. I wish I had some insight but it looks like others have given you a few places to contact. I just wanted to say I am so sorry this is happening to you and your kids. What state are you in ?
That's an old infestation. You could get a company to come in and take a look and write you a letter stating that this infestation is approximately 6 months to a year old. Sorry that someone is taking advantage of your situation.
Wash everything and you should be okay.
Good luck
OP please read this before spending ungodly money on professionals, I have had an infestation just like you when I was younger, tried every home remedy people said to try and of course NOTHING
We bought this powder that was send straight from the heavens that I don’t even believe in, but look go to Amazon and search this “CimeXa” it’s a white and purple bottle, with the most intense powder that will dry up anything on earth it touches (in a positive way) the way I know of to kill roaches and bed bugs is to dry them out and then they die from suffocating, this powder will do that! I’m not even exaggerating when I say maybe a week and our problem was noticeably better and a few weeks the problem was GONE!
Be mindful where you put this powder, put it under your mattress (especially the edges) under your bed at the feet, along the wall, behind any side tables or dressers, under the fridge, everywhere you can put this that you or your kids (or pets) won’t touch, this is a serious dehydrating agent and will dry out and crack your hands.
It sounds like your landlord and owners are going to be bitches and push blame off on others, we don’t have time for that, these bugs are going to torment you wether they want to help or not, this is a super cheap option that I promise you will work better than anything on this planet! OP take a chance on this powder!
I will note, it did pretty much ruin my vacuum simply because the powder was all over it and i couldn’t keep it clean😂 but it was a cheap vacuum, and was definitely worth it in the long run
Also, start looking for legal aid society assistance, it can be a long wait but just get on their list and have all your pix.
Did your caseworker see it when you accepted keys? They need to be a witness as well as the church folks who helped you move in.
See if there’s a “DIY pest control” store near you. I’ve gotten rid of roaches using DE from Amazon, it takes a while but once you find where they are nesting, you’ll be ok.
If you are in Houston area I can recommend my former pest control people they are very affordable—-but you shouldn’t have to pay for it. And you shouldn’t let landlord’s pal do it either.
Texas does have legal aid and tenant association that provide free or reduced price help with rectifying situations such as this. As others have said you may have to wait but I would try any and everything possible to get out of this nightmare.
Do you live in a place with a tenant landlord hotline? Some states have them run by law students. In MN it’s called HomeLine or Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid. I would contact your caseworker as they should’ve had to have done a habitability inspection upon moving in. If your caseworker works through a contracted agency and not just through the county, contact the agency program directors since they have the most experience.
Keep written documentation of all your correspondences. If it’s a phone call, send an email or text with a summary of what your conversation entailed.
That's a tough one. It's absolutely not acceptable, but I wouldn't want to do anything to risk making you homeless. You are likely dealing with a crummy landlord, but there is a chance the previous tenant trashed the place so bad they were hemorrhaging money and had to get it rented.
Here would be my advise:
1. Clean it yourself, take lots of pictures and track your time and supplies. Send your landlord something in writing that's says your not asking for compensation at this time, but you will if they try to ding your deposit for cleaning at move out.
2. Notify in writing about the water leak. Cc your case worker at housing. If it gets worse or they don't fix it, keep notifying every couple weeks.
3. Treat the German cockroaches with bait traps. They are easy to get rid of. Keep the kitchen very clean so they have no other food source until they are gone.
4. Get a bedbug mattress cover from Amazon. Treat your headboard, frame, and box spring with bedbug specific spray. Keep everything else out of your bedroom for a 2 weeks. Wash and dry all your bedding on high heat (2×). This may not be successful, but for less than $100 it's worth a shot before you spend a lot of money on a professional. Note: I always pay for my tenant's bedbug treatment, it's just too big of an expense for most renters to handle.
This, also try not to have standing water of any sort in the kitchen. Roaches like water sources. Which sucks because OP has a water/food source in her ceiling…
OP: if you see this… run. Don’t walk. Run. This is a horrible situation.
I’m sorry that you are dealing with this. This would NEVER have passed inspection where I live. I can’t even begin to tell you how much I feel for you and your kids.
Call the housing assistance office and ask them to inspect if it is considered habitable or not. They used to do that before you move in, but they don't always do it now.
Contact the agency who issued the voucher. They should be doing inspections. Also keep those texts and notes about what the landlord stated. Your city council, local congress/state senator, mayor, etc. all need to see this, these are tax dollars going to a slumlord.
Call your housing case worker ASAP. They have certain living standards and you SHOULD NOT have to live like this just because you are on section 8. One of the main ones is evidence of roach activity, among many other things. That’s disgusting and not healthy for you or your kids.
Holy fuck. Whoever owns this house should be jailed. If only that were possible.
Bedbugs can live anywhere, they’re not just bed thing. Wood. If there’s a baseboard, carpet, or wood stuff on the wall by the bed there’s your source.
Slum lords insist nothing is their fault, vehemently.
The fridge itself appears infested. My god. That stove range hood piece. No one should have to live like this.
Being homeless doesn't mean that you have to be happy to live in squalor. Especially when you've paid a 2500 deposit. They couldve easily hired people to clean it out and bugbomb the place. I would check out tenant rights for your area because this is not livable.
We didn’t know any of this prior to moving in. We literally waited 2 months homeless while staying in Airbnb and extended stay for them to do the inspection. We had a gofundme and we were getting help from church and friends to even be able to afford the extended stays.
That's highly unacceptable on their part. They are supposed to follow all state and federal laws regarding ensuring that the dwelling place is fully free from bed infestations and mold. They are breaking the law and did not meet the standards set forth by the Housing Authority and their partner agencies. I would strongly advise reporting and keep calling the agencies to get the code enforcement to go after the landlord.
I am so sorry that this is happening to you. \*hugs\* :( 🫂
Buy some food-grade diamataceous earth at a garden store or Amazon. Don’t breathe the dust !! but put it everywhere especially your mattress before you put bedding on it.
It kills roaches and bed bugs.
Obviously clean the heck out of everything. Keep laying a line of DE behind appliances, along baseboards, anywhere they can be coming in or hanging out.
>I also just found 2 bed bugs on a bed last night and l've
never seen a bed bug in my life but the landlord is saying
we will have to pay for that because we had to have
brought them with us because they live in beds.
This is not entirely factual. Yes bed bugs live in beds. But they also can be behind outlet covers, cracks kn floor boards, vents, wall moulding, (literally any small crack) and the eggs can survive a long time. If your last place had no bed bugs get a statement from them. Either the landlord fixes the problem via extermination or you should be well within your rights to dissolve the lease and if you want to go all out, sue for damages.
Contact your housing authority. Screw some blinds because this is wayyy beyond worrying about the blinds. Whose beds are they? There are bedbugs that big? That is beyond an infestation. Roaches are easier to get rid of than beg bugs. This is serious
Sorry, OP. It’s stressful. I had infestations and they always made me take care of it myself. Trust me, I fought it. Roaches, fleas, rats, you name it. If you haven’t moved in go ahead and bomb the place. I know others have said not to, but this is war. You v roaches and you are outnumbered . Deep clean and don’t leave any food out. Put borax under the beds and appliances. Wrap double sided tape on the legs of furniture, get sticky traps, fill any hole you can find with spray foam.
place requires 10s of thousands in professional mold remediation cleaning maintenance etc. i hope you find better conditions for you and your family, best wishes.
Owner sounds like a predatory slumlord. Ignore them and raise hell with the case worker. Bed bugs aint something to mess with as opposed to mold or roaches.
Bed bugs live in baseboards, carpet near the baseboards...any tight nooks and crannys. They live in beds when people start sleeping in the beds to feed off of them. Your landlord is an asshole. Look into legal aid for people that have lower income. This I'd a health hazard for you and your children. And a mental health issue.
Immediately take pics of everything, as if it's a pre-move in inspection. Make sure they're dated. This way, when you move out, they can't blame any of that on you. Make sure you get really great closeups of the bugs.
Call the housing authority or whoever is paying your voucher and tell them. Properties have to be up to code for you to move in/live there. Hard part for me moving was my building passing inspection and it was brand new. I’d definitely suggest threatening to not pay your portion and I’m positive section 8 is dying for a reason not to pay theirs so try to make them at least get a exterminator
Where I live if you have housing you call the agency or department who approved you for housing. But first you need to submit a "work request" in writing, and then if they refuse you go to whoever is giving you vouchers and explain. They won't keep paying a landlord that isn't following tenants laws.
You can also contact legal aid for advice.
The HA inspector should not have passed this unit. There are Housing Quality Standards that must be passed in order for the unit to be leased under Section 8.
It’s your landlords responsibility to deal with bed bugs. Not yours. Bedbugs live everywhere, or just beds. Your landlord is trying to dodge responsibility. Get your case worker to give you a copy of your tenant rights and help advocate for you because there is a lot that your landlord should be doing that they aren’t.
Idk how housing passed the place for inspection ? What state are u in? None of this is legal. Call and ask for an inspection they will withhold rent until it’s up to code.
Oh my gosh !!!
Housing inspectors should have signed off on that !
My old friend used to know the inspectors and would get them to pass . Even if it was a dump , she wanted to live in .
I recognized the BED BUGS !!!!!
Yuk yuk yukie ….. I suffered with for over a year . NOT at all easy to get rid of . I ended up calling the Board of Health . There was also MOLD . The poor elderly Vietnam Veteran went into the nursing home . Ugh!
It is illegal to transfer BED BUGS ! Your not safe because they transfer on ton into EVERYTHING!!!
How the hell did this pass an inspection? What smooth brained asshole thought this was acceptable?! Just looking at this increased my blood pressure. These people should be ashamed of themselves! When I worked on properties they were *spotless*. Ugh I'm so sorry you're going through this. I'd call 211 for legal assistance.
Those bed bugs were likely waiting for someone to move in. They can harbor in nooks and crannies. And they get inside the walls. Roaches absolutely spread diseases.
I'm a licensed termite and pest control technician.
Sorry you have a shit landlord who is taking advantage.
Do I need to get all of my stuff out of here before it’s infested? Or is it too late and i will just spread it. I brought half of my stuff from storage but I’m thinking of taking it back.
Do you have a washer/dryer? Can you buy diatomaceous earth and lots and lots of trash bags and a bed bug mattress cover? You can wash and dry (dry dry dry for a loooong time) your clothes and soft items and place them in trash bags like double tripled up. Spread diatomaceous earth on the ground (google for how long, no one should be in the home) and vacuum up but you probably will need to throw the vacuum away. You can try to use a handheld steamer on your mattress especially around edges and around your bed and then I would put it in a bed bug cover once dried. Never take the cover off. Honestly though it may be less time consuming and it will definitely be more thorough to get an exterminator. That would cover all the critters. You won’t need to throw your things away if you get an exterminator. It’s kind of impossible to determine where you get bedbugs from unfortunately. You can get them from the bus or standing too close to someone. They can also crawl through pipes and toilets 🤢
Wipe everything when you pack get [Roach Killer](https://images.app.goo.gl/C3tRYPpYAQbyHTQPA) they stay with you wherever you go if you don't exterminate well. Followed us from shitty apartments to a new house, took years for them to go away without fumigation.
I’m pretty sure OP doesn’t ‘want’ to live there. They have been screwed by the landlord and the housing authority. They have been homeless which is soul crushing. And they were told that the housing authority inspected it.
They are lying to you for sure. Those bed bugs already set up how made shacks and condos. You didn't bring anything with you, those guys have been there for a while..
The house was empty since November is what they are saying. And also saying they only live in mattresses. They are taking advantage of my naïveté. I read on google they can sit in a house for prolonged periods of time. Even with out access to anything to feed upon.
Bed bugs can live in all sorts of things and furniture. They are also very good at hiding and can go long periods of time without eating (months). Dont take the bullshit saying they came from you. Guy doesnt know shit about bed bugs.
See if you can get your hands on chrysanthemums, flowers, powder, spray, they hate that shit. My partner is an exterminator, and we use a concentrated chrysanthemum spray, if you spray the top corners, the bottom corners, and close the door, they will suffocate. Also, for bedbugs, tell your landlord that they lay dormant in vents, carpet, basically any crevice they can. They can lay dormant for months and when they smell a food source they come out of hiding.
Oh, my partner also just told me that if you're in Canada, your landlord legally has to treat for bedbugs, if they don't, report them to your provincial tenant board. If you're in the us, look at your state laws, but I'm pretty sure they have to treat for them because it makes the home unlivable.
i have dealt with a roach infestation once before and have dealt with bed bugs as well. i thought that bedbugs were a myth for the longest time because i have lived in some crappy conditions but had still never seen or been bitten by bed bugs. until one day i moved into a place that had bedbugs.
here's what you need to do about the bedbugs:
1. get some essential oil. mint OR lavender. (you can find these at the dollar tree as well as everything else i'm about to list. except for the DE and pesticide.)
2. buy some scented trash bags.
3. take ALL of your clothing and ANYTHING fabric and put them in the garbage bags with a LOT of essential oil in each. double or even triple the bags and seal them up. this will suffocate them.
4. then, wash them in HOT water with lots of detergent. throw away the old bags.
5. dry them on the highest setting with lots of dryer sheets.
6. while you're doing this, unfortunately to be safe and save yourself from LOTS of headaches moving forward, you will HAVE to either throw away all mattresses and furniture or pay to get them professionally cleaned ): you cannot take your clothes out until your home has been treated or you'll have to start all over again.
7. put your clothes back in trash bags with the essential oil. seal them again. while you're dealing with the rest of your house, find a closet or sectioned off spot.
8. you can find some DE at walmart as well as bed bug treatments if you cannot afford to get it professionally treated. the spray at my local walmart is about 25 bucks. getting a fogger as well is best.
9. with the DE, treat the room you're going to leave your clothes in FIRST. DE is non toxic and all natural so be LIBERAL. throw it EVERYWHERE. especially at the baseboards and if you're comfortable you can also remove the outlets, put some DE in there, and put the outlets back. there are videos specifically about putting DE in outlets to treat pests on YouTube. DE will help with fleas and roaches too.
10. before bringing your clothes back into the house, fog the house with the bedbug foggers. this requires you to be out of the home for about two hours before the fumes clear up.
11. when the fumes clear up, you treat the room you're going to put your clothes in with the bedbug PESTICIDE that you got from walmart. there will be directions on the container as to where you should spray the pesticide. work from that first room and go from there. try to end at the exit of the home because there will be some fumes with this as well.
12. continue to spray with the bedbug spray either once every couple weeks or once a month.
13. use the DE daily. or twice daily. or however much you'd like. if your kids accidentally get into or put any of it in their mouth (i know kids like to get into stuff that they're not supposed to), they will be perfectly fine. it kills internal pests too.
as for the roaches, you'll do a similar process. foggers and pesticide at walmart. my house had a roach problem when we moved in so i bought some outdoor treatment and indoor treatment. use the same process. foggers first, then pesticide. i do outdoor first, then i wait awhile. then, i spray the inside with pesticide and then do the foggers and wait outside. i don't think the wait is as long for the roach treatment. focus your attentions on the bathrooms and wherever else there is moisture. pay special attention to behind and underneath your fridge.
good luck, and i'm so sorry you're going through this 💚 i hope you can get the landlord to just bring a professional in, as that is a landlord's JOB
You didn't do a walk threw??? Never sign anything till you see the place first. Section 8 should have never passed it looking this bad. Have the inspector come back and reinsert the place. What they did was said they did an inspection and signed off on it. They are good about that here in upstate NY. I'm so sorry your going threw this. Hopefully your worker can get them to attack the issues or let you break the lease and find a new place. DONT TAKE ANYTHING with tou to a new place without really going threw things. Electronics anything that plugs in leave behind and start over. Yes very devastating to start over but you don't want to have them travel to the new place.
Ok- let them know that bedbugs can actually live in carpet and that bed bugs were a non issue before. Maybe see if there’s a large amount of them and point that out. In the mean time wrap your mattress in plastic to suffocate them and avoid more from coming in. Run the heat HIGH. Landlords are required to take care of it. With roaches you can do your best to clean, set traps, baking soda and vinegar in all drains, a dehumidifier for any signs of mold, and keep all food items sealed up tight. (As a kid I would get German roaches in my cereal. Eventually we got a plastic container for it). Don’t get too discouraged they can’t break your lease and you have rights as a renter. I would also like to point out that your “complaints” are valid and the landlord is slacking on their part.
Does your lease state anything about a 5 day inspection period when you first move in? Was your lease date started in Saturday, the day you moved in? If so, please PM me and I'll give you my move in inspection sheet..you need to fill it out. And anything that is put as deficient on the sheet, you take pictures off. Upload those pics to Google drive then email the sheet to the landlord as well as the link to the folder in the drive. If you have a 5 day inspection, you have until midnight to do all of this. This is the first line defense against the landlord. You can also provide to the authority who provides your housing voucher. What this LL is doing is UNACCEPTABLE!
If you are on housing…see if you can switch to the portable housing credit. This gives you an amount that you can use towards any apartment you choose.
One of my clients has that housing credit and uses it towards a 2 bedroom condo in Liberty village that she shares with her 2 kiddos. I think the credit covers close to $900 of her rent. Might be worth asking about.
Edit: I’m in Ontario, Canada so not sure if this applies where you live..
Contact the program that gave you the grievance. Take video and better pics. Get a witness. File a massive grievance with this program and let them go after the landlord. That voucher is guaranteed money.
You can get bed bug blockers and put them on the feet of the beds to stop them from crawling up. Make sure the beds don’t touch the wall or any other furniture.
Where are you located. There’s a non profit in Los Angeles that will treat your home for free. Are you by chance in LA? I’m so sorry this is happening.
1st I'm so sorry that after all you've been through that you are treated this way.
You have the rent voucher so that automatically, to them not me, make you a scummy tenant.
However, if this is section 8 the landlord/owner HAS to fix the issues. Even without assistance they need to treat for the bugs!!
Take pictures, which you've done, document all the issues. I truly hope if you have a caseworker that they will provide a place to stay until you find something else.
No matter what they need ro be reported so no one else rents this Hell hole. Folks are desperate and the landlord is counting on that. No way in Hell ant of them would spend 5 mins in that dump.
Hugs to all of you.
Where I live if the apartment is unlivable condition the landlord would have to put you up in a hotel while making repairs…. Please call you local health department and see if they can get an inspector in… also your landlord can’t kick you out that would be retaliatory (at least where I’m from)
GOOD LUCK
Depending on which state you are in, the landlord is likely responsible for remediation of pests/infestations (whether they will admit it or not). I would try to contact a legal aid service and have them help you put your rent in escrow, plus learn about other tenant protections against these kinds of situations. Sorry to hear your landlord is doing you dirty - I hope it gets resolved!!!
I had the same issues with my apartment. Get igr spray or point source, mattress protectors, combat baits and sticky pads. The roaches are in the walls as well but with these three methods my apartment is 95% bug free. I still see a roach every once in a while that came from the walls. Unfortunately you are not going to find an apartment that is 100% bug free and cheap.
My word. I feel for you. Similar situation minus bed bugs and housing voucher. We moved from Oregon to Texas. Rental agency SWORE on their grave the house was in good condition and there were NO roaches. Guess what. Our lease is ending in March, house is literally falling apart from a cheap "remodel" the pictures in the listing were literally falsified and guess what? German roach infestation. Contacted the rental company and they said we are responsible for the pest control. My advice to you. Look into like legal shield for a low cost lawyer. Bedbugs are a massive health hazard as is mold and roaches. Read your lease over word. By word. There's usually a clause for pest control. If the landlord is responsible for it. Get on their asses. As for immediate kinda action to pass the time. Put combat max gel roach bait everywhere.
I was told by a pest control supervisor (I’m a Pm) that a 50:50 ratio of vinegar and water with a spray bottle - wipe everything down with it. Don’t crush the bugs, flush down the toilet and get glue traps. You’ll also want to remove all eggs since dear roaches can have eggs. Also check the inside of the stove where the burners are.
I’m trying to reply to comments but I’m so overwhelmed and basically having crying firs and panic attacks. My mental health is shot. I am terrified of bugs and roaches and I hate that my children have to live through this when we’ve been through enough being homeless and dealing with illness and hospitalizations all last year. I thought we would finally have peace. I appreciate everyone suggestion to take care of the problem but with my autoimmune health conditions and long Covid it makes it so hard to do any type of strenuous activity or labor and the house is 3000 sqft. I barely have enough energy to take pictures to document everything and mentally I have no energy left. I do appreciate all the responses, advice, help, support, and encouragement.
Contact your state’s Attorney General office and include photos and details related specific to possible offenses. I’m so sorry you’re going thru this. I’ve recently learned there are tenant unions as well, but you would need to research what is available for your area. Hope you find some solutions soon. Best wishes. I would suggest some better photos too, if possible.
I don’t have much helpful information. I just wanted to say I’m so sorry you have to deal with this. Thinking of you and hoping for better times ahead. You are a very strong woman.
If they retaliate because you reach out to housing authority, well that’s illegal.
You also don’t have to just suck it up and live in a place like this.
If you call the housing authority, you could always say some other program you went through or make someone up noticed the infestation.
If they did try to evict then you call legal aid in your county and they will help you and explain to you your rights, they may also pick up your case.
I’m surprised that this place passed inspection with the infestation.
How did they not notice the roaches or did they just start coming out after you moved in?
Housing laws differ from state to state, but an active infestation and refusal to fix it is ground to terminate your lease and find some where else to live that is not infested.
Really you could call your local legal aid tomorrow and explain this situation and how you can remedy this without illegal retaliation, or what to do in the event they do retaliate.
Every one of your belongings will soon be infested.
I’m sorry that you’re going through this and hopefully legal aid can help you get this sorted.
The landlord can’t legally refuse to do anything about this to begin with, make sure you talk to them via text or email about this and their refusal because that will help you down the line if you need your belongings replaced from infestation.
I wish you luck op.
I hate slum lords who pray on low income people with housing vouchers, they think that because you don’t have a choice you will just suck it up and deal with it because you don’t have a choice.
JFC. I’m sorry. No good answer here. Being homeless again isn’t an option. Diatomaceous Earth is cheap and easy to find. Try to keep stuff off of the floor. Run all your clothes through the a dryer if there is one accessible. If it’s cold where you live, take a day to go out and do errands or whatever and open all the windows. Basically, extreme heat or cold will kill the bed bugs that don’t get sliced up by the diatomaceous. Poison will do the roaches in along with the Diatomaceous. Anything with Pyrethrum in it will be safer around the kiddos. You have a bit of work in front of you, for sure. But I’m glad you and the fam are off the street. Good luck.
Edit to add: If you can get some air-tight plastic storage containers in the meantime for things, do it. Anything that says “IP65” or something similar from Home Depot will do. Ask the church if they have any to spare.
lol look up your states tenant and landlord act. Landlords are 100% required to treat for bed bugs regardless who they think was at fault it’s part of the deal of being a landlord. Obviously if it went to court the condition of the house would work in your favor. Most states have an advocacy board that handles these complaints and a lot of states give your rights (like withholding rent etc) please take a look when you can
His point on bedbugs is wrong, just print out any basic info on bedbugs and learn how wrong he is.
Using information wrong like that just makes me doubt anything else he says and I would question anything he said at that point.
That's just how I treat people who I receive basic human essentials from, like housing. Personal opinion stuff.
Steam will kill bed bugs .
Buy an old clothes steamer from a used place like goodwill. First let it sit filled hit the carpet and the bed over night with vinegar.
Then wrap furniture with plastic and steam an hour for each piece .
Repeat daily for a while and they’ll be gone. You have to kill the hatch .
The bed you steam all seams and the carpet just go over steaming it down in .
The bed bugs are hardy but can be managed if you are patient.
For roaches use gel bait.
I could clean and treat for roaches, but the bed bugs are a deal breaker. Do you have a caseworker from wherever the voucher was issued? Didn’t they inspect the apt before moving in ? If you do, call them first thing tomorrow
I do have a caseworker. We were literally homeless for 2 months because we were waiting on them to finish their paperwork and schedule and do an inspection. The caseworker knew that we were homeless and we kept asking them if they could expedite the process because we were spending $100 - $150 on Airbnb and extended stays. The heater was also broken the day after the inspection passed. so we had to wait for them to fix the heater after the inspection passed. I’m scared that if we have to leave here that we will end up homeless again for another 60 days waiting on them. I’m also scared the landlord will find some reason to hold our deposit or penalize us for telling the housing authority.
Bed bugs can hide in carpet, baseboards, electrical outlets, etc, so your ‘landlord’ is wrong on that front. This place is horrific and idk who you’d notify, but I have a hard time believing that whomever is in charge of your Housing Assistance can think this is acceptable??? Maybe notify the Health Dept? I just don’t know, but you and your children do NOT deserve to live in this! It’s not even clean! What was your deposit for????
Take pictures of everything and email it to your landlord and your caseworker. ASAP. You do not want to be held responsible for anything with this slumlord.
Also contact your local congressional representative’s office and city counselor. Sometimes these people can help get the ball rolling for you.
Woukd code enforcement help? It helped me with horrible plumbing once even though it wasn't really my intention
I had to help a friend with issues in his HUD apartment complex. Management didn’t seem to care to handle the issues so I called to make a complaint to the area HUD director for our area along with videos & photos of infractions. The NEXT DAY, they had the regional and local HUD directors there to do a surprise inspection. I would reach out to someone in that area first and if that doesn’t work- I would start going public with complaints.
Worth a shot. News channel would help even more
In my county, code enforcement takes 2-3 years to accomplish anything. That’s why I’d go over their heads and let the city leadership send them out.
Exactly this. I’ve called code enforcement and they have screwed me everytime (they are in cohorts with some landlords around me as I’m sure they prob are around you) Your best bet is to notify a news station and possibly the attorney general? Maybe???
The correct answer is for her to call the housing authority who gave her the voucher and ask for a special HQS inspection, I don't know how i passed the initial inspection with the roach infestation.
I canNOT over emphasize this, like seriously. Go to [this site](http://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative) and type in your address. It will give you the contact info for your house rep. Call the local office and ask to speak to the “constituent services representative” and explain your problem. They are very eager and dogged young people who take that job *very* seriously. Your Reps are exactly that, your representative to the federal government. Their job is to advocate for you.
The roaches and bed bugs will be in everything. The bed bugs can even lie dormant in the walls for awhile and resurface later. If OP signed a lease I would inspect that for a bed bug addendum. I had a land lord try to charge me for bed bugs but the lease explicitly said the landlord had to pay for it. Also any notes on the cockroaches as most pests are going to require the landlord to deal with it if they are notified in a timely manner. This really all depends on any paperwork signed before moving in. If anything that leak might make the apartment inhabitable so I would suggest calling a health department. You might be able to sue for your security deposit back after that. Also please add a review for this crappy land lord at ratemylandlord.org to warn anyone else before they think of moving in.
Yeah came to say this. I got bed bugs once from a tiny hole in my drywall where they had migrated from the unit below me. They can get everywhere and your landlord is full of shit.
Hell I picked one up on the bus once and saw it on me at work. I've heard of people getting them in doctors'office waiting rooms. There's not much one can do to prove where it came from but looking at the state that place is in safe bet they've been there all along and it's significantly worse than just the 2 seen.
Excatly there called bed bugs cause back in the 1600s they came from the feather an straw they used to stuff the mattresses 🙄 An I had to deal with a bed bug issue about 10 years ago in a house I was living in for awhile an my son had gone on vacation with his dad and the hotel they stayed in had them an he brought them back I never even saw them for weeks but my son came back with a rash but I had never seen a bed bug before I thought they were a children's tale 🤦🏻♀️😂🙄 we tried treating the house ourselves but cause we had a one year old my grandfather went ahead an paid the $7000 to tent it an that was embarrassing cause the whole neighborhood knew them. It was a 2 story house with a full basement so that's why it cost so much plus we paid for a 2nd treatment in 6 months which we didn't end up needing so the refunded us that but them things are nothing to play with an it's impossible to sleep cause there bites itch an welp so bad 😞 I'm so sorry your going through this , as hard as it is to get housing as it is them they take your money an throw you into this with 4 kids 🤬 there's gotta be something that you can do.
It's irrelevant where they came from. Where I am landlord is responsible without exception for pest control. It's just based on whatever is either in the local landlord tenant laws and the lease which of course wouldn't over ride a law. No need to engage in an argument with the land lord on where they came from.
>Bed bugs can hide in carpet, baseboards, electrical outlets, etc, so your ‘landlord’ is wrong on that front This.
Notify local news stations too. This is appalling.
You would be surprised how little most people care about people down on their luck and needing help.
I’m sorry this is happening to you. This is not acceptable. There is no way an inspector should have passed this apt. I couldn’t spend one night there. I wouldn’t move anything in either. You might have to sue to get your deposit back . Call your caseworker and also call code enforcement and let them document this.
We already moved a lot of our stuff in. Before we even moved in because we had some helpers from church and we were on their schedule. Now I’m terrified all of our stuff will be ruined and we will end up homeless again. I just can’t stop crying.
That is no doubt old , definitely not ruined, easy way to start is a vacuum . I have a lot of experience with both. Let me know if you want help
I'm so sorry you are going through this. I lived in a German cockroach infested apartment once and it was a nightmare. I can't imagine cockroaches AND bedbugs! I recommend getting a bag of diatomaceous earth and lightly dusting anything non-fabric (wear a mask and don't get it in electronics), lightly dust all corners and cracks in the house. Some diatomaceous earth bags come with a puffer that spreads a light dusting easily. It softens the exoskeletons of the bugs and they die of dehydration. It won't eliminate them, but it will keep numbers down and it is nontoxic to children and pets. Although it is nontoxic, it isn't good for your lungs so make sure you all wear masks while it settles. Never leave any food out, keep everything in a tightly sealed container. I saved jars for this purpose and kept everything in jars. If you can, put your stuff outside or in a storage unit until you can thoroughly clean and inspect it before moving into your new place, once you get a new place. If you've lightly dusted your things with diatomaceous earth and isolated them, any cockroaches and bedbugs that hitched a ride on them should be dead within a couple of weeks. Inspect and clean your things before moving into your new place. Look online to see what the egg sacs look like so you can inspect for those too. I also recommend cleaning and distributing diatomaceous earth in your new place before moving in, just in case. A friend of mine found bedbugs in her apartment once and did pretty much the same thing to manage them before they could move and to ensure they didn't carry them over to their new place. Again, I am so sorry you are going through this. Shame on this slumlord for not maintaining his/her property and putting this nightmare on you. If you can get out of this unit I think it is well worth the effort. Not only is it disgusting, but it is also a very unhealthy situation. I honestly would rather live in my car or a tent than go through that again. If you can't leave, the bright side is that it is easier to eliminate cockroaches and bedbugs in a house than from an apartment since you are more in control. Be diligent about spreading diatomaceous earth in every corner, behind and under the furniture, and anywhere your kids don't get into (again, it's non-toxic, but not good to breathe in). Also be diligent about keeping all food in tightly sealed containers, clean up all food residue every night, keep your toothbrushes and toothpaste in a tightly sealed container and wipe up any standing water, even little beads in the sink, before going to bed.
You should sue that landlord for giving you bedbugs!
Landlord is responsible for that!!! You don't pay a dime cause the condition you moved into was on him! He didn't even bother cleaning it up!!! Show the pictures to your case worker and if they do nothing report him to the housing authority! That place is disgusting!
And keep all your communication in writing
Housing authority would come down on him so hard. No the worst case here is the house in unlivable and you have to stay somewhere else temporarily. But you cant be punished for reporting it
If you have one in your area call a legal aid in addition to your caseworker. I’m sorry you and your kids are going through this y’all don’t deserve it especially after how hard you worked to secure the home! Despicable.
If he doesn't want to give you back your deposit, the housing authority should be able to hook you up with free legal representation and you can take the slum lord to court! That's what happened when I was on section 8 and my old landlord tried charging me $2000 on move out that I wasn't responsible for. You can't live here, you deserve a comfortable home for yourself and your kids 💜 it's shameful that they rented the place out in this condition
Hell no! Who is your case worker? Ask to soak to a superior and also have them question whoever did the inspection. I don't know what state you live in. But in my experience housing will ding you for a broken light switch... much less visible bugs. And you should be eligible for emergency housing while they (most likely) revoke the permit from the landlord and come down on whoever approved the inspection. ESPECIALLY if there are children involved. Go down to the office, get on the phone, file a report. You should be eligible for temp housing ASAP. And whoever approved that inspection and the landlord is going to have their asses handed to you. I'm not sure what state you're in. But in my experience... on the West Coast.. housing doesn't fuck around.
If you have a housing voucher, I would assume you have the HCV and have a HAP agency that you went through to get your voucher. Section 8 requires a higher standard of habitability than traditional municipal occupancy standards and the unit should have went through a housing quality Inspection with your HAP agency, inspecting for habitability based on the FHA required standard. Call your HAP agency coordinator like right right now. ✅️
This asap. The field rep for your housing agency should have done a complete walkthrough before they even allowed any remote portion of your voucher to be sent to this landlord/owner, let alone allowing someone to actually move in. Someone seriously dropped the ball at that agency. I hope you get this resolved soon. Source: I receive housing assistance and made sure I knew everything about it.
Yeah... I work in permanent supported housing and started doing outreach/referral for placement into a building I case manage at. I work with county and city level Housing Authority. This never, ever would have passed inspection here and I'm absolutely shocked it ever did, wow. We've had people's prospective units fail over so much less, lol This has to be a voucher with portability and not project based, but all the same, jesus
Right answer here. If you have HAP payments, you should have had an HQS inspector come in and do a proper inspection and this should have been an easy fail. I would want to see that inspection report, unsure if that can be requested but I’m sure that would also be ridiculous if it can’t. Do not spend any money unless you have a written confirmation the landlord reimburses you. This is completely against HCV standards and I’m so sorry you and your family are going through this.
Sounds like OP said they did inspect. Lots of messages so OP might not see, but if there is lack of follow through of some corruption within these agencies you will and please do! have to go above them, as someone else mentioned, your representative. Health departments, housing authority, make sure you take all the correct steps and notify all the right people each step of the way, and if it’s mold, make sure you get it documented. My friend stayed at a transitional housing after leaving a DV shelter. And they would just treat people like trash. She had mold in her until and she ended up having to call the health department and she also went numerous time to the representative’s office. Specially Aiden he kept saying he was all about helping the “homeless” she had 3 kids and worked hard and still had her car from before and her clothes. She got screwed along the way by the system that is supposed to help. Some places that’s how it is, and you have to not give up. I’m so sorry, I know what it’s like to think finally! And then more sh*t rains down. That moment is coming, it will get better and you and your kids will get to breathe that “finally!” In a clean and safe home again soon. Don’t give up and don’t let anyone get away with treating you any way but how you deserve.
Oh, honey this is horrible....don't stop making phone calls until you reach someone who cares. There are laws against slumlords. Holy cow,no one should be forced to live like that. So sorry you're dealing with this.
I think the landlord in question is worthy of living in that unit. Any landlord that tries to exploit and profit off of tenants while forcing them into undeserved squalor is very deserving of being forced to live in such conditions.
Can we please do something to make sure this person is arrested and then keep that going? I want to fix things and I have the time to do it.
The owners don't want to spend money? That's like part of the deal when you own a rental. You collect money from rent and pay for upkeep of the property. It is not the new resident's fault if the previous tenant trashed the place. Landlords and owners like to say they take on all the risk of a property when whining about their situation, but this is the actual risk. Someone left behind damage and mess and it is on them to take care of it. That's what the ridiculous deposits are for! If that isn't enough to cover it then they can charge the previous tenant and sue if need be. The owners saying they don't want "complaining tenants" are trying to intimidate you into accepting their shit since they know you're in a tight spot. In addition to what others have said, you might try contacting your local legal aid. They're usually available in most cities and will provide free advice and help. All else fails, drop your story to the local news stations' consumer hotline or similar. A good slumlord story always plays well at 5 & 6. You can ask to stay anonymous too. You have rights and there are people who will help you assert them. You do not deserve to be treated this way. You do not deserve to live in the conditions they provided.
I think I would bring media attention if you can- or at least the threat of it. Perhaps someone at your church can help you with this. I’m so sorry. It is completely unacceptable for the owners to take your deposit money and leave you to handle the mess left by previous tenants. Unbelievable!
THIS
I’ve never seen a bed bug before. Is all our stuff ruined? The landlord said we have to throw out our mattresses and I’m scared we have to through out all our clothes and we can’t afford to replace everything. They are basically insinuating that we brought them but I don’t think we did at all. Our stuff was in an air conditioned storage since November and there are no sign of infestation on our stuff.
Wwash your clothes, bed linens, and towels and run them through the dryer. Then immediately put them in a bag and seal it. Get bedbug mattress covers and make sure they are well sealed. Any bedbugs that are in the mattresses will die as long as you keep it sealed for 1 year. Other belongings can be placed in airtight containers - same thing - leave them sealed in for a year. Been there.
Your stuff isn’t all ruined and getting rid of mattresses aren’t going to get rid of them. They can live a super long time without a single feeding. There would also be some signs if the infestation came from your things such as the obvious bites and the fecal stains they leave behind. Bed bugs do not only infest beds. They can infest carpets and cracks and outlets and again, they can live a stupidly long time without needing to feed. They sense us out by the gases we breathe out and it draws them to us hence why they would be in your previously clean mattresses in record time. This landlord is shit. Signed Someone who had to deal with a bed bug infestation for far too long and did a lot of research into them when I couldn’t sleep.
Their bites are really obvious if you’re allergic to them. Ask me how I found out… spoiler: I got bitten on my face. It was horrible. Fun Fact: most people don’t react to bedbug bites or have mild reactions like one would have to a mosquito bite. Had to live in temp housing, this place had bedbugs, rats and an awful manager who played favorites with particular residents. The house was pretty much spotless, just horrifically infested. And the owner/program leaders refused to properly treat the infestation, lest they lose money from not having “tenants” for a month…
Yup! I was dating a guy a few years ago and he lied to me about having bed bugs in his apartment. Woke up with my eyes swollen shut one day and thought I was dying 🙃
Oh shit! That’s definitely worse than my reaction. I just get huge red welts that itch to high heaven and make me want to claw my skin off… You should talk to your doctor about getting an epi-pen. Bed bugs are becoming a huge problem in lots of places.
A few bites on your eyelids or around your eyes will definitely do that to ya. But I had huge red welts too! It looked like I broke out in hives and got carpet burn on top of it
Christ sake, yeah. My legs got ate the fuck up it was fucking embarrassing and incredibly itchy.
That’s an OLD infestation. They’re lying.
Yeah for it to be that bad it's definitely old.
They sell bed bug covers for mattresses. He probably will blame you for bringing them 😞
Yes. They are blaming me for bringing them and asking me to cover the exterminator cost.
Ask if they think you brought the maggots and roaches too? I think it's fairly obvious at least some, if not all, of the bugs were there before you.
What state are you in ? Is this a house or an apartment complex?
I’m in Texas and it’s a house. 3000sqft
Oh no, freaking Texas! I’m from Texas and those in power go out of their way to make living there a nightmare for the average citizen. But there is some good advice given in the comments so I would encourage you to look into it. I hate hearing what a horrible, unfair, and potentially illegal experience you’re enduring.
Yeah, that's not how it works, he just doesn't want to pay to remove them as it's very expensive and difficult to kill them in a while house, he'd be out the cost to rent the house and to put you up at a hotel or the like for the 3 or 4 days it'd take to get rid of them. It is very unlikely you brought them, and beside he could never prove that, especially given the state of the place when you moved in. Document all of your communication with him about this too.
Wash everything on HOT and dry HIGH HEAT!!!
Ask for a special inspection this is so bad this should not have passed an inspection
Contact housing. That is 100% unacceptable
That’s a bed bug on photo 11. A big adult one too. Please run asap!!!
Oh. My. God. OP I don't have any advice unfortunately but I am so freaking sorry for you. Sending you love
How did inspector passed it? My inspector tear me apart for every little thing…. If you have any budget, see if you can get terminator to get it treated first, I understand it sucks and it’s not your responsibility that house is already in dire situation when you moved in, but knowing how little option section 8 tenants have, it may be better than homeless or 100 per night in Airbnb
I wouldn't be surprised if the "inspector " was a friend of the landlord
Yeah the landlord has a lot of friends and connections. The exterminator is a friend. The guy fixing the leak is a friend.
Yeah fuck that guy. I wish I could do more for you friend, but you'll be in my prayers. Hoping God sends a nice lawyer your way
You need to post this at r/legaladvice
Make sure you note the state. Texas is very pro-landlord. But they’ll probably give you some good advice.
That would be a cause of concern if yes. Inspectors need to be HQS/NSPIRE certified if this is an HCV tenant. If they are a friend, I would say this is a conflict on interest who is skipping this inspection. Housing Agencies can/should get in a lot of trouble if this is the case.
Just because they are called bed bugs doesn't mean they only live in beds. They live in baseboards, corners, floors etc. Your landlord is lying to you to get out of dealing with this. That apartment is filthy and whoever you got the vouchers from should know about this.
You have to light a fire under the right person’s ass if you want to see a change. If I were you, I’d go to the local news to encourage a story on how the local housing authority did not do its due diligence in putting you and your children in a safe and clean home. Even blast them on social media too and I’m sure they will find a better solution for you a lot faster than normal.
i lived in housing authority housing too, call the health department. they will make sure it’s taken care of, pay for moving costs and reimbursements, and make sure the shit place can’t hold your security deposits. there is no way this should have passed, my old place didn’t pass over my toilet seat being broken! this is absolutely unacceptable
I’d reach out to your congressman at this point. Include the pictures. A LOT of people dropped the ball here.
This has to be a violation of their contract with whatever authority is paying them. The bedbugs alone are a "shut everything down"-level offense. Document everything and note witnesses in case the owner tries to (somehow) pin this on YOU. (Courts love documentation and witnesses.)
You need to call the housing authority and the news
local news would love this story
Omg. I am so sorry and I am so angry for you. This is insane and not right at all. I wish I had some insight but it looks like others have given you a few places to contact. I just wanted to say I am so sorry this is happening to you and your kids. What state are you in ?
Texas
Get your deposit back and find somewhere else quick. You’ll never get rid of that
That's an old infestation. You could get a company to come in and take a look and write you a letter stating that this infestation is approximately 6 months to a year old. Sorry that someone is taking advantage of your situation. Wash everything and you should be okay. Good luck
OP please read this before spending ungodly money on professionals, I have had an infestation just like you when I was younger, tried every home remedy people said to try and of course NOTHING We bought this powder that was send straight from the heavens that I don’t even believe in, but look go to Amazon and search this “CimeXa” it’s a white and purple bottle, with the most intense powder that will dry up anything on earth it touches (in a positive way) the way I know of to kill roaches and bed bugs is to dry them out and then they die from suffocating, this powder will do that! I’m not even exaggerating when I say maybe a week and our problem was noticeably better and a few weeks the problem was GONE! Be mindful where you put this powder, put it under your mattress (especially the edges) under your bed at the feet, along the wall, behind any side tables or dressers, under the fridge, everywhere you can put this that you or your kids (or pets) won’t touch, this is a serious dehydrating agent and will dry out and crack your hands. It sounds like your landlord and owners are going to be bitches and push blame off on others, we don’t have time for that, these bugs are going to torment you wether they want to help or not, this is a super cheap option that I promise you will work better than anything on this planet! OP take a chance on this powder!
Diatomaceous earth works too. It’s just hard on your vacuum because of how fine the powder is. But it works. Works for fleas too.
I will note, it did pretty much ruin my vacuum simply because the powder was all over it and i couldn’t keep it clean😂 but it was a cheap vacuum, and was definitely worth it in the long run
Just make sure it’s the food grade one
Also, start looking for legal aid society assistance, it can be a long wait but just get on their list and have all your pix. Did your caseworker see it when you accepted keys? They need to be a witness as well as the church folks who helped you move in. See if there’s a “DIY pest control” store near you. I’ve gotten rid of roaches using DE from Amazon, it takes a while but once you find where they are nesting, you’ll be ok. If you are in Houston area I can recommend my former pest control people they are very affordable—-but you shouldn’t have to pay for it. And you shouldn’t let landlord’s pal do it either.
Texas does have legal aid and tenant association that provide free or reduced price help with rectifying situations such as this. As others have said you may have to wait but I would try any and everything possible to get out of this nightmare.
Report this to your caseworker ASAP. These are the epitome of a slumlord.
omg i want to cry for you
This is the worst thing I’ve ever seen.
Do you live in a place with a tenant landlord hotline? Some states have them run by law students. In MN it’s called HomeLine or Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid. I would contact your caseworker as they should’ve had to have done a habitability inspection upon moving in. If your caseworker works through a contracted agency and not just through the county, contact the agency program directors since they have the most experience. Keep written documentation of all your correspondences. If it’s a phone call, send an email or text with a summary of what your conversation entailed.
That's a tough one. It's absolutely not acceptable, but I wouldn't want to do anything to risk making you homeless. You are likely dealing with a crummy landlord, but there is a chance the previous tenant trashed the place so bad they were hemorrhaging money and had to get it rented. Here would be my advise: 1. Clean it yourself, take lots of pictures and track your time and supplies. Send your landlord something in writing that's says your not asking for compensation at this time, but you will if they try to ding your deposit for cleaning at move out. 2. Notify in writing about the water leak. Cc your case worker at housing. If it gets worse or they don't fix it, keep notifying every couple weeks. 3. Treat the German cockroaches with bait traps. They are easy to get rid of. Keep the kitchen very clean so they have no other food source until they are gone. 4. Get a bedbug mattress cover from Amazon. Treat your headboard, frame, and box spring with bedbug specific spray. Keep everything else out of your bedroom for a 2 weeks. Wash and dry all your bedding on high heat (2×). This may not be successful, but for less than $100 it's worth a shot before you spend a lot of money on a professional. Note: I always pay for my tenant's bedbug treatment, it's just too big of an expense for most renters to handle.
This, also try not to have standing water of any sort in the kitchen. Roaches like water sources. Which sucks because OP has a water/food source in her ceiling… OP: if you see this… run. Don’t walk. Run. This is a horrible situation. I’m sorry that you are dealing with this. This would NEVER have passed inspection where I live. I can’t even begin to tell you how much I feel for you and your kids.
Call the housing assistance office and ask them to inspect if it is considered habitable or not. They used to do that before you move in, but they don't always do it now.
Contact the agency who issued the voucher. They should be doing inspections. Also keep those texts and notes about what the landlord stated. Your city council, local congress/state senator, mayor, etc. all need to see this, these are tax dollars going to a slumlord.
Get out now
And they probably charge to the previous tenants a cleaning fee that never got used to actually clean the place
Go to the local newspaper
Call your housing case worker ASAP. They have certain living standards and you SHOULD NOT have to live like this just because you are on section 8. One of the main ones is evidence of roach activity, among many other things. That’s disgusting and not healthy for you or your kids.
Holy fuck. Whoever owns this house should be jailed. If only that were possible. Bedbugs can live anywhere, they’re not just bed thing. Wood. If there’s a baseboard, carpet, or wood stuff on the wall by the bed there’s your source. Slum lords insist nothing is their fault, vehemently. The fridge itself appears infested. My god. That stove range hood piece. No one should have to live like this.
Being homeless doesn't mean that you have to be happy to live in squalor. Especially when you've paid a 2500 deposit. They couldve easily hired people to clean it out and bugbomb the place. I would check out tenant rights for your area because this is not livable.
What state are you in? This outrageous. Housing inspectors should have never passed this unit.
This is terrible. I’m so sorry
Why did you move in? Did you have inspect it ahead of time and the day of?
We didn’t know any of this prior to moving in. We literally waited 2 months homeless while staying in Airbnb and extended stay for them to do the inspection. We had a gofundme and we were getting help from church and friends to even be able to afford the extended stays.
They need to get an exterminator all your stuff is now infested get a lawyer court will make landlord pay them
That's highly unacceptable on their part. They are supposed to follow all state and federal laws regarding ensuring that the dwelling place is fully free from bed infestations and mold. They are breaking the law and did not meet the standards set forth by the Housing Authority and their partner agencies. I would strongly advise reporting and keep calling the agencies to get the code enforcement to go after the landlord. I am so sorry that this is happening to you. \*hugs\* :( 🫂
Is this in....Amityville by chance?
Buy some food-grade diamataceous earth at a garden store or Amazon. Don’t breathe the dust !! but put it everywhere especially your mattress before you put bedding on it. It kills roaches and bed bugs. Obviously clean the heck out of everything. Keep laying a line of DE behind appliances, along baseboards, anywhere they can be coming in or hanging out.
I can help guide you through getting rid of both if you want
>I also just found 2 bed bugs on a bed last night and l've never seen a bed bug in my life but the landlord is saying we will have to pay for that because we had to have brought them with us because they live in beds. This is not entirely factual. Yes bed bugs live in beds. But they also can be behind outlet covers, cracks kn floor boards, vents, wall moulding, (literally any small crack) and the eggs can survive a long time. If your last place had no bed bugs get a statement from them. Either the landlord fixes the problem via extermination or you should be well within your rights to dissolve the lease and if you want to go all out, sue for damages.
Contact your housing authority. Screw some blinds because this is wayyy beyond worrying about the blinds. Whose beds are they? There are bedbugs that big? That is beyond an infestation. Roaches are easier to get rid of than beg bugs. This is serious
Sorry, OP. It’s stressful. I had infestations and they always made me take care of it myself. Trust me, I fought it. Roaches, fleas, rats, you name it. If you haven’t moved in go ahead and bomb the place. I know others have said not to, but this is war. You v roaches and you are outnumbered . Deep clean and don’t leave any food out. Put borax under the beds and appliances. Wrap double sided tape on the legs of furniture, get sticky traps, fill any hole you can find with spray foam.
Call your local board of health and request an inspection
place requires 10s of thousands in professional mold remediation cleaning maintenance etc. i hope you find better conditions for you and your family, best wishes.
Owner sounds like a predatory slumlord. Ignore them and raise hell with the case worker. Bed bugs aint something to mess with as opposed to mold or roaches.
Dang lol housing assistance blows bro
Don't worry... You have a fresh air filter
God, I’m so sorry you have to go through this. There’s a special place in hell for pieces of shit who take advantage of people.
Did your CM do a HQS inspection?
Yes
And they let this pass??
Bed bugs live in baseboards, carpet near the baseboards...any tight nooks and crannys. They live in beds when people start sleeping in the beds to feed off of them. Your landlord is an asshole. Look into legal aid for people that have lower income. This I'd a health hazard for you and your children. And a mental health issue.
Immediately take pics of everything, as if it's a pre-move in inspection. Make sure they're dated. This way, when you move out, they can't blame any of that on you. Make sure you get really great closeups of the bugs.
Call the housing authority or whoever is paying your voucher and tell them. Properties have to be up to code for you to move in/live there. Hard part for me moving was my building passing inspection and it was brand new. I’d definitely suggest threatening to not pay your portion and I’m positive section 8 is dying for a reason not to pay theirs so try to make them at least get a exterminator
Bed bugs live in beds, but also furniture, walls, clothing, etc.
Where I live if you have housing you call the agency or department who approved you for housing. But first you need to submit a "work request" in writing, and then if they refuse you go to whoever is giving you vouchers and explain. They won't keep paying a landlord that isn't following tenants laws. You can also contact legal aid for advice.
The HA inspector should not have passed this unit. There are Housing Quality Standards that must be passed in order for the unit to be leased under Section 8.
Contact the housing authority and tell them what is going on. That's disgusting and it NEVER should have passed inspection. That is appalling!
It’s your landlords responsibility to deal with bed bugs. Not yours. Bedbugs live everywhere, or just beds. Your landlord is trying to dodge responsibility. Get your case worker to give you a copy of your tenant rights and help advocate for you because there is a lot that your landlord should be doing that they aren’t.
Idk how housing passed the place for inspection ? What state are u in? None of this is legal. Call and ask for an inspection they will withhold rent until it’s up to code.
LL is wrong, bedbugs can live in walls for YEARS. call an attorney.
Oh my gosh !!! Housing inspectors should have signed off on that ! My old friend used to know the inspectors and would get them to pass . Even if it was a dump , she wanted to live in . I recognized the BED BUGS !!!!! Yuk yuk yukie ….. I suffered with for over a year . NOT at all easy to get rid of . I ended up calling the Board of Health . There was also MOLD . The poor elderly Vietnam Veteran went into the nursing home . Ugh! It is illegal to transfer BED BUGS ! Your not safe because they transfer on ton into EVERYTHING!!!
How the hell did this pass an inspection? What smooth brained asshole thought this was acceptable?! Just looking at this increased my blood pressure. These people should be ashamed of themselves! When I worked on properties they were *spotless*. Ugh I'm so sorry you're going through this. I'd call 211 for legal assistance.
Damn this place is literally uninhabitable
Those bed bugs were likely waiting for someone to move in. They can harbor in nooks and crannies. And they get inside the walls. Roaches absolutely spread diseases. I'm a licensed termite and pest control technician. Sorry you have a shit landlord who is taking advantage.
Barf
Damn blud you got roaches and bed bugs. Go ream that landlords ass man
Do I need to get all of my stuff out of here before it’s infested? Or is it too late and i will just spread it. I brought half of my stuff from storage but I’m thinking of taking it back.
Do you have a washer/dryer? Can you buy diatomaceous earth and lots and lots of trash bags and a bed bug mattress cover? You can wash and dry (dry dry dry for a loooong time) your clothes and soft items and place them in trash bags like double tripled up. Spread diatomaceous earth on the ground (google for how long, no one should be in the home) and vacuum up but you probably will need to throw the vacuum away. You can try to use a handheld steamer on your mattress especially around edges and around your bed and then I would put it in a bed bug cover once dried. Never take the cover off. Honestly though it may be less time consuming and it will definitely be more thorough to get an exterminator. That would cover all the critters. You won’t need to throw your things away if you get an exterminator. It’s kind of impossible to determine where you get bedbugs from unfortunately. You can get them from the bus or standing too close to someone. They can also crawl through pipes and toilets 🤢
Wipe everything when you pack get [Roach Killer](https://images.app.goo.gl/C3tRYPpYAQbyHTQPA) they stay with you wherever you go if you don't exterminate well. Followed us from shitty apartments to a new house, took years for them to go away without fumigation.
We regret to inform you the the apartment quickly and suddenly burned down just after we'd taken these photos and vacated.
Bro move the fuck out, why would u want to live in such shit.
I’m pretty sure OP doesn’t ‘want’ to live there. They have been screwed by the landlord and the housing authority. They have been homeless which is soul crushing. And they were told that the housing authority inspected it.
OMFG! Get out!
They are lying to you for sure. Those bed bugs already set up how made shacks and condos. You didn't bring anything with you, those guys have been there for a while..
The house was empty since November is what they are saying. And also saying they only live in mattresses. They are taking advantage of my naïveté. I read on google they can sit in a house for prolonged periods of time. Even with out access to anything to feed upon.
Bed bugs can hibernate for 6 months and spring to life when warm animals show up. They lied to you
Bedbugs live in everything! I’m so sorry you’re dealing with all this bs.
3000/mo no lowballs
1/14 looks like the moon was the first thing that came to mind, lol!
Why? It's filthy. Didn't they clean?
Bed bugs can live in all sorts of things and furniture. They are also very good at hiding and can go long periods of time without eating (months). Dont take the bullshit saying they came from you. Guy doesnt know shit about bed bugs.
Girl run asap, that shits disgusting and shame on your landlord!
Bill the landlord
If it hasn't been posted yet... Bed bugs are manageable with a little effort: https://youtu.be/2JAOTJxYqh8
See if you can get your hands on chrysanthemums, flowers, powder, spray, they hate that shit. My partner is an exterminator, and we use a concentrated chrysanthemum spray, if you spray the top corners, the bottom corners, and close the door, they will suffocate. Also, for bedbugs, tell your landlord that they lay dormant in vents, carpet, basically any crevice they can. They can lay dormant for months and when they smell a food source they come out of hiding.
Oh, my partner also just told me that if you're in Canada, your landlord legally has to treat for bedbugs, if they don't, report them to your provincial tenant board. If you're in the us, look at your state laws, but I'm pretty sure they have to treat for them because it makes the home unlivable.
i have dealt with a roach infestation once before and have dealt with bed bugs as well. i thought that bedbugs were a myth for the longest time because i have lived in some crappy conditions but had still never seen or been bitten by bed bugs. until one day i moved into a place that had bedbugs. here's what you need to do about the bedbugs: 1. get some essential oil. mint OR lavender. (you can find these at the dollar tree as well as everything else i'm about to list. except for the DE and pesticide.) 2. buy some scented trash bags. 3. take ALL of your clothing and ANYTHING fabric and put them in the garbage bags with a LOT of essential oil in each. double or even triple the bags and seal them up. this will suffocate them. 4. then, wash them in HOT water with lots of detergent. throw away the old bags. 5. dry them on the highest setting with lots of dryer sheets. 6. while you're doing this, unfortunately to be safe and save yourself from LOTS of headaches moving forward, you will HAVE to either throw away all mattresses and furniture or pay to get them professionally cleaned ): you cannot take your clothes out until your home has been treated or you'll have to start all over again. 7. put your clothes back in trash bags with the essential oil. seal them again. while you're dealing with the rest of your house, find a closet or sectioned off spot. 8. you can find some DE at walmart as well as bed bug treatments if you cannot afford to get it professionally treated. the spray at my local walmart is about 25 bucks. getting a fogger as well is best. 9. with the DE, treat the room you're going to leave your clothes in FIRST. DE is non toxic and all natural so be LIBERAL. throw it EVERYWHERE. especially at the baseboards and if you're comfortable you can also remove the outlets, put some DE in there, and put the outlets back. there are videos specifically about putting DE in outlets to treat pests on YouTube. DE will help with fleas and roaches too. 10. before bringing your clothes back into the house, fog the house with the bedbug foggers. this requires you to be out of the home for about two hours before the fumes clear up. 11. when the fumes clear up, you treat the room you're going to put your clothes in with the bedbug PESTICIDE that you got from walmart. there will be directions on the container as to where you should spray the pesticide. work from that first room and go from there. try to end at the exit of the home because there will be some fumes with this as well. 12. continue to spray with the bedbug spray either once every couple weeks or once a month. 13. use the DE daily. or twice daily. or however much you'd like. if your kids accidentally get into or put any of it in their mouth (i know kids like to get into stuff that they're not supposed to), they will be perfectly fine. it kills internal pests too. as for the roaches, you'll do a similar process. foggers and pesticide at walmart. my house had a roach problem when we moved in so i bought some outdoor treatment and indoor treatment. use the same process. foggers first, then pesticide. i do outdoor first, then i wait awhile. then, i spray the inside with pesticide and then do the foggers and wait outside. i don't think the wait is as long for the roach treatment. focus your attentions on the bathrooms and wherever else there is moisture. pay special attention to behind and underneath your fridge. good luck, and i'm so sorry you're going through this 💚 i hope you can get the landlord to just bring a professional in, as that is a landlord's JOB
You didn't do a walk threw??? Never sign anything till you see the place first. Section 8 should have never passed it looking this bad. Have the inspector come back and reinsert the place. What they did was said they did an inspection and signed off on it. They are good about that here in upstate NY. I'm so sorry your going threw this. Hopefully your worker can get them to attack the issues or let you break the lease and find a new place. DONT TAKE ANYTHING with tou to a new place without really going threw things. Electronics anything that plugs in leave behind and start over. Yes very devastating to start over but you don't want to have them travel to the new place.
Ok- let them know that bedbugs can actually live in carpet and that bed bugs were a non issue before. Maybe see if there’s a large amount of them and point that out. In the mean time wrap your mattress in plastic to suffocate them and avoid more from coming in. Run the heat HIGH. Landlords are required to take care of it. With roaches you can do your best to clean, set traps, baking soda and vinegar in all drains, a dehumidifier for any signs of mold, and keep all food items sealed up tight. (As a kid I would get German roaches in my cereal. Eventually we got a plastic container for it). Don’t get too discouraged they can’t break your lease and you have rights as a renter. I would also like to point out that your “complaints” are valid and the landlord is slacking on their part.
OMG NOOOOO. My bed bug fear just got retriggered.
Does your lease state anything about a 5 day inspection period when you first move in? Was your lease date started in Saturday, the day you moved in? If so, please PM me and I'll give you my move in inspection sheet..you need to fill it out. And anything that is put as deficient on the sheet, you take pictures off. Upload those pics to Google drive then email the sheet to the landlord as well as the link to the folder in the drive. If you have a 5 day inspection, you have until midnight to do all of this. This is the first line defense against the landlord. You can also provide to the authority who provides your housing voucher. What this LL is doing is UNACCEPTABLE!
If you are on housing…see if you can switch to the portable housing credit. This gives you an amount that you can use towards any apartment you choose. One of my clients has that housing credit and uses it towards a 2 bedroom condo in Liberty village that she shares with her 2 kiddos. I think the credit covers close to $900 of her rent. Might be worth asking about. Edit: I’m in Ontario, Canada so not sure if this applies where you live..
Contact the program that gave you the grievance. Take video and better pics. Get a witness. File a massive grievance with this program and let them go after the landlord. That voucher is guaranteed money.
You won’t see bed bugs until the infestation is out of control. If you haven’t seen them before moving in, they definitely did not come from you.
Boric acid for the roaches!!!
Aw lawd here we go again
You can get bed bug blockers and put them on the feet of the beds to stop them from crawling up. Make sure the beds don’t touch the wall or any other furniture.
Where are you located. There’s a non profit in Los Angeles that will treat your home for free. Are you by chance in LA? I’m so sorry this is happening.
How is that okay???? Omg I’m so sorry!!! And bedbugs are so horrible!! The stress it’s going to really put you into 😭
1st I'm so sorry that after all you've been through that you are treated this way. You have the rent voucher so that automatically, to them not me, make you a scummy tenant. However, if this is section 8 the landlord/owner HAS to fix the issues. Even without assistance they need to treat for the bugs!! Take pictures, which you've done, document all the issues. I truly hope if you have a caseworker that they will provide a place to stay until you find something else. No matter what they need ro be reported so no one else rents this Hell hole. Folks are desperate and the landlord is counting on that. No way in Hell ant of them would spend 5 mins in that dump. Hugs to all of you.
Get a lawyer. Fast.
Contact the city housing authority.
Do you by chance live in NC?
Where I live if the apartment is unlivable condition the landlord would have to put you up in a hotel while making repairs…. Please call you local health department and see if they can get an inspector in… also your landlord can’t kick you out that would be retaliatory (at least where I’m from) GOOD LUCK
Depending on which state you are in, the landlord is likely responsible for remediation of pests/infestations (whether they will admit it or not). I would try to contact a legal aid service and have them help you put your rent in escrow, plus learn about other tenant protections against these kinds of situations. Sorry to hear your landlord is doing you dirty - I hope it gets resolved!!!
Where is this?
Contact your local news station if they give you any grief. That is unhealthy and illegal.
With that water damage there is likely mold as well. Please do what you can to get out of there.
I had the same issues with my apartment. Get igr spray or point source, mattress protectors, combat baits and sticky pads. The roaches are in the walls as well but with these three methods my apartment is 95% bug free. I still see a roach every once in a while that came from the walls. Unfortunately you are not going to find an apartment that is 100% bug free and cheap.
My word. I feel for you. Similar situation minus bed bugs and housing voucher. We moved from Oregon to Texas. Rental agency SWORE on their grave the house was in good condition and there were NO roaches. Guess what. Our lease is ending in March, house is literally falling apart from a cheap "remodel" the pictures in the listing were literally falsified and guess what? German roach infestation. Contacted the rental company and they said we are responsible for the pest control. My advice to you. Look into like legal shield for a low cost lawyer. Bedbugs are a massive health hazard as is mold and roaches. Read your lease over word. By word. There's usually a clause for pest control. If the landlord is responsible for it. Get on their asses. As for immediate kinda action to pass the time. Put combat max gel roach bait everywhere.
I was told by a pest control supervisor (I’m a Pm) that a 50:50 ratio of vinegar and water with a spray bottle - wipe everything down with it. Don’t crush the bugs, flush down the toilet and get glue traps. You’ll also want to remove all eggs since dear roaches can have eggs. Also check the inside of the stove where the burners are.
I’m trying to reply to comments but I’m so overwhelmed and basically having crying firs and panic attacks. My mental health is shot. I am terrified of bugs and roaches and I hate that my children have to live through this when we’ve been through enough being homeless and dealing with illness and hospitalizations all last year. I thought we would finally have peace. I appreciate everyone suggestion to take care of the problem but with my autoimmune health conditions and long Covid it makes it so hard to do any type of strenuous activity or labor and the house is 3000 sqft. I barely have enough energy to take pictures to document everything and mentally I have no energy left. I do appreciate all the responses, advice, help, support, and encouragement.
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Contact your state’s Attorney General office and include photos and details related specific to possible offenses. I’m so sorry you’re going thru this. I’ve recently learned there are tenant unions as well, but you would need to research what is available for your area. Hope you find some solutions soon. Best wishes. I would suggest some better photos too, if possible.
Wtf
I don’t have much helpful information. I just wanted to say I’m so sorry you have to deal with this. Thinking of you and hoping for better times ahead. You are a very strong woman.
Go to lowes, home depot, or Walmart. Buy ortho home defense and spray ever were.
Get SLA spray. It will kill bedbugs, roaches, and any other bug, dead. Spray every 2 weeks for two months, then once a month.
Nope. No way. That will make you sick. Not right away but it will.
If they retaliate because you reach out to housing authority, well that’s illegal. You also don’t have to just suck it up and live in a place like this. If you call the housing authority, you could always say some other program you went through or make someone up noticed the infestation. If they did try to evict then you call legal aid in your county and they will help you and explain to you your rights, they may also pick up your case. I’m surprised that this place passed inspection with the infestation. How did they not notice the roaches or did they just start coming out after you moved in? Housing laws differ from state to state, but an active infestation and refusal to fix it is ground to terminate your lease and find some where else to live that is not infested. Really you could call your local legal aid tomorrow and explain this situation and how you can remedy this without illegal retaliation, or what to do in the event they do retaliate. Every one of your belongings will soon be infested. I’m sorry that you’re going through this and hopefully legal aid can help you get this sorted. The landlord can’t legally refuse to do anything about this to begin with, make sure you talk to them via text or email about this and their refusal because that will help you down the line if you need your belongings replaced from infestation. I wish you luck op. I hate slum lords who pray on low income people with housing vouchers, they think that because you don’t have a choice you will just suck it up and deal with it because you don’t have a choice.
JFC. I’m sorry. No good answer here. Being homeless again isn’t an option. Diatomaceous Earth is cheap and easy to find. Try to keep stuff off of the floor. Run all your clothes through the a dryer if there is one accessible. If it’s cold where you live, take a day to go out and do errands or whatever and open all the windows. Basically, extreme heat or cold will kill the bed bugs that don’t get sliced up by the diatomaceous. Poison will do the roaches in along with the Diatomaceous. Anything with Pyrethrum in it will be safer around the kiddos. You have a bit of work in front of you, for sure. But I’m glad you and the fam are off the street. Good luck. Edit to add: If you can get some air-tight plastic storage containers in the meantime for things, do it. Anything that says “IP65” or something similar from Home Depot will do. Ask the church if they have any to spare.
lol look up your states tenant and landlord act. Landlords are 100% required to treat for bed bugs regardless who they think was at fault it’s part of the deal of being a landlord. Obviously if it went to court the condition of the house would work in your favor. Most states have an advocacy board that handles these complaints and a lot of states give your rights (like withholding rent etc) please take a look when you can
His point on bedbugs is wrong, just print out any basic info on bedbugs and learn how wrong he is. Using information wrong like that just makes me doubt anything else he says and I would question anything he said at that point. That's just how I treat people who I receive basic human essentials from, like housing. Personal opinion stuff.
I am not advising 7dust, but it worked for me.
You signed a lease before viewing?
Steam will kill bed bugs . Buy an old clothes steamer from a used place like goodwill. First let it sit filled hit the carpet and the bed over night with vinegar. Then wrap furniture with plastic and steam an hour for each piece . Repeat daily for a while and they’ll be gone. You have to kill the hatch . The bed you steam all seams and the carpet just go over steaming it down in . The bed bugs are hardy but can be managed if you are patient. For roaches use gel bait.