Credit for uninhabitable days

[Michael Healy]

My tenant’s shower was leaking into another apartment and needed to be completely gutted and rebuilt because of mold. She has been staying with her parents while the work is being completed She is requesting a credit on rent for each day the short is non- functional. I have a fairly tight paragraph in my leases about rental insurance to cover loss of use, so I’m not planning to grant a credit but given that there are no expenses associated with her loss of use what would happen in this situation? How would you handle?

[Theresa Harris]

Whether or not she caused the problem is a matter for insurance.  The fact that she couldn't live in the house because the bathroom was being gutted and there was mold abatement, I would credit her for those days regardless if she had expenses or not.  She's paying to live in the house and the house wasn't habitable.  If you rent a car for a month, but it was in the repair shop for a week, would you expect to pay for that week?