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Leasing Agent lied about flex wall

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Leasing Agent lied about flex wall

Postby asdfasdfasdf222 » Fri Jul 08, 2016 7:16 pm

My apartment is advertised as a flex, my roommate and I signed the lease because the broker told us we could build a wall. We signed the lease for July. The apartment is still advertised online as a flex or 2 bedroom if you google for it. We also heard the super tell us the plumbing is illegal. Now they are telling us we can't build a flex wall. If you google the address of our apartment, it's still advertised as allowing to have a wall

We would like to hire a lawyer, but not sure what our rights are in this case. We want a wall, or to break the lease.
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Re: Leasing Agent lied about flex wall

Postby TenantNet » Fri Jul 08, 2016 7:26 pm

What does the lease say about the flex wall? Flex can mean different things to different people, and in some cases can be illegal (for very good reason - your safety). A room divider is one thing, and actual wall is something else and it can nullify fire egress requirements. Two fire fighters died in the Bronx a few years back because an illegal room division. See http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/30/nyregion/30fire.html

You might have grounds to sue the broker, but I don't know about the landlord. As for plumbing, that's the LL's responsibility, not yours.
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Re: Leasing Agent lied about flex wall

Postby asdfasdfasdf222 » Fri Jul 08, 2016 7:34 pm

There is no mention of flex or temperary walls in the lease, as far as i can tell
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Re: Leasing Agent lied about flex wall

Postby TenantNet » Fri Jul 08, 2016 7:42 pm

That's why you never trust a broker. They have no clue what the building has or doesn't have and are more than willing to misrepresent things. Look, you may - or may not - be able to put in a wall of your choosing. But if that's not tenable, then you may have to get the LL to agree to end the lease* And perhaps you might have grounds to go after the broker for your costs and his misrepresentations. I'm assuming you can prove all that happened and of course, you did record your conversations with the broker, didn't you? :)

If the LL agrees to end the lease, get it in writing and make sure he acknowledges your turning possession back to him.

* If the LL refuses to end the lease, you might be able to a) sue the LL for that, or b) just leave. If the latter, then you take the chance the LL would come after you for the rent for the term of the lease.
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Re: Leasing Agent lied about flex wall

Postby asdfasdfasdf222 » Fri Jul 08, 2016 11:24 pm

I'm not 100% certain, but the leasing agent might work for the landlord. It was a no fee apartment. We don't really have anything in writing. There are countless listings that i have archived for the unit which is advertised as a 2 bedroom outright, i doubt that is admissible in court though unfortunately. All the promises were made to us verbally.

Either way, I will be getting a lawyer for a consultation, see if there is anything we can do. Not sure how to find the best one. Other cities I have lived had pro-bono lawyers through tenant rights organizations.
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Re: Leasing Agent lied about flex wall

Postby TenantNet » Sat Jul 09, 2016 1:02 am

Pro Bono is usually available through Legal Aid and Legal Services, but it's limited to those most in need and in dire threat of eviction. Seriously, a flex wall is not an issue where you will find free legal representation. There are good tenant attorneys who advertise in this site, but they are in private practice.
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Re: Leasing Agent lied about flex wall

Postby BubbaJoe123 » Mon Jul 11, 2016 7:28 am

ajbeach2 wrote:My apartment is advertised as a flex, my roommate and I signed the lease because the broker told us we could build a wall. We signed the lease for July. The apartment is still advertised online as a flex or 2 bedroom if you google for it. We also heard the super tell us the plumbing is illegal. Now they are telling us we can't build a flex wall. If you google the address of our apartment, it's still advertised as allowing to have a wall

We would like to hire a lawyer, but not sure what our rights are in this case. We want a wall, or to break the lease.


Couple of key issues here:

1. When you say the broker "told us we could build a wall," do you have this in writing or recorded? If so, then you have a case against the broker for material misrepresentation of the property, unless there's something in the lease saying no flex walls.

2. Is the leasing agent an employee of the management company and/or owner of the building? If so, then you have a case against the management company and/or owner of the building.

Get a consultation with a tenant lawyer, might cost you a couple of hundred bucks, but would give you a good idea what the best path forward will be, and cheap compared to being stuck in an apartment that isn't tenable for you.
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