Know your Rights
Topics to Discuss with Your Future Landlord
- Utilities: Are they included in rent? If not, what is the estimated monthly cost?
- Method of Payment: Is one check expected from the entire group or do individuals pay their share separately?
- Maintenance: Who do I contact in case of regular maintenance or a maintenance emergency?
- Security: Is there security in the building/area? Are there outdoor cameras? Sufficient lighting?
- Parking: Is parking provided or do I park on the street? Do I need a city permit? *You may also register your car with the University for parking.
- Renewal: When will we discuss renewal of this lease for the following year? If I do not renew, what do you need from me when I leave?
Discuss with your landlord local zoning laws and what is and is not permitted (i.e. number of allowable tenants, pets, etc.)
Landlords Have Responsibilities
Per the Connecticut Judicial Branch Superior Court, the landlord must:
- Clean communal areas (hallways, stairs, yards, entryways)
- Provide a clean apartment when the tenant moves in
- Keep hallways and entryways well lit
- Keep plumbing and heating systems working (both hot and cold running water)
In addition, the following may be required by state and local housing, health, fire, and environmental codes and regulations:
- Correctly repaired and safe stairways, porches, floors, ceiling, and walls
- Good locks on the doors of the apartment
- Safe fire exits from the building
- Two electrical outlets in each room
- Viewing devices on doors that open onto a hallway (in some communities)
- Extermination service if the apartment is infested with pests or rodents
- A working smoke detector (carbon monoxide detector)
- Appropriate receptacles for the removal of waste items, including providing for the separation of recyclable items from other solid waste
- Compliance with regulations regarding weatherization standards and procedures (for properties participating in the rental assistance program)
- A non-electronic option for tenants to pay rent (for rental agreements or leases executed on or after October 1, 2013)
- Landlords should check with the appropriate state and local agencies to see what applies to their properties.
Communicating with Your Landlord
Your need repairs:
What does Connecticut law say about repairs?
The law says your landlord must:
- make your apartment clean and safe when you move in
- make sure your apartment can get electricity, heat, and hot/running water
- keep the apartment in good condition while you live there
Your landlord must fix problems like:
- peeling paint, broken windows, or mold
- plumbing, electrical, or heating systems that do not work properly
- rats, roaches, bedbugs, and other pests
- a broken smoke detector (or no smoke detector)
You can sue if your landlord does not make needed repairs.
If repairs are not made:
What can I do if my landlord will not make repairs?
Step 1: Ask your landlord to make repairs.
If the repairs are urgent, call the landlord and tell them right away. Ask when they are coming to make these urgent repairs. Some examples of urgent repairs are:
- flooding or leaking water
- a broken window or a door that will not open or close
It is best to also ask in writing for repairs to be made. Keep copies of any letters, emails, or text messages that you send. If you see the landlord, ask about the status of your request and make a note in your calendar about what the landlord told you.
If your landlord does not make repairs when you ask, go to Step 2.
Step 2: Make a complaint to the code enforcement office or health department of the city or town where you live.
Call 2-1-1 or go to www.211ct.org to get the phone number for the code enforcement office in your town. It is also possible that the health department in your town enforces the housing or building code. Call and tell them you want to file a complaint and ask to have someone inspect your apartment. Make sure to write down the day you called and the name of the person you spoke to.
Make every effort to be home when the inspector comes to your apartment.
Write down the inspector's name.
Show the inspector everything that needs to be fixed.
Ask when you can get a copy of their report.
Go to the inspector’s office and get a copy of the report.
If you have not heard from the landlord about making the repairs or seen any changes in three weeks, go to Step 3.
Step 3: Start a lawsuit in court
You can start your lawsuit if your landlord does not fix the problems within 21 days after you filed the complaint with the code enforcement office or health department in your town or city. Remember: You cannot start a court case without first having an inspection (step 2). This is sometimes called a Payment into Court Action or PICA.
The court can order the landlord to make the repairs. You will pay the rent you would have given the landlord to the court clerk instead. You might also get some of your rent money back because the landlord did not make the repairs on time.
If think your landlord may try to evict you, start your case before you get eviction papers. If you already received eviction papers, it may be too late to start your case. Here are some things you can do:
Call your local Code Enforcement Office right away and ask for an inspection.
Talk to a lawyer.
Do not give up. The repairs needed may help you win the eviction case. You can use the landlord’s failure to make repairs as a defense in the eviction case against you.
Rent Increases
Connecticut law does not currently permit municipalities to adopt rent control ordinances; it does authorize municipalities (and require those with a population of at least 25,000) to establish fair rent commissions to “control and eliminate excessive rental charges” (CGS §§ 7-148b to 7148g). The law also empowers these commissions to enforce provisions of landlord-tenant statutes that, among other things, generally prohibit landlords from increasing rent as a retaliatory action (CGS §§ 47a-20 & 47a-20a).
Additionally, a 2024 law requires landlords to give residential tenants (1) at least 45 days’ written notice of proposed rent increases, or (2) for those with lease terms of one month or less, an amount of notice that equals the full length of the lease (PA 24-143, §§ 16 & 17). Certain protected tenants who live in a municipality without a fair rent commission may bring action in Superior Court to contest an excessive rent increase or proposed increase (CGS § 47a-23c(c)). The tenants protected by this law are generally those who (1) live in a building with at least five separate units and (2) are age 62 or older or have a disability. By law, landlords must notify certain tenants of this protection (CGS § 47a-23c(e), as amended by PA 23-207, § 10).
Access to the Premises
A landlord must always have access to the premises. In emergency situations the landlord can enter without giving notice. For routine inspections/repairs or showing apartment after tenant has given notice of lease termination, a fair lease will require the landlord to give 24 hours’ notice. Many leases, however, ask the tenant to allow access to the premises during reasonable hours on business days. If you sign such a lease, this is what you will have to do. If you, however, feel your right to privacy is violated, you should address this problem in writing and ask for notification. Your rights to privacy and quiet enjoyment supersede any terms of the lease.
Change in Management/Sale of Property
In case of sale of the premises or change in management, your rights to continue the lease are protected by law and by a fair lease. Do not let yourself be pressured into signing new terms with the new owner/manager. Your lease should remain valid until it comes up for renewal. You must be notified in writing about the change in ownership and instructed as to who and how to pay your rent. Your previous landlord must transfer your security deposit to the new owner. The right to continue a lease in case of sale of premises is a waivable right and some leases contain a subordination clause, according to which the new owner can terminate lease or change terms. No such termination is allowed without the notice indicated in the lease.