Landlord Won't Make Repairs in Missouri: What Can I Do?

What your landlord has to fix

1. 1

   Missouri law uses the word nuisance for a serious problem with a rental home that breaks your city's building or housing code. It counts as a nuisance if a code official reasonably believes the problem threatens public health, safety, or well-being.

   Source:

   1. § 441.500(13), Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Law.
   Tip.

   Take photos of each problem, with the date. Take more if it gets worse.

   Tip.

   If you can pay for it, a private home inspector can check the problems. Their written report and photos help show the conditions.

Get your home inspected

2. 2

   Your city or county has an office that checks if landlords follow the housing code. This office is called the code enforcement agency.

   Source:

   1. § 441.500(3), Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Law.
   Think before you call an inspector.

   You or a neighbor can ask the city to send a code inspector. Be careful: if the home is in very bad shape, the inspector can condemn it (say no one may live there). Then everyone must move out, you too, sometimes on short notice. Think about where you would go before you call.

   From City of Kansas City, Missouri Neighborhoods and Housing Services.

If it is still not fixed

3. 3

   Missouri has a law that lets you pay for repairs yourself and take the cost off your rent. It only helps you if you have legally lived in the rental home for 6 months in a row. You must have paid all your rent and other charges during that time. You also must not have gotten a written notice from your landlord about breaking a lease rule or house rule that you never fixed.

   Sources:

   1. Our editorial rules.
   2. § 441.234.1, Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Law.
   Your landlord can take you to court.

   If you hold back rent, pay less, or take repair costs out of your rent, your landlord can file an eviction case for unpaid rent. If the judge rules for your landlord, you can owe the rent and court costs and have to move out. Your proof matters. Even a case you win can show up when you apply for a new place. Get legal help first.

   Tip.

   Keep a copy of every letter you give your landlord, and keep your mail receipt. Save the texts and emails you send your landlord, and any replies.

4. 4

   Missouri has a law on fixing a problem yourself and taking the cost off your rent. It applies when a problem makes your home less fit to live in, less clean, or less secure. The problem must also break your city's housing or building code. The reasonable cost to fix it must be less than $300 or half your rent for one rent period, whichever is more. But the cost can never be more than one month's rent. For example, if your rent is $800 a month, half of that is $400, which is more than $300, so your limit is $400.

   Sources:

   1. Our editorial rules.
   2. § 441.234.2, Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Law.
5. 5

   Before you fix the problem, tell your landlord in writing that you plan to fix it and take the cost off your rent. Your landlord then has 14 days from that notice to fix the problem. If it is an emergency, your landlord must fix it as quickly as the emergency requires.

   Sources:

   1. Our editorial rules.
   2. § 441.234.2, Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Law.
6. 6

   If your landlord does not fix the problem in time, you can pay to have it fixed by a skilled worker. Give your landlord an itemized (detailed) list of the costs, with your receipts. Then take the actual, reasonable cost off your rent, up to the legal limit. If you take off too much or skip a step, your landlord could say you owe unpaid rent and try to evict you. Keep every receipt and notice.

   Sources:

   1. Our editorial rules.
   2. § 441.234.2, Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Law.
7. 7

   Your landlord can dispute the need for the repair by giving you a written statement about it within the 14-day notice period. If your landlord does this, you cannot take the cost off your rent right away. You must first get a written certification (an official statement) saying the problem breaks the housing or building code. You get this certification from your city, county, or other local government office.

   Sources:

   1. Our editorial rules.
   2. § 441.234.2, Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Law.
8. 8

   Missouri has a law on fixing a problem yourself and taking the cost off your rent. You cannot use it if you, a family member, or a guest you allowed in caused the problem on purpose or carelessly. Under that same law, you cannot take more than one month's rent total off your rent in any 12-month period.

   Sources:

   1. Our editorial rules.
   2. § 441.234.3, Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Law.
9. 9

   Your city, county, a nonprofit housing group, or a recognized neighborhood association can ask a court to appoint a receiver. A receiver is a person or company the court puts in charge of fixing the building. This applies when the building's problems break the housing or building code and threaten public health, safety, or well-being.

   Source:

   1. § 441.510.1, Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Law.
10. 10

    If a court appoints a receiver for your building, you must pay your rent to that receiver instead of your landlord. Paying the receiver this way is a legal defense against an eviction case. It only covers rent that came due after the court's order.

    Sources:

    1. § 441.570, Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Law.
    2. § 441.580, Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Law.

Moving out

11. 11

    Moving out because of repair problems is risky. If a court later decides you had no legal reason to leave, you could still owe rent for the rest of your lease.

    Source:

    1. Our editorial rules.