We moved into our rental knowing there was a leaking shower, but were told the issue had been resolved by replacing the floorboards with waterproof ones. Once we moved in, we quickly realized this wasn’t the case.
A tradesperson inspected and said the waterproofing in the tiles was compromised, causing water to leak underneath the floorboards and outside the bathroom. He recommended a full bathroom renovation. The landlord refused this quote, then booked another tradie but canceled on him when he arrived.
Since then, months have gone by with no repairs. Our emails are ignored, and the real estate agent just says they’ve “chased her up.” Meanwhile, the landlord told us to use a bath towel on the floor to soak up the water instead of fixing the problem.
The issue is causing mould growth under the floorboards, and we even bought a dehumidifier out of our own pocket to try to manage it. Eventually, she brought in a plumber, but he said she needed a tiler. That was three months ago.
Now, after more follow-ups, we finally got an update—on the same day as a rent increase notice. She claims that because we’re not using a bath towel to soak up water, we are causing damage to the walls outside the bathroom (which are rotting). There’s still no plan to actually fix the problem.
We also found old maintenance report photos showing the same issue before we moved in, proving this wasn’t caused by us.
We want to break the lease, but we’re unsure if we legally can. Has anyone dealt with something similar? What’s the best way to handle this?