u/placebot4384

[US-MO]

Eight years in this apartment, older building, still has the old screw-in fuse panel instead of breakers. Whoever wired it put about three-quarters of the unit, the three main rooms plus both AC units, on a single 20 amp fuse. So it blows a lot. Always has. I’d made peace with it.

Last year it blew when I had both AC’s on and turned on the microwave, and when I pulled the fuse, both the fuse and the socket behind it were visibly burned. Not warm, burned. I reported it in writing. The maintenance guy came, put in a new fuse, and left. Nobody looked at the socket. Nobody looked at the wiring. New fuse, problem “solved.”

This week it came back, worse. It’s now blowing under normal everyday use, and the replacement fuse gets hot to the touch with just one AC running. I pulled it and the metal contact inside the socket is corroded and pitted. I don’t have an electrical license but I’ve seen enough to know a burnt, high-resistance connection when it’s cooking a fuse in front of me.

So I emailed the owner, attached photos, and asked for a licensed electrician to actually inspect the socket and wiring instead of swapping another fuse. His reply was one email that managed to say all of the following: that it’s already been “repaired,” that I’m the only tenant with this problem so I must be overloading the circuit, that I should “move out if there isn’t enough electricity for my needs,” and that I’m “free to terminate at any time.” He did, to his credit, agree to send a real electrician Monday. But the message was unmistakable, he’d rather I leave than fix it.

And here’s the part that reframes the whole thing. My lease happens to be up at the end of next month, and they just sent a renewal offer. Another twelve months, at a higher rent, to keep living in the unit with the fuse that overheats.

I’m fairly sure I know what’s happening. They’ve been renovating and re-renting the other units at higher rates, and I’m the long-term tenant sitting in an under-market apartment they’d rather turn over. That explains both things at once: why nobody will spend money properly fixing my wiring, and why the tone is suddenly “have you considered moving.” It’s not a maintenance problem and a lease problem. It’s one landlord who wants the unit back, and the hazard is just something he’d rather I leave over than repair.

The thing is, I’m house hunting anyway. I do want to go. I just need a couple of months to actually buy a place instead of getting forced into a short-term rental in between. So I want to ask for month-to-month, or a short two-to-three month extension, at my current rent, without accidentally blowing up the renewal offer and getting hit with “twelve months or out by [date].” Complicating it, my lease has a double-rent holdover clause, so I know I can’t just overstay the end date and figure it out later.

What I’m trying to figure out:

Is it worth pressing the safety issue, documenting the corroded socket, and escalating to city code enforcement if they try another fuse swap instead of a real fix, even though it probably makes the landlord want me out faster? Or am I creating friction for nothing since I’m leaving regardless?

How do I ask for the short-term/month-to-month arrangement without handing him the excuse to just end it? We actually want the same outcome, me gone, we just disagree on the timing, and on whether I should have functioning electricity while I’m still here.

Would especially appreciate hearing from anyone who’s dealt with code enforcement on an electrical hazard, or negotiated an exit with a landlord who clearly wanted their unit back.

[US-MO]

Eight years in this apartment, older building, still has the old screw-in fuse panel instead of breakers. Whoever wired it put about three-quarters of the unit, the three main rooms plus both AC units, on a single 20 amp fuse. So it blows a lot. Always has. I’d made peace with it.

Last year it blew when I had both AC’s on and turned on the microwave, and when I pulled the fuse, both the fuse and the socket behind it were visibly burned. Not warm, burned. I reported it in writing. The maintenance guy came, put in a new fuse, and left. Nobody looked at the socket. Nobody looked at the wiring. New fuse, problem “solved.”

This week it came back, worse. It’s now blowing under normal everyday use, and the replacement fuse gets hot to the touch with just one AC running. I pulled it and the metal contact inside the socket is corroded and pitted. I don’t have an electrical license but I’ve seen enough to know a burnt, high-resistance connection when it’s cooking a fuse in front of me.

So I emailed the owner, attached photos, and asked for a licensed electrician to actually inspect the socket and wiring instead of swapping another fuse. His reply was one email that managed to say all of the following: that it’s already been “repaired,” that I’m the only tenant with this problem so I must be overloading the circuit, that I should “move out if there isn’t enough electricity for my needs,” and that I’m “free to terminate at any time.” He did, to his credit, agree to send a real electrician Monday. But the message was unmistakable, he’d rather I leave than fix it.

And here’s the part that reframes the whole thing. My lease happens to be up at the end of next month, and they just sent a renewal offer. Another twelve months, at a higher rent, to keep living in the unit with the fuse that overheats.

I’m fairly sure I know what’s happening. They’ve been renovating and re-renting the other units at higher rates, and I’m the long-term tenant sitting in an under-market apartment they’d rather turn over. That explains both things at once: why nobody will spend money properly fixing my wiring, and why the tone is suddenly “have you considered moving.” It’s not a maintenance problem and a lease problem. It’s one landlord who wants the unit back, and the hazard is just something he’d rather I leave over than repair.

The thing is, I’m house hunting anyway. I do want to go. I just need a couple of months to actually buy a place instead of getting forced into a short-term rental in between. So I want to ask for month-to-month, or a short two-to-three month extension, at my current rent, without accidentally blowing up the renewal offer and getting hit with “twelve months or out by [date].” Complicating it, my lease has a double-rent holdover clause, so I know I can’t just overstay the end date and figure it out later.

What I’m trying to figure out:

1. Is it worth pressing the safety issue, documenting the corroded socket, and escalating to city code enforcement if they try another fuse swap instead of a real fix, even though it probably makes the landlord want me out faster? Or am I creating friction for nothing since I’m leaving regardless?
2. How do I ask for the short-term/month-to-month arrangement without handing him the excuse to just end it? We actually want the same outcome, me gone, we just disagree on the timing, and on whether I should have functioning electricity while I’m still here.

Would especially appreciate hearing from anyone who’s dealt with code enforcement on an electrical hazard, or negotiated an exit with a landlord who clearly wanted their unit back.