Hi, REIN members, need your thoughts about this. My property manager received a call from the Strata Manager saying that unit 202 has a water leak problem. Our rental unit is 302. She went to investigate that, and sent me an email like the following:

" With the fact that there is not a continuous leak, shows me that it was caused my tenant above unit 302, however the tenants just said he mop the floor. (cleaning of rock, or toilet over flow etc), however you are correct, I cannot prove anything. The owner or realtor of the unit 202 was the one who estimated $200-$300. for repair, however that would be him hiring and not us doing the repair.

My worry for you, is that if we deny responsibility and he goes after strata and they open the ceiling and see pipes, they wont find a problem, and then bill you for that expense as well. So at this point I have not done anything. What do you suggest?"

My thinking is since the unit 302 tenants (our tenants) did not say they caused the problem, how can we accept that it is unit 302's responsibility. I found this type of issue quite vague and hard to provide evidence. One more thing, the owner of unit 202 estimated the repair is 200-300$, what if it is not at the end of the day? My property manager offered to repair their wall though.

I am more leaning toward having unit 202 contact the strata to investigate the ceiling, pipe leaking or dripping could happen. If they do find pipe problem, then Strata needs to get it fixed, if not, I would like to see how they prove it is caused by unit 202 without any evidence in the unit 302? I am more interested in the logical investigation behind their decision.

Am I wasting my time here? What do you do?

Thanks

What is the extent of the damage? By the sounds of it they don’t need to replace the drywall otherwise they would get a look at the pipes when they cut out the damaged drywall.

Have you had a frank conversation with your tenant? How well do you know the tenant? Are they likely to tell you a story vs truth?

I had a situation in a property I own that was similar. Water was coming through the ceiling and we could not figure out how. I was resigned to the fact I would have to open it up to find out. Luckily it was caught that the one of the shower head nozzles was clogged up causing a steady stream of water out of the shower, into a vent soaked the subfloor to the point it dripped enough to come through the ceiling. Cleaned the shower head and problem was solved. The individual using the shower did not do it intentionally or even know it was happening.

I would also try to get multiple estimates. Ultimately your decision rests on how confident you are that your tenant did not cause the issue. Measure that against the potential costs if it is proved to have come from your unit. You also know the Strata Manager is not going to have a high opinion of you especially if it turns out you were wrong. Actually, maybe even more so if you’re right...


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Check your drains in 302 ASAP and declog them if plugged ( which is quite likely in toilet, sinks, bathtub or shower outlets ) !!

If flowing and leaks continue call strata ASAP to have them fix it.

Am I missing something or is there water on the floor of 202 & they’re saying it dripped down from 302?

Water falling from the ceiling or drilling down a wall leaves clear indicators. Not hard to determine unless I read that wrong.


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Thanks, David, Thomas and Kris, the property manager has visited 302, found nothing indicating leaking. Will do the "declog" on Monday, and then suggest 202 contact Strata to start investigation process from their end. To trace the root cause of the issue takes much time and analysis. I wonder how insurance companies perform their investigation if there is a fire/water leak etc.