Everyday situations
How to ask your landlord for a repair
Describe the problem specifically: what is broken, since when and how it affects daily life. Ask directly who will fix it and when, instead of waiting on “I will look into it.” If the landlord suggests it is your fault, go back to the facts and to what the lease says.
How to handle this conversation
Describe it like a service request
Short and specific: “Since Monday the boiler cuts out after two minutes and there is no hot water. The photo of the error message is in my text.”
Say why it is urgent
No hot water or a leaking roof is not a detail. Say: “Without hot water we cannot live here normally, so I am asking for the repair this week.”
Ask for a date and a person
Instead of accepting “I will sort something out,” ask: “Who is coming, and which day do I need to be home?”
Do not accept blame without grounds
When you hear “you probably broke it,” answer calmly: “The boiler is twelve years old and we use it normally. Let the technician assess it.”
I ask my landlord for a repair
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Duration
- 5-8 minutes
The situation
You have rented the flat for a year. For a few days the gas boiler has kept cutting out and there is no hot water. Your message got no real answer, so you call the owner. You want the repair done quickly and at her cost.
Who you talk to
The owner of the flat
Busy, lives in another city and dislikes unexpected costs. Brushes the problem off, suggests you “manage for now” and then hints that the fault comes from misuse.
The counterpart also has private goals and information that are never shown upfront. You discover them only through the conversation, the same way you would in real life.
What makes it hard
- The owner puts it off without a date.
- She suggests you arrange and pay for the repair yourself and she will pay you back “at some point.”
- She hints that the tenant caused the fault.
Your goals
- Describe the problem and its impact clearly
- Agree on a repair date and who organizes it
- Avoid taking the blame for the fault without grounds
What the report looks at
- Whether the description of the problem is specific and factual
- Whether you ask for a date and the person who will fix it
- How you respond to the suggestion that it is your fault
- Whether the conversation ends with an agreement, not a promise without a date