Life At 186-Unit Apt. Complex Hits The Skids As Landlord Defaults On Loan Payments; Services Stop, Hot Water Cut, Mold Thrives, Bats & Roaches Move In

In Columbus, Ohio, The Columbus Dispatch reports:

• Bats in the living room and cockroaches in the kitchen scared him enough. Now, the 4-year-old cries because he can't even enjoy a warm bath before bed, said his mother, Mona Anstaett. "I'm on day 17 with no hot water," said Anstaett, who lives at Westview Gardens apartments on the West Side. "I just don't know what to do anymore." The last time she went into the office to plead for help with repairs and pests, the managers had no answers, she said, so she left in tears.

• The Hall Road complex is in receivership. Courts, banks and a newly appointed receiver are wading through a mountain of unpaid bills and maintenance needs, trying to keep the 186-unit property viable in the wake of the owner's mortgage default. In the meantime, Anstaett and others live amid the fallout.

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• The rights of tenants aren't supposed to change when a property goes into default. But the law and the reality of living conditions don't always mesh as quickly as everyone would like. "This, unfortunately, is an example of what's out there," said Cynthia Rickman, spokeswoman for the Columbus Development Department. "I can't say it's the norm, but it's what can happen in foreclosure or when these properties start to change hands. Everything stops." She said code-enforcement officials have received complaints about mold, exposed wiring, roaches and a lack of hot water at Westview.

For more, see Renter has roaches aplenty, but no hot water (Living conditions deteriorate at complex after owner defaults).