Tenants who are already suffering through a bedbug infestation are also getting shouldered with the cost of exterminating the pests. Now, after working with their neighbors to hold their landlord accountable, they’re facing retaliation in the form of eviction notices.
Tenants throughout the complex, which is a living facility for seniors, are being told they bear full responsibility for the infestation and are being told to pay fees of $1,188 to treat the building. It is difficult to track the origin of pests like bed bugs, but the landlord seems willing to place blame on most of the tenants, and push most of the cost onto tenants. These costs are burdensome and will prevent some tenants from being able to move into cleaner apartments. One tenant was told to cover the cost of exterminating bed bugs from an office that the whole complex shares.
Tenants organized with Washington CAN and reached out to their neighbors to see if other tenants were facing similar issues. In response, their property owners issued organizing tenants eviction notices citing the organizing as the reason. (We can provide documents showing this upon request.)
Tenants plan to call out this retaliatory behavior at a protest Wednesday. Details below:
What: Tenants protest unjust extermination costs
Where: Kent: We will announce the specific location on the day of the protest.
When: 10 a.m., Wednesday, Dec. 19
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