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reggitor t1_ityd18c wrote

Reply to comment by Disastrous-Spray6290 in Are there any free or cheap legal attorneys, lawyers, etc for tenants in Philly? by rosecolured

When I rented, one place had a leak and another had a non functioning A/C despite it being in the lease. Landlords dragged their feet and would send out handyman’s to do band-aid repairs. Getting a lawyer cost ~$700 on both occasions, and they both did the exact same thing. Sent a certified letter and told me to put the rent in escrow. And then poof, the problems were fixed. Surely that makes me semi knowledgeable on the subject? Again, I’m making an assumption here that the “emergency situation” is something that’s illegal or clearly violates the lease. There’s also plenty of info online about how, why and when to withhold rent in Philly. If my assumption is correct, and if OP has limited resources, what would make an attorney worth $700? At the very least OP can withhold now and hire a lawyer if it escalates.

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Disastrous-Spray6290 t1_ityfe20 wrote

Because the legal resources people are sending her are free, and ultimately don’t actually know the things you are assuming. It’s why I - a qualified professional- don’t give advice here.

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reggitor t1_itz7n8e wrote

I too recommended free resources. I’m going to assume you’re a practicing real estate attorney because you said you’re a “qualified professional”. Here’s more details from op:

https://www.reddit.com/r/philadelphia/comments/yee8bd/are_there_any_free_or_cheap_legal_attorneys/itz5x1a/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf&context=3

Can you share any insight about what you would do here? Have any of your rental clients had similar experiences?

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Disastrous-Spray6290 t1_iu00hge wrote

Absolutely not- the advice I am giving is to call the resources I posted. Anything else would be inappropriate.

OP, do not simply take this person’s advice and attempt to do this on your own. The resources posted here will connect you with either free or low cost assistance, and this will be a simple matter for them more likely than not.

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reggitor t1_iu016h9 wrote

Ok, how about this. Can you describe a situation in your professional experience with Philly real estate law where a client withheld rent and it backfired?

Not asking for you to give legal advice, more looking to understand why you vehemently oppose OP using tools and resources neatly laid out online by the state for these exact situations.

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Disastrous-Spray6290 t1_iu0a39f wrote

I will do no such thing. We have ethics rules and I’m not stretching them for you.

When people come to see a lawyer, they often do not know what their issues actually are. They think they have one issue, but we can see that they actually have 2 or 3 that we can help with to set them up for success.

It’s like going to webMD to see how to treat a headache- the internet will tell you “take an aspirin.” The doctor will figure out why you have a headache and help you with underlying issues or collateral issues you don’t realize you have.

OP is right to ask for actual legal assistance.

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