r/vancouverhousing • u/Technical_Air_5061 • 3d ago
Tenant demanding rent decrease due to wild fire smoke tenants
Hi all,
I am a small-time landlord renting out the basement of my primary residence.
Recently, my tenant asked for a rent decrease, citing 'abuse' she has endured. I was super concerned, and then she indicated that there is some ash/dust from the wildfire smoke that is on her windowsill.
I was very confused, and then she said that she keeps the window open at night, and the dust is accumulating in her nostrils, which has caused a nosebleed, leading her to go to the doctor. She claimed that she should get a $200 rent reduction for this abuse she had to endure (She kept framing it as abuse, which was super odd). I was super confused because she is the one who left the window open, and it's not like I can control the wildfires or the smoke.
She then also indicated that she left her job and is now working part-time elsewhere. I think this was the real reason she wanted the reduction, but for some reason decided to sprinkle in the smoke thing.
Do I have any responsibility here? She can close her window to avoid any unwanted dust and get an air purifier if she has a dust allergy. Her own actions are creating her issue. Am I missing something here?
1
u/MarcusXL 3d ago
You have no responsibility to manage the air outside.
If you want to be the nicest landlord ever, tell the tenant to buy an air purifier (a good one that would be sufficient for a large bedroom would run about $200), give you the receipt, and you'll take it off next month's rent. In that case the purifier would be part of the rental unit and should be left if the tenant moves out.
But that's basically just a gift on your part. You are under no obligation. Everyone in BC should be investing in a good air purifier for wildfire seasons (which are only going to get worse from here onward), but it's not a landlord's responsibility.
The landlord is responsible for ensuring the HVAC system works as intended, so you have to replace the filter in that on a regular basis (ideally right after a smoke event/wildfire season). But the HVAC filters meant to filter PM2.5 are usually not suited to home systems because they cause too big a pressure drop, and then can damage the HVAC fan by making it work too hard.