DC Creates a Toolkit of Resources for City Tenants

• January 19, 2018

by Nena Perry-Brown

While DC is perceived as a very tenant-friendly town, wading through the city's bureaucracy to exercise rights as a renter can still be daunting. In hopes of simplifying the process for renters in tough situations, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has created an online database.

The toolkit, available in both English and Spanish, compiles advice and resources for tenants, recommending the best ways to document and report unfit living conditions, neglectful landlords, or other housing violations. A link is available to specifically explain how OAG defends renters via measures like the Tenant Receivership Act and consumer protection laws. 

The site also links to a step-by-step guide to seeking justice as a renter, from providing easy access to the Tenant Bill of Rights to offering sample letters to request a mold inspection and recommendations on where to seek low-cost legal help or tenant advocacy.

“We created these new resources because we want to educate and empower tenants to take action if they are being forced to live in unsafe conditions—and we want them to know how the District government can help,” Attorney General Karl Racine said in a statement.

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/a-toolkit-of-resources-for-dc-renters/13471