Apartment Conditions Affect Renters

The city of Austin is fighting a difficult battle against substandard and sometimes unsafe apartments. But now the Code Enforcement Department is working on a new tool that will allow them to inspect more properties for violations.

Troy Hawkins lives at the Lulen Apartments in North Austin but wants to move as soon as possible.

"It's not safe at all, it really is not," he said.

Hawkins is disabled. His caregiver says they have to use a piece of cardboard nailed to the wall to cover a large hole apartment management hasn't fixed.

"He had a raccoon coming in through here, and him and his neighbor decided to fix this themselves, we reported it to the manager, this was about a month ago, and nothing has been done," Thurmond Simms said.

It's one of several problems tenants at the Lulen Apartments showed FOX 7.
One apartment has a loose railing in an interior hallway and a hole in the bathroom ceiling.
Another apartment has a hole so big in the kitchen, you can see the copper water pipes above.

The Lulen Apartments are already under a court order to fix substandard exterior stairwells and railings.
Code Enforcement issued several violations for the stairs last year because they were not safe and could have given way.
Some repair work on outdoor stairs is evident.
The owner of the Lulen Apartments did not return calls for comment but a spokesman for the complex said they are trying to fix more expensive roof problems before they address substandard conditions inside the apartments.

Despite the problems at the Lulen Apartments, the tenants here are luckier than some. Code Enforcement has been out to the property recently and identified violations. Inspectors said they would return if tenants call, but some other properties in Austin appear to be falling through the cracks.

The Westheimer Place Apartment Complex on Manor Road in East Austin has not been inspected by Austin Code Enforcement in nine years, according to records released by the Solid Waste Services Department. Tenants say the deteoration of the property is obvious.

"Really, it's just inhumane, simple and plain, there's no way around it, it's inhumane," tenant Melvin Hicks said.

He and his wife Tammie have a hard time taking a shower. Tiles are missing and water spills into a large hole above the faucet whenever the water is turned on. The couple moved into the complex in October. At the time, they didn't have a working kitchen sink. Now they do but it's still not sealed to the counter. In addition, electrical outlets are not covered, a kitchen window is broken and they say conditions outside their apartment aren't much better.

Code inspectors inspected the Westheimer Place apartments after FOX 7 showed them video footage of the problems.
Inspectors issued multiple violations for substandard handrails, windows and outdoor electrical equipment.
The owner of the Westheimer Place apartments told FOX 7 in a telephone interview he needs to hire a new maintainence manager and until they fill the position, repairs will be delayed.

Code Enforcement officials say they are doing the best they can with the resources they have.
But they are complaint driven and cannot proactively inspect properties.
As a result, out of more than 178,000 residential properties in Austin, only 1.2% were inspected last year.

"I think they are doing a very good job with the tools that they have," Code Enforcement Superviser Matthew Christianson said.

Now Code Enforcement is working to get a new tool many cities like Ft. Worth already have, an apartment registration requirement.

"Rather than just responding to complaints when we know there is a problem because a tenant has called us, it gives us the ability to go out and get an idea if a problem is starting," Christianson said.

Christianson says the Austin City Council would have to pass an ordinance creating the apartment registration.
Apartment owners would have to register with the city and would be inspected annually to make sure they're up to code before getting the necessary permits to stay in business. This ordinance would require significantly more inspectors which might be a tough sell during a tight budget time. Code enforcement is researching the ordinance now and hopes to bring a proposal to council by the end of the year.