Even now, Paulette Twiss still spends her nights lying in bed fretting over mice.
After seven years as a resident, she moved out of the Eastmont Villa Apartments near Southeast 162nd Avenue and Powell Boulevard last year. However, she remembers that when she heard traffic outside her old flat, the rodents would scamper about.
Twiss remarked, “Now, the smallest thing will wake me up.”
Twiss was given more over $64,000 in damages this week by a Multnomah County jury, which determined that her former landlord, Eastmont Villa LLC, failed to keep the property in a livable state throughout her stay there.
Neither Grant Broer, who is listed as a corporate representative in state business records, nor an attorney for Eastmont Villa LLC responded to requests for comment.
In 2016, 60-year-old Twiss moved into the Eastmont Villa Apartments. A copy of the inspector’s letter that was presented into evidence states that Brad Gerow, an inspector with Portland’s housing authority, Home Forward, visited the house in June 2023 and came to the conclusion that there were health and safety concerns, which is why the inspection failed.
In the letter, Gerow instructed Eastmont Villa to look into and resolve the unit’s mouse infestation and mildew issues.
Another piece of evidence was a screenshot of a text message exchange that included a picture of a dead mouse in an apartment trap. Before filing her complaint, Twiss texted the landlord the picture, according to her lawyer Michael Fuller.
According to a copy of the violation notice in evidence, another Portland housing inspector also reported [r]odent dropping (sic) behind the dishwasher in a letter dated July 2023.
According to a city spokesperson, Ken Ray told The Oregonian/OregonLive that the property owner had received citations for 23 property-maintenance code infractions at the time, including those pertaining to upkeep, safety, and health.
According to Ray’s email on Friday, the first inspection “uncovered infractions that prompted an Enhanced Rental Inspection Program (ERIP) stage 2 inspection, which required us to inspect an additional five units.”
According to Ray, the property owner fixed every infraction we found. At the time of the reinspection, all of the units examined had no interior issues, and on August 30, 2023, the matter was closed. Since then, no additional checks have been carried out. The Enhanced Rental Inspection Program is no longer in effect for the property.
Twiss, who pays her rent with Section 8 housing assistance, stated that when Home Forward assisted her in ending her lease early, she relocated to another location in Portland.
In September 2023, she brought her civil case against the landlord. Motions were filed in the case before the trial on December 16.
“I went through a lot,” Twiss added, adding that the idea of other tenants residing there inspired her to take action.
–Jonathan Bach covers real estate and housing. You can contact him by phone at 503-221-4303 or by email at [email protected].
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