Nightmare Apartment

I am in an uninhabitable apartment full of giant and small spiders, giant and small roaches, ants, and giant (and small) centipedes. I am in trouble, worried for my safety as well as the cats, and I need help.

I moved in on April 19. On the day I moved in, I encountered:

Three broken windows. A filthy and badly leaking kitchen sink with a puddle of rotten water under it. A bathroom faucet that would not shut off. One broken light, a broken light switch, a missing electrical faceplate with a large hole into the wall's interior. Three broken kitchen drawers and one that won't open. Kitchen cupboards with crumbling shelves that smell foul inside. Holes in the walls I was told would be patched/repaired when I moved in. A broken bathroom cabinet door. Mold and mildew on the shower bathroom's walls. A dryer missing a front panel with a door hole into its interior and exposed sharp metal. Animal and insect droppings (and eggs) streaking the walls, on the ceiling fans, and all along the floor behind a bookcase the previous tenant left behind.

A significant amount of the previous tenant's belongings were in the unit, which I was told would be removed, but weren't, including moldy curtains, a moldy shower curtain, and a broken BBQ on the back porch. When I moved the BBQ I saw it was concealing a significant hole in the deck surrounded by several planks of soft, rotten wood.

The apartment smelled so strongly of insect poison I worried I would get sick sleeping in it and feared for the health of my cats. For our safety I contracted a house cleaning team who could come right away. They were surprised and appalled at the state of the apartment, and said so, and the apartment required a significant clean.

I received the correct door and mail keys, but the incorrect property keys. When I first viewed the apartment I had verbal agreements of repairs that were not done, removal of furniture that was not done, and replacement of a rusted refrigerator that never happened.

Since I moved in, more things have broken, including a leaking toilet and a front door leaking insulation that occasionally swells shut and has to be forced open.

I photographed and documented everything, and notified the landlord immediately (on April 19) in writing and photos. After three weeks of broken windows and no date of repair from the landlord, I called my renter's insurance for advice. The landlord got the windows fixed after being informed she would be liable for any damage to my belongings due to the broken windows. The handyman told me the downstairs bathroom had been illegally added to the apartment.

The previous tenant's belongings were removed after three weeks of asking the landlord to please do something. This resulted in two in-person surprise visits in which I was only notified by text 30 minutes before arrival; the lease states the landlord must provide two days' written notice.

On May 21, the apartment exploded in a top to bottom pest infestation. Large cane spiders and baby spider hatchlings in the living room, hallway, kitchen, bedroom, and upstairs bathroom. Giant and small centipedes under the stairs, in the living room, in the hallway ceiling, kitchen, and bedroom closet. This is in addition to giant and small roaches, geckos, and scores of ants in the living room, upstairs hallway, master bedroom, upstairs bathroom, dining room, and kitchen. One giant centipede came too close to the cats; I found one of the many large, adult cane spiders on my bedroom pillow.

I informed the landlord immediately via email and received a reply that this was to be resolved at my expense, with a phone number of the landlord's pest control associate.

I contracted a professional pest control company that came on Friday, May 26th. They said that when they saw the work order and what was happening, they joked that maybe the place should just be burned down. During the pest control service, they encountered and removed several large cane spiders, noted on their invoice.

I took photos and documented everything with dates and times, and have preserved and kept records of all communication. I should've been suspicious when the landlord made me wait until I was on my way to occupy the apartment to give me the lease with the immediate demand to sign it and pay before she would provide me with a lockbox code to retrieve [partial] keys, none of which was done in person.

I requested a timeline for repairs at the beginning, and never got one. Some repairs have been made but that has taken significant persistance and pressure. In the meantime I have tried to make the place safe to be in. That included hiring a cleaning crew to clean and disinfect the apartment, and now, pest control services.

I feel unsafe, alone, continually on edge, and scared. The pest problem has not ceased since pest control came, including centipedes (under my mattress), large and small cane spiders, ants, roaches, and bugs I don't recognize. The cats and I sleep on a bare mattress on the floor inside a net tent sent to us by a friend.

I don't feel safe in the apartment, and I especially fear for the cats' safety. I haven't slept and keep the lights on all night because the bugs don't like the light. I am terrified to open cupboards or go to the bathroom (big spiders), the cats are frightened and jump at shadows, and they will not be in rooms without me. I have struggled to be able to work. I have had two panic attacks.

Since I have not unpacked and my bed is in pieces due to Royal Hawaiian Movers losing parts of my bed frame (I have been sleeping on the floor this entire time), my goal is to hire movers to put my belongings into a storage unit and stay in a hotel or furnished rental/Airbnb for two months while I secure a safe, stable living situation.

I have found a quiet, clean, safe hotel that will immediately take the cats and I, though it is $150/night. I have a bid from movers for $700, and the storage unit (with online discount) is $283.

I am consulting attorneys to assist me in exiting the lease. I have little hope of recovering the significant amount of money it's taken to keep the cats and I safe, and to try and make the apartment habitable. I have little hope right now in general.

After having successfully gotten myself off the streets as a kid, this is a very traumatic experience. I have no family to come to my aid. I desperately need a safe place for the cats and I to stay, and financial help to exit this nightmare.

Thank you for reading.