‘An absolute nightmare’: Bellingham family experienced repeated safety, health violations in rentals
A Bellingham renter is speaking out about her experience living in unsafe conditions in three separate rental units managed by Lakeway Realty.
Anna and her young son Lukas, whose last names we are omitting due to concerns about retaliation, have moved between four rental units over the last five months, each time relocating due to habitability concerns in their rental unit.
Water leakage, asbestos exposure and black mold growth are just a few of the documented issues at these rental properties located on Billy Frank Jr. Street, High Street, and N. Forest Street in Bellingham.
“Within the first month of me living (at the first house), I had water leaking through my ceiling into my bathroom, into my closet and developing water pockets on the sides of the walls in both rooms,” Anna said.
She notified Lakeway of the issue at the first home, where she lived for more than a year, but didn’t receive maintenance assistance from the property management company for months.
“They sounded really worried but then never called me back. They never sent anyone and so for the next several months I had called and emailed multiple times asking them to have someone come look and no one ever showed up,” Anna said.
The leak continued to worsen over the course of a year. Eventually, a maintenance worker was called to the property to cut a large hole in the bathroom ceiling where the leak was located. It was determined the leak was sewage water.
Knowing this would require significant repairs, Anna requested to move to another Lakeway property. But within the first month of living at the second property, Anna found exposed asbestos in the home.
Lakeway agreed to move her again to a unit in a third property managed by the company, a quadruplex on N. Forest Street.
“Within the first three weeks, we had black mold growing all over our dresser, all over some things stored under the bed. Our toilet was sinking into the floor. When we moved in, the entire bathtub — none of it was sealed correctly and it had paint pealing off — so there was water leaking through the bathroom wall into my son’s closet and causing huge amounts of black mold, baseboards splitting, floors caving — it was an absolute nightmare,” Anna said.
Anna and her son developed significant health issues as a result of the poor conditions in all three of the units. Anna said she experienced difficulty breathing at the first property, which quickly escalated after she moved into the second and third units.
“I did get really sick. I was coughing up blood multiple times from respiratory problems from the asbestos and the mold,” Anna said.
She was prescribed multiple inhalers, underwent a chest X-ray, and was treated with steroids, at the advice of medical professionals. Her son also developed a wheezy cough and experienced nose bleeds.
A city inspection of the unit conducted Feb. 22, identified 10 code violations, confirming Anna’s concerns. Lakeway was given 30 days to make the necessary repairs to bring the unit into compliance.
A representative of Lakeway Realty confirmed to The Herald that repairs and remediation have been made to the first two properties that Anna lived in. However, the representative did not say whether the unit on N. Forest Street had been brought into compliance.
In response to questions asked by The Herald about how Lakeway ensures its units are safe for habitation before renting to tenants, the representative wrote, “A representative of Lakeway goes to the property/units and inspects them, takes pictures and hires the appropriate contractors to complete the repairs needed. We then re-inspect the unit before a new tenant moves in to make sure the work was completed. The tenant(s) also check the unit before move-in and fill out a ‘move-in inspection’ sheet. If there is anything listed on the form we make a service order and hire the appropriate contractors/vendors to complete the work.”
In a letter sent to Anna from Lakeway on Feb. 9, the company wrote, “We are sorry to hear about the issues you are having with your unit.”
The letter stated that “for the health and safety” of Anna’s family, the company would offer to allow them to move out of the property, forgive the balance of rent for the month of February, and return her full security deposit. Anna told The Herald she ultimately received two months of rent back in addition to her full security deposit upon moving out.
“But that was just for one property. When you compare that to how much rent money I paid living in houses that didn’t even meet basic living requirements, they really owe me a lot more,” Anna said.
In an emailed letter sent to the tenants of all units at the property on Feb. 21, the “personal representative” of the property wrote that he understands that some of the tenants “are very unhappy with Lakeway Realty and the current condition of the apartments,” and that he was “not clear on why things have ended up where they are at.”
The letter states further, “If you are truly not happy living here, you are not required to stay and may break your lease at any time without penalty and your deposit will be fully refunded.”
The quadruplex is currently listed for sale for $650,000. The Zillow listing of the property describes it as “a rare find of a 4 plex that is almost 120 years old with good bones and character.” The description further states that “if the building and units were improved the rental rates could be much higher.”
“It’s hard to believe that (Lakeway Realty) would continuously move — especially such a young family — into properties like that,” Anna said.
Anna said she wants to shed light on her experience to help other families avoid similar situations. She said she wants property management companies and landlords to be held accountable for the habitability of their rental units.
“It can be scary to push back against the people that you’re renting through but there are legal requirements for a reason. There are safety standards for a reason and every family deserves to have those met,” she said.
