Most times if a tenant needs something repaired in the residence, it is not too difficult to have the landlord either make the repairs themselves or have a professional do the job. If you come upon a landlord who doesn’t think the repairs are needed, or refuses to make the requested repairs, you do have a legal option. You should be sure that the issue is concerning the health and safety of the residents under applicable law before writing a letter of intent to make repairs.

Make notes of everything needed to go into the letter. Write down contact dates, times and who you spoke to. This way you have easy access to information when you are composing the letter and can concentrate on writing the letter of intent to make repairs.

Write the letter using business format. This includes using a block style letter, with no indentations for paragraphs. Write out the full name and address of your landlord as if you were writing to a business. Use Mr. or Mrs. (followed by the surname). Type your first and last name at the bottom and sign your name underneath.

Write the letter. Include your name, address and contact number in the letter. Include a list of the repairs which need to be made, the length of time the repairs have been needed, and the issues caused by the actual problem. Write about sinks needing to be drained by hand if there is a plumbing problem; write about wasps entering the house if there is a hole in an outside wall. You do not need to write about how many times you drain the sink or how many wasps you killed. Stick to the facts.

Ask the landlord in the letter to either make acceptable repairs within a certain time frame (usually 14 days) or as promptly as possible if the problem has become an emergency situation. State in the letter that if the landlord does not intend to repair the problem she must tell you in writing; using this method gives the tenant a paper trail of the transaction and facts.

Close the letter by stating that if the landlord does not make the repairs within the time period you will arrange to have the repairs made yourself. Inform the landlord that you will deduct the amount of the repairs from the next months rent payment.

Make a copy of the letter for yourself. Send the original copy to your landlord using Registered Mail. Using this method requires your landlord to sign for the letter and verifies that the letter was received by someone at your landlords listed address.