Bootleg Lives Up to It's Name: It's Bunk

I am fed up and so are my roommates. Most people know I live in a warehouse called, Bootleg. There used to be parties held here and it's basically a huge warehouse with walls built and are rented out as rooms to tenants to live. There are some common areas, like the bathroom, shower, kitchen, living room, and then the large warehouse area, where a few cars are parked and shit is stacked.

I moved in to this place because I was aquainted with the landlord, Valentin Perales, and I needed a place to live immediately. He had this huge crush/obsession with me since before he had even met me (he admitted this - it's not my ego talking, and yes, it's creepy) so he let me move in without a deposit, without signing a lease, and even on a $50 discounted monthly rent. Good deal, right? Well, wrong.

The obsession/crush/feelings he had for me turned into a series of ups and downs and confusion, even when I cut him off. I was led to believe in the beginning that he was this certain type of person who had compassion for people, didn't lie, and was blunt and honest like me. Of course, the truth always comes out. I am not going into details, but he basically needs pyschological help and was driving me insane with his web of socio-pathic lies - even with the most mundane things.

Well, after I emotionally departed from his deceptions on a personal level, I quickly became close friends with a few of the tenants here. We are real tight and hang out almost everyday. We even go out together often and I feel some genuine, life lasting friendships from them. This makes up for everything that I've been through living here because these people are sincere in their relations with me.

However, relationships have nothing to do with the actual living conditions here. If I were to call an inspector to come out here, this place would be shut down. A list of items:
1. There is no smoke detector.
2. There are electrical wires showing, when they should be covered.
3. There is no emergency exit.
4. The trash is stored inside the warehouse and builds up for over a month, creating a fly problem throughout the entire place, which is a health hazard and it against the law.
5. The landlord walks into people's rooms, univited and without permission or written notice.
6. The bathrooms reak with urine and are unsanitary.
7. Air conditioning units need to be replaced because they leak enough water that you have to dump the water out - and there's lots of it.
8. The kitchen is completely dark because the electrical wiring is shot and one cannot cook nor do dishes. This has been this way since at least Friday, 5/8

The list goes on. The landlord also illegally evicts people, even possessing their items and keeping them for himself or giving them away. He evicted one person who did not pay his rent for several months, by giving him a verbal weeks notice. Then, he changed the locks on the door and possessed everything, including the man's clothes, of which he had nothing but the clothes on his back. This too, is not only illegal, but unethical. He even possessed a vanity mirror that he gave to me, saying he found it. I later found out that this mirror was the evicted man's girlfriends. What kind of person lies and gives away something that is not his in the first place? The whole point of possessing items is because they may be of value and can be sold as payment/compensation for rent not paid.

Anyone who knows about evictions knows that there must first: be a written 30 day notice. Two: a sherrif must personally come and show the tenant eviction papers before the person is legally evicted. Third: if the landlord wants to change the door locks because the tenant is behind on paying all or part of the rent, the landlord must first send a notice stating the earliest date the landlord will change the locks. This notice must be mailed at least five days before the locks are changed. The notice may be hand-delivered only three days beforehand if it is posted to the inside of the main entry door.

All I am saying is: the living conditions here are unacceptable and inexcusable. It doesn't matter how good of a person one may think one is, but if you are a shady business person, then that means you are shady in general. DO NOT lease a room at Bootleg. It seems like the place has potential, and it does, but grant it, it is not worth paying 585 a month for a room with poor living conditions. You will be deceived.

If you have any concerns or questions about tenants rights in Texas, this is a great site to go to:

Texas Tenant