• Format
  • Publications (documents)
• Type
  • Text
• Source institution
  • Western Carolina University
• Identifier
  • HL_WesternCarolinian_1997-01-30_Vol62_No16_03

(Sl}t Wz&tzm Carolinian Features Thursday, January 301997 3 Renters' Rights What You Need to Know PHOTO BY TERRY K. ROBERTS/WC BRIAN POSTELLE STAFF WRITER Renting a house or apartment off campus can be a liberating experience. The crowding of dorm life is gone, no RAs come knocking, and you can have your own shower. On the other hand, bills begin to come in the mail, and you have to deal with a landlord. Tenant-landord relationships have historically been tense. Many renters, especially college students, feel intimidated in some way by their landlords. The accepted attitude is that landlords are all- powerful and have the ability to evict at will and pocket any outstanding security deposits. This leads renters to think that they have no control or stability in their living situations. Fortunately, there are federal and state laws that protect the rights of renters. The trick is to be aware of them. A lease agreement between landlord and tenant is a business contract. The signatures of both parties bind them to certain responsibilities and rights. The first logical step in understanding renters' rights is to read the lease—beginning to end. The excitement of renting a new home can lead to a hasty decision and signing a contract without knowing what the terms are. The threat of losing the house to other prospective renters reinforces quick and uninformed decisions. The landlord knows what the lease says; so should the tenant. Regardless of what a lease says, there are codes which the house or apartment must meet. The landlord, or lessor, is responsible for making sure the house is functional. All electrical, plumbing, and heating systems must work. The sanitary condition of the home has to conform to codes as well. During the rental term, the landlord must make repairs to these systems at the written request of the tenants. When a lease is signed, tenants often pay a security deposit. Many times, tenants bid farewell to this deposit and are not surprised when they never see it again. According to federal and state laws, a security deposit must be deposited in an instate trust account by the landlord. Within 30 days after the signing of the lease, the landlord must tell the tenant where the money was deposited. Officially, the deposit remains the property of the tenant unless it is used to pay for the landlord's losses. The only exception to this rule is pet deposits, which can be non-refundable. When a lease expires, the landlord should return the deposit or present an itemized list of damages and the cost of replacement. A landlord cannot keep a deposit without giving specific reasons. The deposit is your money. It is up to the landlord to show why he or she can take it. Because a landlord is the owner of the rented property, some feel that they can come or go as they please, and tenants feel obliged to let them. The law says that while the tenant is renting the property, he or she has a right to privacy. The landlord cannot enter the premises without the consent of the tenant. There are laws that protect all aspects of renters' rights. It is up to you to be informed of them. If you feel your rights are being violated in some way, look it up in a legal volume, such as Strong's North Carolina Index, located in the reference section of Hunter Library. The WCU legal department, on the fifth floor of the White House, has brochures on the rights and duties of both landlords and tenants. The most important step is to be informed. If you have a complaint about your landlord, don't go straight to the courts. Talk to him or her first. Talking to a landlord about your rights can be touchy, but no one can evict you for complaining. If there is still a problem after talking to your landlord, first talk to an attorney and find out your rights—and remember, you do have rights. How to Balance College and Parenthood KEVIN MCPHERSON NEWS EDITOR When I was a kid in grade school, I read a story about a man who, after a long day at work, just wanted a little peace and quiet. He had ten children, a cranky old wife, and her mother living in his house. His wife and mother-in- law nagged him, and his children always fought. He never could seem to find the the day-ending calm he wanted. Because he thought he was going to go crazy, he went to the doctor and asked what he should do. The doctor told him to go home and bring all the farm animals he could find into the house. Then, he told him to invite all his neighbors and the rest of his family to move in with him. The doctor told him that this would solve his problem. He did what the doctor told him and after a week of even more chaos, he went back to the doctor to complain. He said to the doctor, "I thought you said things would get better if I did what you told me, but things are even worse." Then the doctor told him to go home, run all the livestock out of his house, and tell his neighbors and family to go home. Again, the man did what the doctor said. Suddenly, things seemed quiet, even with his wife, kids, and mother-in-law still there. In other words, what may seem bad at the time can become more complicated. For most college students, the most stressful things in life are meeting deadlines, studying, and trying to stay one step ahead of the next item on the syllabus. At the same time, normal students are trying to keep social activities alive while reassuring Mom and Dad that their investment in education is well spent. Well, since I've been in college, I haven't had to worry too much about what Mom and Dad think. And, I certainly haven't had to concern myself with social circles. However, I have had to learn how to deal with schedules, deadlines, and of all things, a baby. It was August 1995 and the semester had just started when my wife came to me and said, "Guess what! We're going to have a baby." During my short life, I have been shot at and nearly killed several times; however, I have never been so afraid of anything as I was at the moment I found out she was pregnant. The first item on the agenda was to find a place off campus to live, because the university does not have housing for students with families. After a month of searching, we finally found a place with four solid walls and hot and cold running water. The next nine months were uneventful for the most part until a cool night in April. It was two weeks before the end of the spring semester. Several of my colleagues and I sat in my living room trying to finish a class project. It was getting late, and my wife, who was now about to burst, retired for the night. At midnight, my classmates and I were still going strong on our project when my wife came in and asked how much longer it would take us to finish. I responded hastily by saying something like, "We've still go some work to do and we'll finish as soon as we can...now go back to bed." She responded to my answer by saying, "Well, I think it's time you finish up because my water just broke." The 30-second silence that followed seemed like an eternity. All of a sudden, papers started flying; we quickly saved our material on the computer and my comrades from English class left me to fend for myself. Twelve hours later, my wife and I became Jackson County's newest parents. When we came home from the hospital, I thought, "What's the big deal? She'll take care of the baby and I'll just keep doing schoolwork like I've always done." The truth is, it just isn't that simple. I have always found it challenging to be creative while focusing on keeping instructors happy. Having a baby can throw a new wrinkle into everything you used to think of as routine. Just imagine trying to write news story after news story to the tune of a one- week-old who is screaming at the PHOTO TERRY K. ROBERTS/WC top of his lungs. And, the harder you try to make him happy, the louder he gets. Maybe you think your neighbors in the dorm make too much noise late at night. Well, there have been several nights in the past months that I would have gladly traded a dorm full of disorderly drunks for one irritable little boy. However, I have come to understand that, like infants, adults can learn to adapt to new things. Before having a baby in the house, I had to concentrate on budgeting my time to get assignments finished. I do the same thing now, but 1 work around his schedule instead ot trying to make him fit mine. One of the first things that my wife and I learned was to sleep when the baby slept. That's the only way you will ever get rest with an infant. Even if you only sleep for 30 minutes, it's still sleep. In terms of budgeting work time, instead of goofing off during lunch as I used to do, now I whip out the lap top and write, even if it is only for a few minutes. If there is no writing to be done, I break out one of my many textbooks and catch up on reading. College is not easy. If it were, enrollment would shoot through the roof. Just remember that some day, all the trials of classroom education will be over. In the meantime, realize that what seems complicated and tedious could be a lot more tiring, but a great deal more interesting. PAPA'S FRESH BAKED i PIZZA Tender Idols' Album Proves Disappointing TOGO DINE IN & TAKE OUT SERVING HOURS: Monday thru Thursday 11 am—9 pm» Friday & Satuday 11 am—10 pm Sunday 12 pm—9 pm 8 East Sylva Shopping Center 586-5860 Buy One Order of Killer Stix, Get One Order of Killer Stix FREE PAPA'S FRESH BAKED pizza; ! PAPAS •STUDENT 1 FEAST! TOGO ns and extra cheese available at additional cost Valid with coupon at Sylva Papas Pitta To-Go Locations. 0n\ coupon par customer Not valid with any other offer Pick-up. dine-m only. Coupon Expires V2\f97. Extra itemi end Extra Ch»«» Available at Additional Colt. ire «*m ana eiro cri»«« ovsnabw tf WJ* ifV CIT vow w<tf> coupon ol lOTUC'cai^ ^ooc« WM 'o-So On» COjCOO p»- Cut*0*T#« '' voKJ w*T\ on* w.a'o**' NowWWian Pe»-LtBOOn»in Ortv CALL 586-5860 includes: • 2 medium pizzas with any ? toppings ot your choice, • Papa's famous breadstix with dipping sauce. • l2ca]unor BBGstyle chicken wings. • Plus a 2 litter oottte ot Coca-Cola! %n M. rn^J Plus Tax !7PIZZA TOO° ""STLM 10CM1M Mil. DAVE WILLIAMS CONTRIBUTING WRITER Is Atlanta the next "Swingings London?" You'd think so after hearing the debut self-titled disc of The Tender Idols (Tender Idols Discs). The group was formed by transplanted Londoner Ian Webber (lead vox, guitar, tambourine) who recruited local musicians Danny Howes (guitar), Scott Collins (bass, fa- vox), and Guy Strauss (drums). The Tender Idols' press release states that they're leading an "underground Mod revival." "Mods" were the English link between beatniks and hippies, circa 1963-1966; groups of this period included The Kinks and The Who. I don't see that happening since Pete Townshend tried it on The Who's 1973 album "Quadrophenia," only to discover that he couldn't actually go home again. The sound of this independently released and produced disc is quite good, actually—it's the music, vocals, and image that I have a problem with. The pack aging reeks of Retro, right down to the album cover (scenic pictures of short-haired Mod- dressed women hanging out at the MARTA and 1960's style lettering on the CD jacket). The music, however, is a cheesy watered-down version of Oasis, Blur, Suede, Bush... bands that are currently making Pop Music a much-hated dirty word, the same way Fusion, Progressive Rock, and Disco were in the 1970s. Don't believe? The opening track, "For Love I'd Die," is classic Oasis. Suede and Bush rip-offs abound in "International" while on "Reallife" Webber spouts self-conscious pabulum such as "Am I really liked ?" portraying the poor misunderstood bleeding heart that's been polished to perfection by Morrissey. "Amateur Writer" is aptly named, due to the lyrics being totally incoherent gibberish. "Careful" and "mph" are musically involving, having good riffs and memorable melodies. On these two tracks, Danny Howes stretches out with some nice guitar playing but Webber's voice becomes annoying, destroying whatever musical enjoyment might be left to relish. He damn near deep-sixes "Sunlover," too, but it's saved by special guest Roger Manning (Jellyfish, Imperial Drag) who tickles the ivories and adds some much-needed color to the song. 1 started daydreaming during the last three songs ("Fall This Far," "When I'm Found," and the acoustic "Someone") and didn't wake up until after the disc stopped. This is music for people who get paid to look happening (record store clerks, PR agents), listen to Top 40 radio, and buy their clothes at the Gap. It masquerades as "Alternative" or "Underground" when its real function is to make money for the people who record and manufacture this crap. The fact that The Tender Idols are actually getting airplay and club dates is an indicator that Payola is still alive and well in the music business and that the "Dumbing Down of America" is still in effect.

The Western Carolinian is Western Carolina University's student-run newspaper. The paper was published as the Cullowhee Yodel from 1924 to 1931 before changing its name to The Western Carolinian in 1933.

• Creator
  • Western Carolina University
• Format
  • Publications (documents)
• Type
  • Text
• Date
  • Date original: 1997-01-30
  • Date digitized: 2020-01-13
• Extent
  • Dimension: 14" x 11.25"
  • Pages: 10 pages
• Subject - Topic
  • College student newspapers and periodicals
  • Cullowhee (N.C.) -- Newspapers
  • Universities and colleges -- North Carolina -- Cullowhee -- Newspapers
  • Western Carolina University -- Periodicals
• Location
  • Jackson County (N.C.)
  • Cullowhee (N.C.)
• Source institution
  • Western Carolina University
• Source Collection
  • WCU Students Newspapers Collection
• Identifier
  • HL_WesternCarolinian_1997-01-30_Vol62_No16
• Repository
  • Western Carolina University Hunter Library