Hoarding: New rights for tenants that aren’t sitting well with landlords
16×9 originally aired “Hoarder’s Law” on November 23rd, 2013
By Hannah James, 16×9
Three years ago, Steven Vassilev was thrown into the public eye and labelled a “hoarder” by some of his neighbours. His newspaper and book collection – some of it on his balcony – helped fuel a massive fire, sparked by a cigarette butt tossed from a tenant above. The apartment fire resulted in a successful $4.85 million class action suit against the landlord and property manager for not dealing with complaints that Stephen’s paper collection was a fire hazard.
The hallways in Stephen’s new apartment complex are thick with cigarette smoke. I knock on Stephen’s door, noticing the mail slot is covered with a facecloth pinned to the inside of the door. Waiting for Stephen, I can hear him moving things around inside. Finally, he comes to the door, opens it and greets me with a gentle smile and handshake. I glance over Stephen’s shoulder and see his apartment is filled with cardboard boxes, books, papers, electronics and a piano. He invites me – along with my colleague Katie, in.
I tour the small apartment and note that Stephen’s bedroom, living room, bathroom and kitchen are filled to the brim. There’s no furniture beyond a computer desk and a small bed. All the rest of the space is filled with boxes, bookcases, bags, electronics and clothing. We sit on chairs wedged into the narrow pathway Stephen has cleared through the piles of clutter.
To read the full article and watch the 16×9 story, click here.