Woman's apartment ceiling falls in on her

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A Houston woman has a big mess on her hands after the ceiling in her apartment came crashing down on her. Well, actually "a big mess" is an understatement.

An entire section of the ceiling fell down after a water leak and the resident says she just wants it fixed or a new place to stay.

Leticia Anders apartment floor is littered with debris that fell down from her ceiling. The trouble started with a water leak days ago.

"I have been telling them about the water and they came to patch it up, they patched it up with some paint it was already had a leak in it," said Anders.

Anders says the complex's repair did not work. Days later, large sections of her ceiling came raining down on top of her.

So Anders went to the property management office.

"The management said, 'We gonna fix it tomorrow', what about tonight? Y'all want me to stay in all this here," said Anders.

So we called the Broadway Square management office but have not heard back.

"Emergencies happen all the time, it's how apartment communities respond to those emergencies is what counts," said Kyle Brown of the Houston Apartment Association.

Brown says it's reasonable for a renter to want a quick fix to something like the ceiling falling in, but it is also reasonable for apartment's managers to have enough time to actually fix the problem. The details should be spelled out in the rental agreement.

"Residents should always be aware of what the lease contract states, and yes, they should pull the lease contract out and read what the lease states," said Brown.

We heard back from Ms. Anders late Wednesday and she says the management is now fixing her ceiling. Bottom line, residents have a responsibility to report the problems and management has a responsibility to fix them, but apartment owners are given what's called a reasonable time to make the repairs.