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Bed bugs or rats: Gothamist asks which you’d rather have

nobugsonme — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 17:28:10 +0000

Things have sunk pretty low, don’t you think?

Gotahamist’s take on the weekend’s New York Times Real Estate section’s bed bug series: asking commenters whether they’d rather have rats or bed bugs.

(Would you rather be ruled by Pol Pot or Idi Amin?)

So far, it’s hands down: people would rather have rats in their apartment than bed bugs.

It’s kind of a trick question: everyone knows rats are easier to get rid of.

But be warned: no one has mentioned rat mites yet — they bite humans and can be left behind after the rats are dead. And they may be trickier to detect and to shift than the rats.

If it seems obvious to you, cast your vote in the comments on this post: Bedbugs, The Real Estate Deal Killer? – Gothamist.

The Gothamist “poll” is, of course, a reference to this quote from the “Buying and Selling in Bedbug City” article in the New York Times, in which a prospective co-op buyer quoted her broker:

“The broker said, ‘This is New York City — you have all sorts of things like cockroaches and rats,’ ” she explained, asking that her name be withheld because she was worried about being labeled as a troublemaker by another co-op board. “But it’s very different to have a cockroach than something that sucks your blood and is in your bed. I would rather have rats.”

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46 Westland Avenue Rats, Bed Bugs, Cockroaches

nobugsonme — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 07:37:10 +0000

That’s the title of a video on YouTube that Paulaw0919 pointed me to today.

In the video, three young people who say they live in several apartments at 46 Westland Avenue (including the basement and apartment 4) appear in the video, along with three cavorting rats, and some cockroaches.

The tenants speak of being bitten by bed bugs and seeing them, and display what appear to be many bed bug bites on each of them. Two (at least) claim to be students at Boston’s Berklee College.

This is the building on ApartmentRatings.com and The Bed Bug Registry.

I hope the tenants have called Boston’s Inspectional Services Division, who put out a Bed Bug Advisory flyer (click here for a PDF) which states:

If your Landlord fails to take proper action as required by State Housing Regulations, contact the Housing Inspection Division at: (617) 635-5322

If the tenants have already contacted Boston’s ISD, I hope they will do so again.

Finally, a disclaimer: we have no way of verifying if these claims are truthful or not.

And a warning: there are no actual bed bugs shown in the video, but it is pretty disturbing nonetheless. Unless rats are your thing.

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landlords talking about bed bugs

nobugsonme — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 02:04:25 +0000

Welcome to any curious readers of the Do-it-yourself landlord’s blog, where blogger Craig linked to us and several other bed bug blogs today.

And here’s something a bit different, an article from the San Francisco Apartment Association’s magazine on “How to Avoid a Bedbug Lawsuit.”

While you should be aware that any laws mentioned therein may not apply where you live, the following conclusion was excellent advice for landlords:

Landlords who encounter claims of bedbug infestation should address those claims immediately by seeking professionals who can swiftly and effectively deal with the problem. The mere presence of bedbugs could, at the very least, subject a landlord to possible rent reductions and, in the worst-case scenario, bring about lawsuits for constructive eviction. While there is a possibility that a landlord may successfully defend such a lawsuit, the costs of doing so will be no doubt much higher than paying professionals to deal with the bedbug infestation — an infestation that could, if left unfettered, effect not only one unit but the whole building. Ignoring the alleged problem or attempting to deal with it yourself will only increase your potential liability.

The SFAA is a non-profit which helps housing owners learn about laws that affect them.

I’ve said this before–I don’t envy landlords whos buildings are infested. They’re bound to deal with a lot of expenses around bed bugs just like tenants are. I hope we can work for better laws and better modes of treatment (more effective and efficient ones), which will help landlords save money on treatments and reinfestations, and save tenants the trauma and expense of living with bed bugs.

I do think it’s good that landlords are talking about these issues.

And finally, enough of your bed bug problems, already! The UN apparently has rats eating from its staff cafeteria, and 5 foot live salt-water eels invading the inside of its buildings.

Hmm, where rats nest, there may be bed bugs. Even my non-bedbug-blogging is bed bug blogging.

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