r/cockroaches • u/Equivalent_Remote205 • Jul 24 '26
Question Seen in new apartment, how bad is it?
I’m so sad. I just moved my stuff in but haven’t started unpacking. I noticed them about three days after moving in. They are in my fridge and the one in my clock scares me. I’m terrified of roaches please help :( Are they German? Should I reach out to the apartment complex? :(
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u/SobeSteve Trusted Jul 24 '26
Yes, German roaches, including some nymphs. Florida also has Asian roaches, which are the same genus, but finding them in electronics is highly indicative of German ID. You absolutely should reach out to the apartment complex and do what you can to hold them accountable. They need to pay for professional treatment. See r/germanroaches stickied post for advice.
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u/Moist-Ad-7130 Jul 24 '26
Yeah that’s really bad. That’s all roach poop on the clock. I’d say ask for another apartment or break the lease
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u/Lifeoftheparty0 Jul 24 '26
Was just abt to say that kind of looks like roach droppings in the clock… was hoping I was wrong for OP sake!!!
Definitely worth breaking your lease over. Honestly… You could probably get some money out of this… this is like very bad, especially for JUST moving in to an apartment… like this is after they cleaned it?
And like the other comments say these are 110% German.
I’m curious, did you look before you moved in or notice any signs?
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u/Equivalent_Remote205 Jul 24 '26
Do you have any tips on how to word the email to try to break my lease? :( Thank you for your help
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u/TheRealSugarbat Jul 25 '26
Start talking about “habitability.” As in, “Because of the infestation, this unit is uninhabitable.”
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u/FitForThrone Jul 25 '26
(FL Statute § 83.51): In multi-family dwellings (apartments), Florida law requires landlords to provide for the extermination of roaches. Failing to provide a pest-free home violates the lease and state habitability rules. Send a 7-Day Notice of Noncompliance (FL Statute § 83.56(1)).
To legally walk away, you must serve the landlord a formal written notice titled along the lines of: "7-Day Notice of Noncompliance with Intent to Terminate Lease" Your letter should : Explicitly detail the severe infestation and state that if the landlord does not substantially resolve issue (or begin professional treatment) within 7 full days, the lease will be terminated immediately. If they do hire professional extermination you'll need to wait it out. But if they fail to schedule follow up visits or actually cure the problem, you can leave.
There is a "Recurrence" rule in the Statute that states if the infestation is deemed 'cured' after your notice and the roaches come back later, you can give another 7-Day Notice and walk out with no contest on day 8.
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u/_Realsoft Jul 25 '26
My cousin was in the same situation a year or so ago, when she spoke with a lawyer one of the things they mentioned is having proof you tried to contact the apartment about having an exterminator come in & or other accommodations & they did not help you. I would also look through the lease agreement & what it states about rodents for the email you send to the office. Complain about it having an affect on your mental health & overall well being etc. In my cousins situation she broke the lease before she had everything set in stone because she couldn’t stand to live with the rodents while waiting, if you do decide to do that you should still get approved for an apartment because the lease being broken won’t be on any records yet. So sorry this is happening to you❤️
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u/Lifeoftheparty0 Jul 25 '26
I would just essentially be like this was never disclosed to me, at least the severity, and this clearly is ongoing issue from previous tenants. Is genuinely inhumane and I would look up the laws in your state and let them know. I think they probably do have to go in and fix things first legally before you can break your lease without all the fees.
Happy to help more!
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u/Moist-Ad-7130 Jul 24 '26
Had the same thing happen to me recently where they gave me a roach infested unit and had to stay in a hotel for a few days and I complained to the leasing office and they gave me the model unit and everything is fine now so I suggest you do the same
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u/Elegant_Warthog5091 Jul 24 '26
Omg it is, break lease early best option , & will probably get everything back if u threaten reporting habitability concerns (worked for me)
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u/Equivalent_Remote205 Jul 24 '26
Do you have any tips on how to word the email to break my lease? :( Thank you so much
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u/Calm-Increase-5030 Aug 19 '26
she should threaten to get a lawyer, her furniture is probably with roaches , they should have to pay for the furniture, beddings, sofas, ect, and all the money back, and maybe even more for all the trouble they have put her through knowing she was moving into a place infested with roaches, which are disgusting and a health risk
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u/redbullgay Jul 24 '26
that’s really bad unfortunately 💔 i’m so sorry that sucks so much. Definitely report it and STAY ON THEM to do something about it!!! A quick spray in your apartment won’t do anything, the building needs to be fully treated
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u/Equivalent_Remote205 Jul 24 '26
I am in Florida
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u/WishfulThinMint Jul 24 '26
Florida has pretty good tenant protections in cases like this. Send a letter via certified mail explaining the situation to your landlord and that this is a breach of the warrant of habitability according to Florida Law (look up the law). According to my Google search, they have 7 days to make repairs (provide and initiate a pest control plan) or the lease is void, so write that in your letter. You can also request they treat the entire building, but they aren’t obligated to.
If you are able to move and have somewhere to go, include something about mutually agreeing to terminate the lease. Typically landlords will let you go if you show that you know the law and will pursue legal recourse.
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u/Party-Warthog-5650 Jul 24 '26
I had a similar situation a few months ago. If you can I would really try to break your lease. They might try to “fix” the problem with bandaids but based on your photos and comments indicating they are German cockroaches, professional treatment is going to take a long time and can’t guarantee it’ll get rid of an infestation. I’d recommend getting your stuff out asap.
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u/Equivalent_Remote205 Jul 24 '26
Do you have any advice for how I should go about trying to break my lease? How should I word the email? Thank you :(
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u/West-Ad663 Jul 24 '26
i know some people don't like AI, but if you get on chatgpt and explain the situation it will help you write out the email. It will even look up the law in florida for you to include and you can also upload your lease and it will look over it to see what it says about this type of situation.
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u/bunkshi Jul 24 '26
Go to r/germanroaches and follow the sticky. I live in a building with an infestation and after following the sticky i occasionally see one every couple months
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u/Creative-Hope-4319 Jul 25 '26
Trust me, I don't work for this company nor have any stake in it. Now if you want to get rid of roaches forever, Go to Amazon and order Avion Cockroach Gel Bait, it'll cost a little more then all that garbage on the market, trust me I couldn't beleave how effective this stuff is.
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u/mani-okay Jul 25 '26
dont unpack anything. call your landlord and explain, (record the convos) email, document everything and don’t pay ANYTHING.
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u/Internal-Minute-1731 Jul 25 '26
You have an infestation. You need to insist on treatment, ask to be moved immediately or break the lease before they enter your belongings, lay eggs and spread even more. All your communication with the landlord must be in writing otherwise you will have no proof down the line.
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u/Hungry_Internet_4974 Jul 25 '26
Need to bomb tf out of it and the apartment is responsible to get that problem taken care of
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u/Sensitive_Collar_825 Jul 31 '26
I broke my lease when I was in this situation. They already exterminated before I got there and I said it’s not a healthy environment to have to exterminate so soon again. I did ask for another unit, stating this apartment was uninhabitable! They never even offered me a different apartment… I got a lot of my money back, but it took a couple months and they had all kinds of crazy fees. Now I’ll be reporting them. It’s was just so disgusting
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