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What to Do if You Lose Heat in Your Apartment?

Property owners must provide heat for your rental unit. Heat, like electricity and water, is known as an "essential service."  Although you may be responsible for the gas or electric bill associated with the heating of your unit, providing and maintaining a furnace or boiler to service your unit is the property owner's responsibility. The minimum temperature requirement for the habitable space of your apartment is 67 degrees. If you live in public housing subsidized by the federal government (Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee or Section 8 voucher housing), the minimum temperature requirement is 68 degrees. 

These guidelines will help you understand what to do and how the Department of Neighborhood Services can help when your heat isn't working properly.

Who Should I Call?

First, if you have a thermostat, check the see it is set to "Heat," or if the batteries. If you have a boiler, check the adjustment knob. Do not attempt access or repair the heating source yourself. Instead, four first step is to contact your property owner or property manager at the phone number, email, or web portal they have provided you for reporting maintenance issues. 

If after 24 hours, the property owner or manager has failed to contact you or provide an update on the repair status, please contact the Department of Neighborhood Services to make a complaint. You can do this by:

  • Calling the Unified Call Center/City Hall Operator any time at 414-286-CITY (2489) 
  • Calling the Department of Neighborhood Services customer service at 414-286-2268, Monday-Friday (except holidays), 7:30 AM-4:45 PM
  • Using the City of Milwaukee Click4Action
    • Select "DNS - Department of Neighborhood Services Requests"
    • Select "Building in Disrepair - Private Property"
    • Select "No heat" or "Insufficient heat," depending on your case
    • Alternatively, enter "heat" in the search field to quickly locate "No heat" or "Insufficient heat"
    • Complete the form -- make sure you provide a telephone number so we can contact you
  • Using the MKE Mobile Action App
    • Download the App for you Apple or Android device
    • Select "DNS - Department of Neighborhood Services Requests"
    • Select "Building in Disrepair - Private Property"
    • Select "No heat" or "Insufficient heat," depending on your case
    • Alternatively, enter "heat" in the search field to quickly locate "No heat" or "Insufficient heat"
    • Complete the form - make sure you provide a telephone number so we can contact you

Do not go days or weeks without reporting the heating issue to DNS. This will delay the ability to verify and issue an order of repair to the property owner.

What Should I Expect After Contacting DNS?

A DNS inspector will call you to discuss the case. DNS will then contact the property owner to determine the status of the repair.

Not all cases are the same. Some cases may involve a simple repair that the property owner is actively addressing. Other cases can be difficult, in which the property owner fails to address the issue and return our communication attempts.

If the property owner is actively repairing the matter, the DNS inspector will follow up with you to ensure heat is restored. Otherwise, the DNS inspector will schedule an inspection within 24 hours to verify the complaint. You will need to communicate with the inspector and provide entry into the unit to perform the inspection. If you fail to communicate with the inspector, it will delay the inspection and prevent verification of your complaint. Without verification, the inspector cannot issue a violation order to the property owner.

If the inspector writes an order, the deadline for compliance (restoring heat) will depend on the severity of the issue. DNS will not attempt to make a repair to the heating source.

How Do I Stay Warm While My Heat Isn't Working Properly?

Dress warm for the conditions in your apartment. Consider letting kitchen and bathroom faucets drip during very cold temperatures to keep water moving, reducing pressure and preventing pipes from bursting. While you wait for a heat repair, the temporary use of electric space heaters according to manufacturer guidelines (particularly placement of the space heater) is acceptable. Do not use kerosene or propane heaters indoors, as they emit carbon monoxide, which can be lethal,and are fire hazards. Likewise, the use of stove tops and ovens to generate heat are fire hazards, and natural gas-fueled appliances also emit carbon monoxide at a dangerous level when continuous operation surpasses recommended use.

Your safety is the bottom line. If conditions are too cold, relocate to a family member's or friend's home, hotel, or warming shelter. A list of warming shelters is available by calling 211, a southeast Wisconsin resource center. 211 also provides a searchable shelter database here.

I am Hesitant to Make a Complaint Because I'm Fearful of Landlord Retaliation

"Landlord retaliation" is an illegal action, such as eviction, raising rent, or reducing services after a tenant makes a building code complaint regarding their rental property. The landlord's intent is to punish a tenant for exercising their their legal right. Landlord retaliation is against the law (State of Wisconsin Statute 704.45). Your protection from landlord retaliation will last 12 months from the date a DNS order is issued.

If you suspect that you're a victim of retaliation, contact the DNS inspector who is handling your case. DNS will launch an investigation. Make sure to collect evidence that supports your case. You will need to documentation (copy of rent receipts, eviction notice, letters to move out any other pertinent information, etc.).

Also, stay fully paid and on-time with paying your rent. Once you fail to pay rent to the landlord, they may have legal standing to evict you.

How Will DNS Hold the Property Owner Accountable?

DNS is the building code enforcement agency of the City of Milwaukee, as determined by the State of Wisconsin. Therefore, DNS may only enforce what the State of Wisconsin, and secondarily, what the Milwaukee Code of Ordiances authorizes. There are tools that DNS has to penalize a property owner's failure to comply with orders. These may include reinspection fees and citations. Although you may contact DNS on matters related to heat, DNS may identify other code violations while inspecting the building in which you live, and subsequently issue orders.

Although an order is issued, the timetable for completing necessary repairs is solely based on the property owner's willingness to achieve compliance.

There are two other tools that may prove useful in no heat cases, or other code violation matters:

Landlord-tenant disputes (such as canceling a lease agreement, reimbursement for expenses you occur while without heat, or refunds of rent paid) are civil matters that DNS cannot help with because the State of Wisconsin has not provided DNS the authority to enforce civil disputes.

Is My Building in Danger of Being Shutdown?

In very extreme cases of no heat in which an emergency order is not brought into compliance or an immediate life-safety issue (such as burst pipes) is identified, DNS may "placard" a building. In a no heat case, a placard is the closure of units or the entire building due to unsafe living conditions. One a placard is issued, the affected units or building will remain unoccupied until the violations are brought into compliance. The cause could be a singular such as a broken furnace. Because the effects of no heat can compromise other building service,  creating secondary issues like loss of water or electricity. Similarly the loss of electricity  may lead to a lack of heat.  Alone or combined, these issues threaten life safety. A placard is an extreme measure only used when tenant safety is threatened. A placard is disruptive to your life, but DNS must prioritize your safety.

With the limitations of DNS's authority, the department cannot force the property owner to provide affected tenants with alternative accommodations or relocation after a placard is issued. If your building is placarded, Community Advocates will join DNS to help with your housing.

What are Tenant Resources Other than DNS?