Can't get LOS

948 Views 11 Replies 5 Participants Last post by wesmills, Jul 21, 2008

Justin23

Discussion Starter · Jul 20, 2008

I just had my install appointment and my worst fears were confirmed, I don't have LOS from my apartment porch. The tech was very helpful and said he can probably get LOS by mounting it on a pole outside. I live on the first floor and the pole mount would be behind a bush and out of the way of the normal foot traffic and lawn mowing equipment. The only problem is that a pole mount outside my "exclusive area" does not fall under the OTARD rule. Plus my lease clearly states that a dish can not be mounted in a common area. Now there is an apartment that has their dish mounted to their balcony railing which is also stated in the lease that is not allowed. How should I approach the complex management to try and get my dish (3LNB) pole mounted? Thanks.

J

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harsh

· #2 · Jul 20, 2008

Tell them what you want and see what they say. Don't confront them or get argumentative.

They may be willing to overlook the railing mount in the interest of satisfying OTARD.

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Justin23

Discussion Starter · #3 · Jul 20, 2008

Does OTARD state that the complex can't allow one exception without allowing them all?

J

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litzdog911

· #4 · Jul 20, 2008

Justin23 said:
Does OTARD state that the complex can't allow one exception without allowing them all?

J

That is, of course, the big risk for your complex management. They may be unwilling to grant you an exception for fear that others will jump on too. The only way to find out is to ask. You're certainly at greater risk if you act without prior permission. You might also see if you can move into another unit with LOS from its balcony/patio.

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Justin23

Discussion Starter · #5 · Jul 20, 2008

Well they have already taken a risk by allowing another apartment to mount it outside of the "exclusive area". I will speak to them Monday and see what happens. Has anyone had luck with asking their complex for an exception to the "exclusive area" part of OTARD?

J

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litzdog911

· #6 · Jul 20, 2008

You will find some posts here from folks who've been successful in negotiating with their landlords. But many more from folks who have not. You might want to be prepared to "sweeten the deal" by offering a bit of extra rent, or signing an agreement that you'll repair any damage.

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Justin23

Discussion Starter · #7 · Jul 21, 2008

Has anyone else been through what I have? There are dishes in common areas but the landlord won't let you install in a common area?

J

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wesmills

· #8 · Jul 21, 2008

Justin23 said:
Has anyone else been through what I have? There are dishes in common areas but the landlord won't let you install in a common area?

J

Yes, I have. I used to live in an apartment complex that, prior to my moving in, seemed to allow satellite dishes pretty much wherever the resident decided to place one. I saw pole mounts in flower pots, clamps to railings, and even a Dish network setup with two dishes firmly mounted directly to the side of the building with cabling strung halfway across the front to reach a middle unit with the cables going through two drilled holes in the wall. :eek2:

All of this was after the OTARD rule went into effect in 1999. Therefore, when I got DirecTV, I figured there was no problem with the installer using a couple of U-shaped clamps and some sturdy bolts to affix my round dish to my southern-facing outside stair rails. My apartment was the only one at the top of the steps, and I even used a piece of flat coax so he didn't have to drill. All of this seemed like it should be fine, based on everything else I saw.

Two months later, either when a new manager took over or somebody from corporate finally got around to doing an inspection (I have no idea which), I got a letter taped to my front door demanding that I remove my dish within 5 days or it would be taken down and disposed of for me. Talking to the office had no effect; either pull the dish or ... pull the dish.

I didn't.

The dish was still there--just like every other dish in the complex except two (the two mounted firmly on the side of the building)--when I moved out over a year later.

The moral of the story is that it might be better to get forgiveness than ask permission, but can you afford to antagonize your landlord? Hiding behind the "everyone else is doing it" excuse may very well work, and if you ask first you may get told no. If it were me, especially if the install can be made to look unobtrusive (paint the pole green to blend in with the bushes, put the dish as low as possible, etc), I'd go ahead and do it, but with the expectation that I might be buying myself out of a DirecTV service commitment if my management gets upset with me.

Oh, and be sure to be a perfect tenant from then on out. Don't give them a reason to get all nit-picky on you. Excellent tenants have the discretionary rules enforced against them a lot less often than troublemakers.

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Justin23

Discussion Starter · #9 · Jul 21, 2008

Thank you for sharing your story. I still need to figure out what to do because as far as I have seen there only one dish in a "common area". It is affixed to his balcony railing but it is clearly sticking out of his "exclusive area". Another issue is that person with that dish is the courtesy officer for the complex. So, I might be fighting an uphill battle.

J

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Starchy77

· #10 · Jul 21, 2008

I would take wesmills advice. I lived in an apartment complex that would only allow installation up to 3 feet off of our personal area. The DTV installer told me it had to be mounted about 6 feet off the porch, he spoke to the management office (unfortunately I was not there when he installed), they told him no he couldnt and he left. I called the management office and was told the same thing. I called the installer back and (lying to him) told him that I spoke to the management office and cleared it with them that he could install it. He came back to the apartment, installed it and left. I never heard a single complaint from management about it. I lived there for about 3 years and never had any problems, so I guess it was ok (even got my full deposit back + interest!). So I think as long as you are a good tenant otherwise, hopefully they will give you some leeway with your install. Good Luck!

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Justin23

Discussion Starter · #11 · Jul 21, 2008

I just spoke with my property management. She said the outside pole mount was not allowed and she was going to speak to the tenant that has the dish installed on his balcony railing. That sucks because I wasn't trying to get the guy in trouble. She was willing to try and cut back some of the tree growth so I could try to get LOS. I rescheduled my install appt for this Friday and had the CSR make a note on the work order that the tech needs to let them know how much tree growth to cut back. Hopefully it will work out!

J

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wesmills

· #12 · Jul 21, 2008

Justin23 said:
I just spoke with my property management. She said the outside pole mount was not allowed and she was going to speak to the tenant that has the dish installed on his balcony railing. That sucks because I wasn't trying to get the guy in trouble. She was willing to try and cut back some of the tree growth so I could try to get LOS. I rescheduled my install appt for this Friday and had the CSR make a note on the work order that the tech needs to let them know how much tree growth to cut back. Hopefully it will work out!

J

I didn't see your first reply until this one, but I wanted to point out that you were probably out of luck from the get-go. Most courtesy officers are well-acquainted with the people in the office, and usually get some privileges for providing their service (most often reduced rent, but sometimes free perks like parking spaces, a garage or relaxed deposit and other rules). If this person was the only one with their dish in an unapproved location, it's very likely with the blessing of management.

I highly doubt the other person--courtesy officer--will get in trouble. You were probably told that she would talk to the other person so you would not be upset at the officer being treated more favorably. I'm sorry it worked out like that. Hopefully the tree trimming will be useful. If it's just a branch or two, perhaps you can spot the maintenance person running around on the golf cart and ask him to lop a couple off real quick, in exchange for a beer or a $20?

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