Apartments For Rent In Ohio

Ohio landlord hit with rare charge in CO deaths

On their last night together, Tammy McDaniel and her three kids nuzzled under blankets in the living room of their shabby rental home, warmed by a space heater powered by a portable generator in the kitchen. McDaniel's relatives had no idea her new place didn't have heat or electricity -- until the next morning, when her landlord found all four dead from carbon monoxide fumes.

The landlord, Steven Snow, is charged with four reckless homicide counts, highlighting the increasing accountability being put on building owners whose tenants live in dangerous conditions. Nearly half of all states now have laws requiring property owners to install detectors for the deadly gas.

Investigators in Ohio say Snow didn't intend to harm anyone but knew the dangers of running a generator when he gave it to the family in the rental home near downtown Toledo. He also removed it from the house before police arrived, they said.

Snow has pleaded not guilty and could face 20 years in prison if convicted. A judge on Monday postponed a pretrial hearing because Snow's attorney was sick.

Snow insists that McDaniel told him she was at the house March 22 waiting for the electricity to be turned on and that he dropped off the generator to warm the place up temporarily. He told The Associated Press in an interview the day of his indictment that he didn't know she planned to stay overnight.

"All I was trying to do was to give them a better house and a better place," said Snow, who had known McDaniel for 20 years and said he thought of her and the children as family.

Family members of McDaniel say Snow knows he made a mistake and needs to be held accountable.

"Tammy didn't make the right decision, and she paid the ultimate price," said McDaniel's sister Tonia Wertz. "We don't want him on death row, but he has to hold some responsibility."

McDaniel lived paycheck to paycheck, washing dishes at a restaurant part-time so she could keep her nights free to take care of her children -- Damien Reyes, 18; Domonique Reyes, 16; and Taralynn Wood, 10. She didn't own a car so she rode the bus to work.

They didn't have a lot, neighbors said, but the children always had coats and gloves in the winter.

Snow bought the house in December and was fixing it up because it had been vacant for a couple of years. Boards were nailed over broken windows in the back, and thieves had stripped off some of the aluminum siding.

Apartments Rent Lakewood Ohio | Rent Hot Spot

As an apartment or condo association, your board has to make some tough decisions. One of the toughest – what property management option to choose. And anyone who’s been put through the paces by an incompetent or untrustworthy manager understands the risk the wrong choice can be.

Take the example of Ohio-based condo association Lakewood Condominium Association, which is suing their property management group on allegations of stealing over $830,000 and allowing overdue association bills to go unpaid. The property management group is charged with, among other things, lying about the association having over $217,000 in CDs in the bank. The CDs, according to court documents, were withdrawn in January 2006, and over $378,000 in reserve funds remain missing.

 It’s hard enough deciding to hire an outside firm to manage the property. The impact on profits is significant enough that many associations opt to handle the management side in-house. But if the task is too much for your association to handle, there are ways to approach hiring an outside firm that can help lessen your risk.

Determine your needs:

When looking for a manager, ask the following questions:

Get and check references. Also, make sure the company has a physical location and visit it. Expect your property manager to be present at board meetings. Work with the manager to establish a transparent financial relationship so that your association doesn’t become a victim. For more help in building a sound property management process, give us a call.

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