the essential
For three years, Michèle Andrieux-Cambon, 79, has lived in an apartment whose floor has subsided. Result: his furniture no longer closes and water infiltration increases. She took the lessor to court.
The kitchen ceiling is streaked with cracks, and the sink, rotted by humidity, needs to be replaced. The wall tiling requires complete renovation. The cabinets, which have become wobbly, no longer close properly. Air seeps under the windows, and the water in the aquarium leans dangerously to the left.
Michèle Andrieux-Cambon’s apartment, on the second floor of a dilapidated building, rue du Midi in Toulouse, looks like a tower of Pisa. In July 2021, the floor of his three-bedroom apartment suddenly sank. This problem arose after work was carried out on the lower floor. The former childcare worker has unforgettable memories: “It happened suddenly, like a mini earthquake. The floor, from the kitchen to my bedroom, moved. Even more worrying, a hole formed between the plinth and the floor of the supporting wall! I immediately alerted Toulouse Métropole Habitat. They reacted quickly to prevent everything from collapsing but it was only patches. is committed to rehabilitating my accommodation. Strictly nothing has been done.”
Seeing no way out and despite her modest income, the septuagenarian hired a lawyer to assert her rights. She took the social landlord to court.
She wants the semi-public company to carry out work to renovate her home and compensate her for the damage suffered. “At some point, we have to say stop. I can no longer stand living in these conditions. I pay rent and I live in a sloping apartment! Conciliation between lawyers has failed. I hope that we will quickly have a court date,” sighs the retiree.
Toulouse Métropole Habitat has inherited a catastrophic situation
She gained the support of many tenants. Around ten of them signed a petition demanding an emergency meeting with TMH technical services. “A building must be rebuilt opposite ours. We fear that the vibrations from the construction site will further worsen the condition of our residence,” warns Michèle Andrieux-Cambon.
The meeting never took place but it would be totally unfair to say that the social landlord was completely disinterested in the fate of these tenants. The public office has quickly recovered, like others in Toulouse, the management of this building in very poor condition. For the moment, although the lessor has not respected its commitments to the retiree and has contented itself with a few “cosmetic” operations in the rest of the building, it has allocated an envelope of 1,536,000 euros, or 80 842 euros per accommodation to completely rehabilitate the building.
Firstly, the project will consist of transforming this “energy sieve” into an insulated building according to the latest standards in force.
“We are going to replace all the boilers, insulate the facades and attics,” specifies TMH management. The HLM office will also take over all of the floors, including that of Michèle Andrieux-Cambon, as soon as the financing is released. Probably before the courts settle the dispute between the retiree and the social housing organization…
