1. I appreciate Dennis and his service, but it is important to point out that, if you call at 9:01 am and get on the waiting list for answering questions for free, then you may not get a call back that same day. He has such a volume of calls that he HAS to be in a hurry.

2. I dont subscribe to his "concierge" service, not for the expense, but because the advice is still the same. The concierge service gets you a priority for call-in plus 5 minutes limited consultation.

3. I am CERTAIN that there is no privilege of freedom from rent withholding while "repairs are pending" because that would invalidate the basic principle of rent withholding. If you allowed the repairs to go on after being notified and not addressing them, then I expect that no excuse can be found for refusing to pay for substitute housing. You will find out if you actually file for eviction. Will you have a competent attorney take over the eviction suit for you? Dennis Block?

4. As for Dennis and his associate not managing to completely answer your question, you got what you paid for.

I would think that the tenants cannot withhold rent. This was found online, saying that the tenant still owes rent money even when it’s being withheld if your actions affect habitability. Courts require that the tenant put the money into an escrow account during the pending court case.

The following four sources would apply, according again to the same online finding.

Green v. Superior Court, 10 Cal.3d 616, 637 (1974)

Cal. Civ. Code § 1941 (2021)

Green v. Superior Court , 10 Cal.3d 616, 635 & 638 (1974) (internal citations omitted)

Salazar v. Maradeaga, 10 Cal.App.4th Supp. 1, 4 n.1 (Cal. Ct. App. 1992)

A similar incident happened to my mentor's apartment complex in Berkeley. The owner paid for a place for the tenants while their place was cleaned up after flooding. I believe that the tenants did not withhold the rent.