Tenants use court escrow accounts to withhold rent for landlord repairs

Several U.S. states have given tenants a legal way to pressure landlords who refuse to make repairs. It is called rent escrow.

When a landlord fails to fix serious problems, a tenant can ask a court for permission to pay rent to the court instead of the landlord. A judge must approve this first. The court holds the money until the repairs are done, then decides how much the landlord receives.

Tenants must keep paying into escrow or they can still face eviction. They cannot use this process if they caused the damage themselves. In Ohio, rent escrow is the only legal method tenants have for withholding rent. Landlords can ask the court to release the funds if they believe repairs are complete.