Repair guide · Portland
Who Fixes a Broken Appliance in a Portland Rental: Landlord or Tenant?
Updated 10/29/2026
In Oregon, an appliance the landlord supplies is the landlord’s to keep in good repair. ORS 90.320 lists appliances among the things a landlord must maintain if the landlord supplies them or is required to. An appliance the tenant brought is the tenant’s.
The tenant’s part is to tell the landlord, in writing, what is wrong. Written notice is what the tenant remedies in ORS 90.360 start from, so it protects both sides. This page is general information, not legal advice.
Before you check anything
- If an appliance smells of gas, sparks, smokes or leaks onto wiring, stop using it, switch it off at its breaker or unplug it, and tell the landlord at once.
- If you smell gas, do not light anything and do not touch a switch. Leave the home and call your gas utility or 911 from outside.
- Do not open or repair an appliance the landlord owns: arrange the repair through the landlord.
Oregon law and Portland’s code
ORS 90.320 requires a landlord to keep a dwelling habitable at all times, and names appliances, along with ventilation and other facilities, as items to be maintained in good repair if the landlord supplies them. ORS 90.360 sets out what a tenant may do when a landlord does not comply after written notice, and ORS 90.365 covers essential services.
Portland adds its own Property Maintenance Regulations, Title 29 of the City Code, replaced by a new ordinance effective January 10, 2025, with a chapter on housing maintenance. Cities may set stricter rules than the state, so a Portland rental answers to both.
What you can check yourself
Whose appliance is it
The lease or the move-in checklist usually lists the appliances that come with the unit. Those are the landlord’s. A refrigerator or a washer the tenant brought is the tenant’s to repair.
Write it down
Send the landlord or the manager a dated message: which appliance, what it does, since when, and any code on the display. Keep a copy, and photos of any water or damage.
Make the simple checks
A tripped breaker, a GFCI outlet, a closed water tap or a control lock are not repairs. Checking them first saves everyone a visit; our guides list the checks for each appliance.
Stop the damage
Close the water supply to a leaking appliance and switch off one that sparks or smells of burning. A tenant who limits damage protects the deposit and the unit.
Agree access
A repair visit needs someone to let the technician in, or the landlord’s arrangement for entry under the notice rules of the tenancy law.
Food and losses
If a supplied refrigerator fails, note what spoiled and when you reported it. Whether a loss is covered depends on the facts, notice and the law, not on the appliance alone.
For landlords and managers
Answer the notice in writing, arrange the repair, and keep the invoice: it records what failed and what was done. A repair visit with a written diagnosis also shows whether a fault came from wear or from misuse.
For tenants
Give notice in writing and keep it. The remedies of ORS 90.360 and 90.365, and their deadlines, depend on the notice and on the kind of failure; read them, or ask a tenant organization or an attorney before acting on them.
When the landlord books and the tenant is home
When you book for a rental, say so in the description and name who will open the door, so the visit is arranged with the person who will be there.
What usually fails
- Refrigerators: fans, defrost systems and controls; the failure that costs a tenant food fastest.
- Washers and dryers in units: drain pumps, door locks, belts and heating.
- Dishwashers: drain and fill problems, often after a disposal swap.
- Ranges: igniters on gas models, elements and switches on electric ones.
- Garbage disposals: jams and leaks.
When to call for a repair
- A supplied appliance has failed and the simple checks change nothing.
- Water is leaking onto floors or below.
- A refrigerator is warm and food is at risk.
- A gas appliance smells of gas: leave, and call from outside first.
- An appliance trips its breaker or smells of burning.
What a repair visit involves
- Book online: choose the appliance, describe the problem and pick up to three times that suit you.
- We confirm one of your times by phone or text. You are not booked until we do.
- We come to your home, test the appliance and find the cause.
- You get the price before any repair begins. We repair it with your approval; if a part has to be ordered, we come back to fit it.
The diagnostic visit costs $89. If you go ahead with the repair, the $89 is applied toward it; if you decide not to repair, the $89 covers the diagnosis.
Our work and the parts we install carry a 90-day warranty. The terms are printed on your invoice.
Repairs in Portland
We repair appliances in rentals at home in Portland and across the Portland metro area. Enter your ZIP code when you book and the form checks it right away.
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Sources
The facts on this page come from these sources, checked when the page was written.