I contacted our landlord 5 days ago about our toilet running, she said she would let him know about it. We haven't heard from them, this has caused a $8.00 hick in our bill and we need it fixed. What is our next step? And when we moved here they told us they would the mowing for an extra $30.00 a month, after he mowed one time he told us it was $30.00 every time he mowed. That could run up to $120.00 extra month of which we do not have. We did not sign and rental agreement with them it was all word of mouth, the landlord is friend with my sister and I thought we could trust them. We have had to really bug them to get some other things fixed.

Have someone check out the back of the toilet. The innards of a toilet are pretty straight forward and you may just need a new flapper replaced for less than $3.

As for the lawn mowing you can buy a used mower and mow yourself. If you rent from a friend of a friend it should make no difference in getting cheated or not. Would suggest buying a mower and doing yourself or face the $120 a month mowing "charge" whether you agreed to it or not.

This is actually not a matter of law since there was no lease signed.

The toilet running issue does not make your dwelling uninhabitable. The mowing issues is he said/she said.

Tell the landlord if the toilet is not fixed within another week, you will have it fixed and deduct the cost from your rent.

As for the mowing, if they insist on the charge then do it yourself or hire a landscaper.