Did you sign a lease (or anything) ?

I think he's worried about water leaks/flooding.

You could check if (your) renter's insurance would cover it.

Why are you upset? Did your landlord say you could hook up a washer & dryer before you signed the lease, then change his mind? You (presumably) signed a lease knowing that the apartment did not provide a washer/dryer. Did your landlord give you any indication that you might be able to hook up a washer & dryer? Did you ask about it before signing the lease? What does your lease say? Are your electricity & water included in your rent, or do you pay them separately?

A leaking washer can do a lot of damage (speaking from experience!). It also means increased water & electricity usage. Delivery of large appliances can also mean damage to the property (plus you would have to move them out eventually). As a landlord myself, I don't think your landlord is being unfair and would consider it within my rights to refuse permission to hook up a washer & dryer (or any other major appliance). But I would also be careful to write a lease that specified either that the tenant could not do so, or that the landlord's written permission is required to do so. If the lease says nothing about this (or if you don't have a lease), then it's bit of a gray area.

We signed a one year lease and want to renew it, but this is something that may cause a problem for us. The w/d was not mentioned to us and the lease says nothing prohibiting it. We pay all our own utilities in the apartment. The tenants downstairs have a w/d setup.
We do not have renter's insurance, but a friend of ours says that we could get it and the policy would cover any damages from the w/d units.
I'm just trying to figure out the landlord's absolute "no" answer: I want to understand their reasoning. We have a great relationship with the landlords and they both like and respect us (as far as we can tell). There must be something we can do to get them to okay this. How do other upstairs tenants get to have w/d units? Like I said, money isn't an issue. Installing overflow sensors, shut off valves, putting a pan in; whatever it takes. We paid a security deposit, so any damage moving the units in or out would be our responsibility. We aren't asking for them to buy the w/d either, and we would be sure to purchase new and quality appliances -nothing found on a street curb with a free sign on it.
Johnnieb, I agree, if it was such a steadfast rule of theirs, why wasn't it in the lease? A local realtor I know said that if the w/d hookups are there and the landlord doesn't say anything about it, it's fair to assume that it's okay to put in the units. I'm just trying to see if they are attempting to take advantage of us, as we are young and haven't lived in the city before and they have clearly changed their minds about the w/d since renovating the house.
Thanks for the feedback.

Before you say anything to you landlord, double check that renter's insurance would cover damage to the building if the washer leaked. My understanting is that renter's insurance just cover's the renter's belongings, not the building.

Joe

renters insurance can cover the landlords home, alot of buildings insist tenants carry it incase a waterbed or large aquarium bursts

the landlord might have had a bad expierience with a washer on a top floor before, a burst hose while nobody is home will do a great amount of damage, there is also the issue of noise and vibration the other tenants are sure to hear below your washer

First, are they being unfair? IMO, no. There's a big liability issue there. If you simply hooked up without permission, I would simply shut off the water to the faucets, which they may have already done. Have you checked?

You need to work it out with them. Is there a lower floor/basement room accessible to you to place your w/d? That could be a compromise. You don't really need to have it in your bathroom, do you?

I doubt that money is no object. If that were so, you'd simply buy the building from them. I doubt you want to do that.

I'd approch them. I certainly wouldn't accuse them of being unfair or anything and I'd explain that you understand the liability issues so they see you're sincere. Be sure you've educated yourself on the issues and options. Explain the importance of the appliances to you and that you'd do whatever you can to make them comfortable. Bring info on the various flood control items you're willing to go for and they can look it over. Get some info from your insurance agent that explains the coverage and that it'll cover and explain that you'll escrow with them the premium if they want to ensure that it's paid. You'll also assure them that if there's issues of vibration you'll replace them with machines that will satisfy them, etc. That might sway them. At least you can try to find out more on why you can't have it.

I think it'd be a big mistake to install without permission or be confrontational or whine about it. I don't think it'd work to your advantage. If you truly like the place and get them angry, you'll be out after your lease is up. After all, it sounds like they made a very substantial investment and I can easily understand their not wanting to take chances of damage, when you consider the amount of fires caused by dryers, the water damage, possible structural damage, etc. I know I'd be very careful if I were in their position.

I guess the other option is to ask them to let you out of your lease and go elsewhere, if it means that much to you. Perhaps they would be amenable to that as a last resort.

If it's not prohibited in the lease nor written in the condo/apartment rules and restrictions, and since you pay for all the utilities, then I see nothing to prevent you from legally or ethically hooking up a washer and dryer in a room that has existing connections in place specifically for their usage. Get a renters insurance policy that covers the liability for damage to your apartment and the building too, and enjoy your clean clothes.

I have been on both sides of the fence on this issue and I would suggest that instead of butting heads with the landlord, first talk to a good plummer. There are all sorts on things that address this issue that you can install. Water valves that are electrically controlled and controlled by water sensors, high pressure hoses, trayes for under the washer etc. Show the landlord that you are going to extreme lengths to prevent and or control any leaks and he will probably have a much better attitude.

I certainly would have assumed that if the place has the hookups, you'd be allowed to use them. I'm no attorney-clearly!

Thanks for the feedback. I hope I didn't give the impression that I'm going to whine or accuse them or go ahead and do it without permission. I'm very good with negotiations and we have a great relationship with the landlords. I'm just trying to hear what others think and what you'd do in this situation.
We are not going to buy the devices without clearing it with them first, for obvious reasons. I don't think it's a good idea to just put them in and assume it's okay, though a local realtor that I trust said it's perfectly fair to assume that if they don't tell you no in advance and it's not in the lease.
There is no access to the basement for us. The downstairs tenants have that as part of their unit, which by the way has a W/D setup and we can hear and feel shaking in our place. So I don't think that our noise and vibrations can be taken into consideration, since we have to live with their setup.
What I meant by money isn't an issue was that we are willing to pay for devices or high end appliances (not sure if there are units specifically for upstairs apartments that are known for guarding against potential issues). We really don't have an issue with money. We will pay whatever we need to in order to make this happen. This is the perfect place for us and it's only missing this one component.
Thanks for the advice about the plumber, I hadn't thought of that.
All this said, if we find the proper appliances, safety devices, speak with a plumber and get renters' insurance that will cover property damage due to any W/D malfunction and given that the tenants downstairs have a W/D setup (so they clearly don't have a problem with them altogether) then is there any reason (other than stubbornness or paranoia) for them to say no? We are planning on talking with them about this before we sign the lease for next year, and I just want to know if I'm in the right on this one, even if in the end they say no. Thanks!

Mike, this is not an issue of being "in the right". If he told you you couldn't have a refrigerator, or a stove, or heat, that would be another thing entirely. But I strongly suspect that you are not entitled to a washer & dryer under the law (unless the lease you signed said so). As long as you're a tenant, living in somebody else's property, you have to live with what are (in my opinion) reasonable restrictions.

You can point out that your downstairs neighbors have a washer/dry but as a couple of us have already pointed out, a washer/dryer setup on the second floor is a bigger risk than one on the first floor because there's so much more potential for damage, so it's not really a fair comparison. If you can show your landlord that you will have renter's insurance that will cover damage to other units, not just your own, that may help your case. But there's one more possibility that I thought of later: the water and/or dryer vent to your unit may not be connected properly. He wouldn't tell you this, of course, but he also may not want to fix it if he doesn't have to--and he wouldn't have to until he decided to sell the place.

That said, a good tenant is a valuable commodity! I would try to accommodate a good tenant to keep him. Depending on where you live it can be difficult to find a new tenant--and until you do, you're losing money--and even more difficult to find a GOOD tenant. And you don't find out how good they are until they've rented from you for a while! If you have a good relationship with your landlord and you think he values you as tenants, you might let him know that this is a big enough issue for you that you might not renew your lease--not as a threat or a bluff, just to let him know you want a washer/dryer badly enough to look for another apartment to get one.

But I strongly suspect that you are entitled to a washer & dryer under the law (unless the lease you signed said no).

A washer/dryer setup on the second floor is a big risk because there's so much more potential for damage, but so is a gas range

Makes no sense that the landlord provides a washer/dryer connection in the 2nd-floor apt, then says that it can't be used. If that's the case, then the connections should NOT have been put there.