HOW DO YOU ASSERT A COUNTERCLAIM?

You have the right to say the landlord's failure to maintain the property after receiving your eviction notice as your counterclaim in the eviction.  The eviction is the landlord's claim against you, and the landlord's failure to maintain is your counterclaim against the landlord. 

To raise a counterclaim based on the landlord's failure to make required repairs you must file a written answer with the magistrate OR you must personally appear at the magistrate's court and have your verbal statement taken down. 

Attached at the bottom is a Counterclaim form that you can fill out to raise a counterclaim.  To prove your counterclaim, you need to be able to show (1) what needs repairs, (2) what notice you gave to the landlord about the need for repairs, and (3) what your damages are. 

To show what needs repairs, you will need photographs and witnesses who can testify to the condition of the unit. 

Damages can include money that you have had to pay out of pocket because the landlord did not make the repairs (e.g. you had higher electric or water bills than normal because the heating unit did not work correctly or because some part of the plumbing was leaking, like a toilet or sink). 

You should gather up copies of bills or receipts to show what you paid out of pocket.  Where the lack of repairs have made the unit less valuable, damages also can include the difference between what your rent is and what the unit is actually worth. 

For example, if you pay fair market rent of $800 but you cannot use part of the dwelling, then the fair market value of the unit may only be, say $500.  In this example, tour damages would be $300 for each month that the landlord has not made the required repair after you have given proper notice of the need for the repair.