It sounds normal to me if your unit is undersized or undercharged or faulty ductwork or high traffic or cooking & baking or doors open or a computer server.

It's hard to say without knowing more details.

A perfectly sized, charged & clean unit shouldn't have a problem getting temps lower than 83, if your house is insulated properly, doors are closed etc.

I'd call the maintenance person or company & have them roll a tech.

I don't know the tons of the outdoor unit, but it's not big. It might be about 2 to 2 1/2 feet tall, same in the width I think. House is about 986 sq feet. No trees for shade, so sun beats on house all day, and there is an attic.

Does it look like this? This was like my Ruud AC from 1986. Every new build in my neighborhood got one in 86. Mine was a 1.5 ton unit which I bet you have the same. I'd gamble to say yours needs cleaned & serviced. Call maintenance & have them send an AC service tech.

Like in Texas, with your climate a slightly oversized unit might be best if the owner is willing to replace it.

Post brand, model, model number, and age...when was it last serviced?

IMO

A properly sized and functional AC system should be able to cool the house to 75 degrees. Your AC needs to be serviced.

here is a pic of unit outside

On a rainy/dreary day, I can keep the house a comfortable 78 degrees. But on a hot/humid day, no clouds, 96 degrees outside, with a feel like temp of 109, 83 degrees is the coolest inside.

My landlord came over and checked out air. Said the air handler inside needs to be cleaned. I was using the white filters, and he told me the blue ones work better for this central that is in the house. Is that true? Oh, and the unit outside and air handler were installed brand new 3 1/2 yrs ago.

Is the coil inside the air handler dirty? Is the landlord going to hire someone to clean it? A dirty coil is going to affect performance but I am skeptical this will solve the problem.

Not sure which filter you were using. The blue ones are less restrictive. Use the filter the landlord recommends so there is no excuse when the AC cannot lower the temperature below 83 degrees when it is 93 outside.

The landlord himself is coming to clean it. He does most of the maintenance on his rental properties. I plan to get the blue filters, and will update in a week or so as to whether cleaning made a difference or not. Appreciate the feedback.

Can u measure the air handler in/out temps? I suppose they could be fine

I am not sure how to do that.

Get a meat thermometer and stick it in the return grill where the filter is, and then in one of the supply vents. Post your temperatures.

How often did you replace those white filters? And how high of a MERV were they? Standard pleated filters are the sweet spot for catching allergens/dust and allowing airflow. If you have too restrictive of a filter then you don't get the airflow, if you use the fiberglass blue filters then you wont stop any allergens/dust. Switching to the blue filters for now to test the AC is ok but the standard white filters are much better for air quality in the future.

I replaced the white filters monthly. That's my concern with using the blue filters, no dust or allergens being caught. My landlord said I would need to replace the white filters weekly if I wanted to continue using them.

I have a meat thermometer. I will do that and post pics.

When checking those temps you also need to know the indoor relative humidity as it has a big effect on he indoor temp-drop-split.

Walmart has a god digital humidity gauge for around $8.00; everyone needs an indoor humidity gauge.

Also, check the temp-rise off the outdoor condenser above the outdoor temp. That shows you how much total sensible 'plus latent heat' is being ejected to the outdoors.

this is the temp where filter is.

this is temp at vent

Around 3pm yesterday, it began to rain, and was dreary the rest of the day, so it was nice in the house. Pic above is temp outside as of right now, 2pm.

That's a 20+ degree delta which isn't too shabby. In fact it may be too high in a humid climate, suggesting your air flow is too low (either because the blower speed is too low or your filters are too restrictive). Get a cheap blue filter and see if it comes down. If not, you may need to have the blower speed increased (which may help cooling).

The landlord did suggest the blue filters. I wish they caught the dust and allergens in the house like the white ones do, but if using the blue ones will keep the house cooler, I might have to go that route. We didn't get much rain today, so it got up to 82 in the house again. I've gotten some what use to it, but some days, I would like to cool my house another degree or two.

At least it's working. Not much more you can do without gauges and a HVAC multimeter.

"At least it's working" LOL.

I would have to close my doors if I ever claimed 82 degrees was 'a working AC'.

Well, the filters have been switched, and i don't think it is helping. This is the temp outside, and the temp inside.