Oh I am BEYOND furious!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chad just told me that I had a certified letter from my apartment complex so right away I was expecting bad news...

Instead of getting my $250 deposit back I only got $89.94

Now- if it was deserved that would be another thing, but I left my apartment in 99.999% perfect condition. The only thing I was worried about was my walls- I had hung pictures but I filled those holes & I also spot cleaned every wall in that dang place, besides the walls are fine according to them.

Their problem is "torn laundry vinyl" on my laundry room floor. First of all, it wasn't torn/ripped/cut/anything. Right before I turned my keys in I did another quick run through of my apartment including hand-wiping that floor with Clorox wipes- I didn't see anything that would raise alarm.

Anyone will tell you I was paranoid the entire time I lived there that something would get damaged or ruined and I wouldn't get my deposit back- I was meticulous about that place!

Oh I am just so furious!!!

According to this letter I'm supposed to respond "by mail within 7 days after receipt of same (the letter/check), otherwise you will forfeit the amount claimed for damages." (Which is $160.06)

I am SO going there tomorrow- no way am I going to just mail a letter and wait another month for some type of reply. One thing though- the "...you will forfeit the amount claimed for damages." part, does that mean they are just withholding that $160 until I file a claim or something??? I'm confused by that part.

I have no idea how to handle this. The vinyl wasn't damaged when I moved in OR when I left, but I don't have any pictures to prove anything

What do you all think I should do!?

First of all you need them to give you access to the apartment so you can see what they're talking about!!!!

Unfortunately if they say it's damaged and you can't prove that it wasn't when you left you may be in trouble

Did you take photos of everything before you turned in your keys?? Use that as evidence if you did

I know some agencies refuse to give back the full deposit even though it's warranted. I've only ever gotten my full deposit back from one rental agency in all of the years that I've been renting.

Something to know for next time....

Take pictures, or better yet a video, of the place before you move your stuff in. And after you've moved your stuff out and have cleaned... take another video or more pictures. This way you have tangible proof of the condition you left it in.

Unfortunately unless you have proof of the condition, I don't think there is anything much you can do unless you have witnesses, but even then it's basically their word against yours.

Well that was my first time renting an apartment and my last (hopefully!) considering I moved out of there because we bought a house...

I didn't take any pictures either

MAN! I should've taken pictures and I knew it too. *sigh* I'm gonna call there first thing in the morning tomorrow & figure out what the heck I have to do. Lucky for them I got the letter after business hours and have had time to cool off because I was NOT a happy camper!!!! I'm still not but I'm no longer plotting out my revenge anymore either

I'm gonna do everything I can & believe me- I can be persistant! But I know the odds are stacked against me without pictures....

I literally feel like they stole my money!

You go get em!!!! I HATE when rental agencies screw around tenants!

Yep, try and fight for your rights!!! That is ridiculous!!

Goodluck, keep us posted.

I hear ya on that! I moved out of my last apartment on August 2 and I still haven't received my deposit...state law mandates that I be given the ENTIRE deposit (about $780) because they did not send me anything within 45 days since I moved out (they either had to send an itemized letter stating any damages, or the deposit check minus damages).

I'm still waiting for the check.

I'm sorry that you feel like they hosed you. To be honest, I never expect to get any damage deposit back. They say it's refundable but it's not really. They always have their people come in and re-clean everything to make sure it's really clean for the next tenants and they do repaint every change of resident, and that doesn't come out of their profit.

The worst was the scam that one of our previous apartments pulled on us. We didn't get anything from them in the month or so after we moved, and life got in the way and we forgot. 9 months later, I get a call from a collection agency who inform me that they have been trying to contact us for 6 months (which was BS) since we never replied to the letters sent by the apartment complex (also BS - we never got any) and now this has been reported to the credit bureaus (that was true). They charged us $1000 for carpet replacement (which I definitely would have fought, because the carpet was at LEAST 6 years old - average life of apartment carpets is 5 years under normal wear and tear). Oh, but if we could come up with 75% in 24 hours they would accept that settlement. Funny, as soon as we paid it they could get their mail to us with no problem, but apparently for 9 months it got lost on the way. But how exactly do you prove that you didn't get something in the mail when they have "copies" in their files? What a total scam that was!

Well I called there this morning. There's no point in me going there at lunch time because the manager I spoke to said that my letter/claim HAS to come through the mail. I can't even hand deliver it to ensure that she gets it.

So now I"m trying to write this stupid letter but I can't even figure out how or what to say without saying too much or too little. I most definitely can't write what I REALLY want to say

I asked what happens after she gets the letter, she said she'll pull my file & the previous tenants records, look everything over & make a decision. Then I asked what happens if I still disagree with her decision & she said we go to court.... FINE WITH ME! I will! I don't care if it's only $160, it's the fact that they are withholding MY money from me for damage I did not cause.

Sheesh....

Originally Posted by SarahBeez

Well I called there this morning. There's no point in me going there at lunch time because the manager I spoke to said that my letter/claim HAS to come through the mail. I can't even hand deliver it to ensure that she gets it.

So now I"m trying to write this stupid letter but I can't even figure out how or what to say without saying too much or too little. I most definitely can't write what I REALLY want to say

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Make sure to register the letter - should only cost a couple of dollars - I'm not sure what it's called in the States, but it should be a normal postal (rather than courier) service.

It will have to be signed for so they can't lie, and also it tends to show people that you mean business (at least in my experience).

Yeah, Sarah make sure it's certified mail, return receipt requested, and send it priority mail too this way they'll get it in a day or 2 (since you have 7 days to reply). Keep copies of your letter, the certified tracking #, and when you get your green card back signed for the ret receipt keep that too. Sorry you have to go through this. We didn't have a security deposit, thank God. It all seems like a scam to me. Good luck.

I would ask for copies of the reciepts that total that amount withholding from you.

Research tenant rights in your state...most states allow you to dispute charges and if you have to seek legal counsel and it's proven that they are in the wrong, they have to pay those fees as well.

I would fight it with all you have. Good luck!!!

Btw, most states also have laws where the landlords cannot charge tenants for cleaning or repairs of any sort, unless it's above and beyond normal wear and tear (i.e., you spilled paint on the carpet, you painted the walls and didn't repaint before leaving, etc.)

Do you by any chance have a friend that could write up a letter for you on a lawyer's letterhead? Bet you get your money back.

Well I am making a trip to the post office today at lunch to mail this stupid thing. I could do it from here- we have the form to mail certified but it would take 12 stamps if I did it!!!!!!!

I'm going to just have to wait and see what happens. My letter is 2 pages long & I made it a point to say how angry I am about the entire situation and the fact that it has to all go through the mail "in order for Thornridge to draw the matter out and not take care of the situation promptly."

As for the lawyer.... depending on what the results are of this letter I may have a REAL lawyer write them a letter!!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by SarahBeez

Well I am making a trip to the post office today at lunch to mail this stupid thing. I could do it from here- we have the form to mail certified but it would take 12 stamps if I did it!!!!!!!

I'm going to just have to wait and see what happens. My letter is 2 pages long & I made it a point to say how angry I am about the entire situation and the fact that it has to all go through the mail "in order for Thornridge to draw the matter out and not take care of the situation promptly."

As for the lawyer.... depending on what the results are of this letter I may have a REAL lawyer write them a letter!!!!!!!!

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Please tell me you have a copy of that letter. You might need it for future reference. And as far as sending things to someone, You have a right to ge back and have them show you what they thought they could charge you for, it's a law here. They can't deny you because how do you know that they didn't rip it after you left and decide to charge you for it??
You need to go over there asap and make them show you exactly what they are charging you for, item by item. Otherwise they need to give you back your deposit. Being a landlord myself, I know this. So please don't loose your deposit, go get your money honey!!!

Oh I saved the letter- I typed it on the puter so I have it on here plus a hard copy. Had to let everyone else read it

I think I might call today and talk to the manager that I sent the letter to- I want to know if they've already replaced the floor or what. I would like to see it but if it's already done then....... supposedly they have pictures so I guess those will have to suffice.

Personally, if there was a crack or tear in that floor I think it's due to the age of the vinyl. There was a tear in my bathroom but I glued it down so it wouldn't get worse.... how the hell do you tear vinyl!? I think it should be obvious by the condition of the rest of my apartment that I didn't tear the flooring- sheesh!

I can't wait to hear what they say so I will probably call today! I'll keep ya posted... by the way- are you in Michigan too?

Originally Posted by emrldsky

Research tenant rights in your state...most states allow you to dispute charges and if you have to seek legal counsel and it's proven that they are in the wrong, they have to pay those fees as well.

I would fight it with all you have. Good luck!!!

Btw, most states also have laws where the landlords cannot charge tenants for cleaning or repairs of any sort, unless it's above and beyond normal wear and tear (i.e., you spilled paint on the carpet, you painted the walls and didn't repaint before leaving, etc.)

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I would also make a call to your State Attorney General to find out for sure if there is a government agency that handles landlord/tenent disputes or if you can make a complaint thru the AG. I think 7 days to respond is not enough time and should be looked into.