I think my old rental company is pulling my leg...

[Aloros]

Does anyone here have experience with getting their rental deposits back? I''ve always gotten nearly the full amount back from prior rentals, so when I got back $215 from an $800 deposit on my last place (400 pet, 400 normal), I was really surprised. I lived there for a year and three months. They charged me for painting, cleaning, and repairs (of something I couldn''t read, it was illegible). I always do a very thorough cleaning when I leave - I even moved into my new place a few days before my official move-out date so I could have the time to clean the place sans furniture.

I wrote back asking for receipts and for more of my deposit back - that this was no more than normal wear and tear. They sent the receipts and a letter stating that I owed them $650 more for replacement of the carpet - that it was heavily soiled with cat urine. Oh, and to pay up within 10 days or they were sending it to a collection agency.

My cat never peed on the carpet! And he wasn''t allowed into the bedroom unsupervised, so I don''t know how he possibly could have managed to sneak a pee in there. I''m just so angry that they would 1. imply that I am an irresponsible pet owner and 2. imply that I would actually live in those kinds of conditions.

Furthermore, I moved out on November 15, and they invoiced me for the carpet on January 25. The carpet was actually replaced on January 23. I saw the advertisement for my old apt. on their website, and it has been remodeled.

According to the civil code, I have to be invoiced within 21 days of my move-out date. There are some exceptions, but this meets none of them. Is there something I''m missing? Are they actually allowed to bill me for something 70 days after I move out? The carpet was pretty worn when I moved in. They didn''t even prorate the carpet replacement charge, just billed me the full amount. I feel like they may be trying to scare me off so I don''t take them to court.

I wish I''d taken photographs of the way it looked when I left. I even wiped up after my feet on my way out. I just naively assumed I would get my deposit back.

I hope after we buy our first house that we never have to rent again. This has been my first bad experience, and it has just turned me off the whole thing altogether.

 

[steph72276]

Oh man. So sorry you''re having to go through that. Do you have the lease agreement? In it, it should state all the terms of your deposit. It doesn''t sound right that they could come back 70 days later.

 

[Sabine]

I have no advice, but wanted to say that rental companies are evil, and I feel for ya! We now use something called "Sure Deposit" where we pay a one time fee (I think it was like $135) to an outside company, and we DO NOT get it back, but the company pays for any fees that occur from normal wear and tear, including carpets, painting, etc. We''ve learned that rental companies will take as much of your money as they can, so it was just easier for us to pay the one time fee. (Although I have to add, our current apartment management is pretty wonderful...we switched apartment buildings from a non-pet building to a pet building, and they let us transfer the sure deposit so we wouldn''t have to pay again!)

 

[neatfreak]

What state are you in? I volunteer at a tenant center, but unfortunately only knows the laws in Wisconsin. But civil code and local ordinances DO full apply. See if there is a tenant help center in your state and call them. It''s likely that what they are doing is illegal, but you''ll have to fight them for it in small claims court. The burden will be on them I believe to justify why they are doing this...

 

[partgypsy]

I''m not sure how it is where you live, but in IL you have to state in writing in 30 days if taking anything from deposit.
There are some law abiding landlords out there, and there are some crazy landlords who will give back the deposit only if it''s pried from their dead hands.
I know this because my sister and I rented an apartment for a year, notified the landlady well ahead of the end of our lease we would not be renewing and she became the landlady from hell. When we moved out we even had our Dad there to help us move, and believe me it looked better than when we moved in (when we moved in the entire inside of the refrigerator was covered in black mold).
So a month goes by, another month, we call her asking for our deposit back and are met with expletives. She then sends us an invoice that surprise surprise with late fees, cleaning fees that total exactly our deposit. We have our Dad''s lawyer call her, and she says such things as "go f*ck yourself" to him. The lawyer said we had a claim as she only notified us of these charges after 30 days, but it wasn''t worth it to deal with a crazy lady. Every other place I''ve lived I''ve gotten the deposit back however.

 

[fisherofmengirly]

We did the sure deposit thing, too. My old apartment charged me $100 for drip pans on the old stove in the kitchen. Please! They weren''t dirty, and they only cost like 2 bucks each!! If they had looked a mess, I would have switched them out myself. This is part of where rental companies get their money but it sure doesn''t make it fair!!

Good luck fighting them; I''d sure at least try! (Sometimes just the threat has a big effect, if you do some research first and know your rights and the laws where you live.)

 

[crown1]

hi! my opinion is you got the bill because you approached them for your deposit back. i feel the same as you about leaving a place in spotless condition but it is rare that it is rewarded. i don''t think most rentals intend to give deposits back as most people don''t leave places in good order and they are out to get any dollars they can.

instead of addressing your issue they decided to go after you. i think they count on the fact that most people don''t want the hassle and will just forget the deposit. in your case they seem to be trying to stick it to you for rattling their cage. if you are confident that the carpet did not have cat urine on it you could fight it but they may have some carpet that they have saved and even possibly put urine on it that they will offer up if you fight it.

they could also be hoping you will just say let''s call it even. at any rate, without proof that the place was clean and without damage it may be hard to get the deposit back.

 

[sunkist]

Aloros, this happened to me once when I rented in college. They charged me for paint, carpet cleaning, & cleaning of the apartment. I wrote them a letter that I was VERY proud of! I found online the Renter''s Law for California and cited in the letter that law states that the rental deposit may not be used for normal wear and tear on the apartment. The apartment owners must re-paint like every 2 years I think it was and clean the carpet before a new tenant moves in. This cost may not be taken out of your deposit, it is the responsibility of the apartment owner. Normal wear and tear is not your responsibility, it is that of the owner. Normal wear to the carpet, etc. is not allowed to be taken out of your deposit. Only damage, such as holes in the wall, tears in the carpet, big stains, broken windows, you know - damage - is allowed to be taken out of your deposit.

When I had moved in to the apartment there were pin holes in the walls and some stains on the carpet. I cleaned the apartment before I moved out and I know I left it in better condition than when I had moved in!

I think you need to look up your states renters law, cite it in a letter them, and demand your deposit back by a certain date mailed to a specific address. In my letter I told them that they are rental owners, they are required to know the law.. And from what your story, it looks like your land lords are violating law and taking your deposit unlawfully.

Anyway, that''s what I did and I got my full refund back.

 

[iheartscience]

Wow, that makes me soooo mad! I would definitely research your local laws further. Where I live, the landlords MUST repaint every year, so there''s no way they could charge for that.

I would send a very offical looking certified letter (do you know a lawyer who could type it up for you on official letterhead?) pointing out that there was absolutely no cat urine on the carpet, as well as any of the local laws that protect tenants like you. It sounds like you already know they''re not able to invoice you after such a long period of time.

I''m sure you''re not going to, but I definitely would NOT pay them! Getting the money back from them would probably be a lot harder than disputing anything that may show up on your credit report.

 

[luckystar112]

Thank God we live in a house now, but I''ve had this experience in every apartment I''ve ever lived in. I think Houston is pretty much known for it. The last apartment I lived in, I didn''t even LIVE IN because I stayed at my FI''s house every single night. Literally, I got home from work, packed some clothes, went to FI''s, slept, went back to work, back to my apt for some more clothes, back to FI''s...etc. The apartment was basically a place to store my stuff. I even turned off the cable and electricity after like two months of living there.

Anyway, when my lease was finally up, I really wanted my deposit back, so I tried to clean it "extra" well. It was in no way dirty in the first place. I remember I spent a whole day scrubbing out the refridgerator (that was sort of funky before I ever moved in), and I even rented a carpet cleaning machine. Bottom line...that place was SPOTLESS.

I get a letter in the mail later saying that I owe them $250 because they had to replace the countertop in the bathroom. They said it had a big hair dye stain on it. Bull!!!!
Nope...didn''t take any pictures. Didn''t do anything to protect myself. I had to pay it!
I talked to someone later who said that the day you turn in your keys you should have the landlord or manager of the apartment complex come with you to the apartmen and do a walk-through. If a checklist is included in your lease, bring that too. Don''t leave without having it in WRITING that the apartment is in perfect condition.

If for some reason I''m ever forced to live in an apartment again, I''ll definitely follow that advice!

 

[Rhea]

Wow, I''d be so peeved. That''s an incredible amount of money and makes me think that maybe that landlord ran over on remodelling charges and needs to find a way to get some of it back.

I have no advice, just chiming in that has never happened to me and I''d try to find a way to fight it without spending too much money in the process.

 

[Patiently_Waiting]

Date: 2/2/2008 12:05:00 AM
Author: thing2of2
Wow, that makes me soooo mad! I would definitely research your local laws further. Where I live, the landlords MUST repaint every year, so there''s no way they could charge for that.

I would send a very offical looking certified letter (do you know a lawyer who could type it up for you on official letterhead?) pointing out that there was absolutely no cat urine on the carpet, as well as any of the local laws that protect tenants like you. It sounds like you already know they''re not able to invoice you after such a long period of time.

I''m sure you''re not going to, but I definitely would NOT pay them! Getting the money back from them would probably be a lot harder than disputing anything that may show up on your credit report.

Aloros - definitely research your local laws further. I don''t understand how it would be okay for them by law to charge you for those things, especially when you left the place in better condition than when you moved in. My SO had an issue with getting a security deposit back once. By law (state of DE), you have 30 days to provide either an itemized list of witholdings from the security deposit or provide the deposit in full OR the landlord then must provide the tenant with 2x the security deposit past 30 days. He never got an itemized list or deposit w/in 30 days, so he had a lawyer draw up a simple letter and ended up getting 2x the deposit back. It''s definitely worth a shot - good luck and let us know how it turns out.

 

[Aloros]

I sent them a rebuttal letter letting them know, basically, that I knew they were lying about my cat urinating on the carpet and that their futher charge was illegal (and I cited the civil code stating this!).

I told them, in closing, that I wanted my deposit back within 10 business days or I would be taking them to court.

We''ll see what they do with that. I''d hate for it to come to a court case, since I''m a very busy woman, but their dishonesty and blatant disregard have me so riled up that I just don''t have any other choice.

I think they really shot themselves in the foot, trying to pin an extra charge on me 2.5 months later and AFTER I wrote them a letter asking for more of my deposit back. It comes across as an obvious bullying tactic.

Just....GRRRRRR!

 

[bee*]

You definitely did the right thing by sending that letter. Hopefully they''ll just send you the deposit back without it going any further.