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Old 01-14-2011, 09:00 AM
 
Location: Colorado
6,602 posts, read 9,155,980 times
Reputation: 8531

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I bought a house and broke my lease at my apartment. I honored my end of the contract, obviously, by paying a ridiculous penalty fee, etc., because I broke the lease. It was hard to time the house purchase just right so that the lease could end and closing could happen. While I didn't like the fee, I paid it because I signed the contract, after all.

Anyway, I got stranded on the East Coast on December 27 (flight canceled) and missed my walk through and couldn't get back to Denver before the lease ended. Luckily I had already cleaned, primed the walls, and had everything ready to go prior to leaving town for the holidays and called the apartment complex to let them know about my situation. In the past, they've been extremely reasonable and nice, and I always paid my rent on time and never caused any trouble. They said it was no problem but that they would need to enter the apartment to start preparing it for the next tenants.

Today I received my refund from my deposit. They were RIDICULOUS and charged me for just about EVERYTHING even though I KNOW the place was clean and in good shape because I CLEANED IT! Seriously, I spent five days cleaning the place after moving everything out. I shampooed the rugs, washed just about every surface, cleaned the bathtubs with bleach, etc.

I got penalized for:

  • dirty toilets. I scrubbed them and they looked good as new - seriously.
  • dirty dishwasher. same thing, I ran the dishwasher when it was empty with just some soap and also washed both the inside and exterior so it would be ready for the next tenant.
  • 'dirty' drip pans on the stove. I washed these, and they were used but not in terrible condition, but I didn't know that I was apparently supposed to replace these before leaving the apartment. My bad, I guess, even though it would have been nice to know that they were looking for this. I could have replaced these myself for much cheaper than what I was charged.
  • a tear in the linoleum on the kitchen floor near the stove. It happened when THEY replaced the stove in the apartment last year. In fact, I called to have them document the issue when it happened, but it looks like it was never documented.
  • replacing two sets of window blinds. I lived there for four years. The blinds and just about all of the other finishes in the apartment were cheapest of the cheap and low quality. The funny thing about this is that I asked to have some of the other sets of blinds replaced this past summer and they replaced them -- FOR FREE. So why would I have to pay NOW when they replaced others for free this past summer? Besides, they buy the lowest quality blinds, but certainly charge an amount that would make you think that the blinds are expensive.
  • 'soiled' carpets. Cheap carpet to begin with, but it was definitely NOT soiled. The high-traffic area by the door was evident, but it's not like I was any harder on the carpet than anyone else would be and it's not like the carpet needed to be replaced throughout the entire apartment.

So yeah, just a quick rant. I'm arguing about the tear in the linoleum (They charged me $50 for this) but everything else I'm just going to let go. Word of advice though: ALWAYS do a walk through! I'm SURE my apartment looked much cleaner/better than the majority that they see when people move out, but since I wasn't able to do a walk through, they absolutely scammed me.

I'm glad I own a house now. I'll most likely never rent from or recommend a corporate apartment complex again. The sad thing is that I recommended this complex to a few people here on City-Data, but after this move-out experience, I won't be recommending it again.

Last edited by cowboyxjon; 01-14-2011 at 09:10 AM..
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Old 02-07-2011, 04:07 AM
 
6 posts, read 28,795 times
Reputation: 19
You know what? This is great advice, but we did a walk through on move out with our last *Mod Cut* landlord, and all he did was stand in the kitchen. He didn't walk through or anything. When we asked him if he'd like to see more than the kitchen he said, I'm fine, and refused to look at anything else. He ended up taking us for $160 of our $200 deposit. We lived there only a year, cleaned the place top to bottom (was cleaner when we moved out than when we moved in), and even patched holes from prior tenants. Funny thing is, we have a track record of being excellent tenants. We loved at our other apartment for 5+ years and walked away with our full deposit. All landlords are required to do by law is show up to a walk through. They don't have to look at anything, sign any move out papers or anything. It is a gamble, really, because they will just turn around and take your deposit anyways. The sad thing is, laws are made to protect them, so fighting a landlord in court is a battle that would end up costing more money and time. I'd honestly rather just kick the landlord *Mod Cut* until I got my $160 worth.

Last edited by Ultrarunner; 02-07-2011 at 10:34 AM.. Reason: Language
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Old 02-07-2011, 07:43 AM
 
13 posts, read 103,064 times
Reputation: 20
Quote:
Originally Posted by cowboyxjon View Post
I bought a house and broke my lease at my apartment. I honored my end of the contract, obviously, by paying a ridiculous penalty fee, etc., because I broke the lease. It was hard to time the house purchase just right so that the lease could end and closing could happen. While I didn't like the fee, I paid it because I signed the contract, after all.

Anyway, I got stranded on the East Coast on December 27 (flight canceled) and missed my walk through and couldn't get back to Denver before the lease ended. Luckily I had already cleaned, primed the walls, and had everything ready to go prior to leaving town for the holidays and called the apartment complex to let them know about my situation. In the past, they've been extremely reasonable and nice, and I always paid my rent on time and never caused any trouble. They said it was no problem but that they would need to enter the apartment to start preparing it for the next tenants.

Today I received my refund from my deposit. They were RIDICULOUS and charged me for just about EVERYTHING even though I KNOW the place was clean and in good shape because I CLEANED IT! Seriously, I spent five days cleaning the place after moving everything out. I shampooed the rugs, washed just about every surface, cleaned the bathtubs with bleach, etc.

I got penalized for:

  • dirty toilets. I scrubbed them and they looked good as new - seriously.
  • dirty dishwasher. same thing, I ran the dishwasher when it was empty with just some soap and also washed both the inside and exterior so it would be ready for the next tenant.
  • 'dirty' drip pans on the stove. I washed these, and they were used but not in terrible condition, but I didn't know that I was apparently supposed to replace these before leaving the apartment. My bad, I guess, even though it would have been nice to know that they were looking for this. I could have replaced these myself for much cheaper than what I was charged.
  • a tear in the linoleum on the kitchen floor near the stove. It happened when THEY replaced the stove in the apartment last year. In fact, I called to have them document the issue when it happened, but it looks like it was never documented.
  • replacing two sets of window blinds. I lived there for four years. The blinds and just about all of the other finishes in the apartment were cheapest of the cheap and low quality. The funny thing about this is that I asked to have some of the other sets of blinds replaced this past summer and they replaced them -- FOR FREE. So why would I have to pay NOW when they replaced others for free this past summer? Besides, they buy the lowest quality blinds, but certainly charge an amount that would make you think that the blinds are expensive.
  • 'soiled' carpets. Cheap carpet to begin with, but it was definitely NOT soiled. The high-traffic area by the door was evident, but it's not like I was any harder on the carpet than anyone else would be and it's not like the carpet needed to be replaced throughout the entire apartment.

So yeah, just a quick rant. I'm arguing about the tear in the linoleum (They charged me $50 for this) but everything else I'm just going to let go. Word of advice though: ALWAYS do a walk through! I'm SURE my apartment looked much cleaner/better than the majority that they see when people move out, but since I wasn't able to do a walk through, they absolutely scammed me.

I'm glad I own a house now. I'll most likely never rent from or recommend a corporate apartment complex again. The sad thing is that I recommended this complex to a few people here on City-Data, but after this move-out experience, I won't be recommending it again.

My landlord did the exact same thing to me! I was charged for drip pans that were rusted and pitted to begin with and I was charged for cleaning things that I know where clean when I left. The sad thing is, the place was WAY cleaner than when I moved in. Aside from that, it was a ratty old trailer that probably wasn't worth the amount I paid to have it cleaned .

As for blinds and things like that, it may say something in your lease about them - in my case they are provided by the landlord as a courtesy and any damage to them is the tenant's responsibility.

What I have learned is to take pictures, or even better, make a video of you walking through the house to show the condition of everything at the time you are moving. If you can show your moving truck, boxes, etc. that's even better since they can't dispute WHEN you made the video.
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Old 02-07-2011, 08:16 AM
 
Location: St Thomas, US Virgin Islands
24,665 posts, read 69,424,020 times
Reputation: 26726
Quote:
Originally Posted by red_hatorade View Post
All landlords are required to do by law is show up to a walk through. They don't have to look at anything, sign any move out papers or anything.
I thought the whole point of a walk-through was so the LL and tenant both sign off. Although a walk-through and sign-off may not legally be required there seems no point in having a walk-through (pre or post move) if a check list isn't used and signed.
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Old 02-07-2011, 10:19 PM
 
Location: North
858 posts, read 1,795,597 times
Reputation: 1102
Our previous LL did that to us, never showed up for the walk-through and then proceeded to charge us for anything and everything... taking some $1,200 of our deposit without any reason and without any receipt. Unfortunately this state favors LLs and allows attorneys in small claims cases (they got a shark). Since we didn't have money for a lawyer, we settled, paying them more money!
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Old 02-09-2011, 01:00 AM
 
Location: When you take flak it means you are on target
7,646 posts, read 9,882,762 times
Reputation: 16450
As a LL, I provide a 4 page "cleaning checklist" and cleaning standards letter two weeks prior to the end of a tenancy. (This is assuming a positive parting, not an eviction.) Unfortunately 90% of the time it is ignored by the tenants - and as a result the premises are not cleaned to the required standards.

When we provide a unit to a new tenant it is in virtually perfect condition. Everything works, is spotlessly clean, paint touched up with no wall marks or nail holes. Toilets are spotless, ovens and refer are clean. Stoves look brand new.

Broken blinds are not normal wear and tear. Blinds don't normally break unless they are misused. The blinds in my house have lasted 20 years and look brand new. Carpet which is soiled must be cleaned, that cost's me money. Dirty appliances - and I mean crud in the corners, etc. are not wear and tear, it is a cleaning issue. A dent in a brand new refrigerator (as we recently experienced) is not wear and tear, it is damage - which can not be repaired without replacing the entire fridge. So if you don't want to buy me a new fridge, don't dent the nice new one I give you...

I expect things to be returned in the same way they are received. Other than a possible need to touch up paint or replace well used carpet the apartment should be move in ready. I have yet to find a single tenant who has left an apartment cleaned to standards. It takes my staff 30-60 minutes to properly clean a window and track. It takes someone at least an hour on their knees bent over to clean an oven, and another hour to fully clean a stove. I've had bath tubs that took 4 hours to recover. We've actually had to use oven cleaner to clean some tubs.

I have to pay cleaning people $15-18 a hour. If it takes us two days to properly clean a unit, that is a cost to me of perhaps $300 or more dollars. If you don't want to get billed "exorbitant" charges by us greedy landlords, please leave your unit according to specifications.
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Old 02-09-2011, 11:52 AM
 
Location: 2nd state in the union...
2,382 posts, read 4,577,620 times
Reputation: 1616
Quote:
Originally Posted by cowboyxjon View Post
  • a tear in the linoleum on the kitchen floor near the stove. It happened when THEY replaced the stove in the apartment last year. In fact, I called to have them document the issue when it happened, but it looks like it was never documented.
ALWAYS document things like that in writing.
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Old 02-10-2011, 08:52 AM
 
2,687 posts, read 7,382,000 times
Reputation: 4212
Exclamation document...

We email the Property manager w/everything, regardless of how small, that we find wrong w/our rental, everything, and we do it via email so we have a trail. If no response we call.
We're not paying another LL for a single thing we didn't soil or damage. We are excellent tenants and are tired of helping these Shysters upgrade their
units.
Koale
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Old 02-10-2011, 10:16 AM
 
27,203 posts, read 46,522,862 times
Reputation: 15651
The OP might think the blinds were for free but they or someone had to pay for it....

Having said that....How do you think or how could you believe that making a call to document an issue willl be documented without having it in writing.

One quick email to have it in writing. WE get a lot of phone calls from tenants and sometimes (in cases of late rent) I don't respond by phone or do both, phone and in writing to confirm what was said...because we keep a paper trail of everything.

We usually don't do walk throughs with the tenant on move out and if we do we don't sign off but we document everything by making lots of pictures. Usually we email them to the tenant right away so they also can see when they were made and we have them from the day they move out.

Some items are only noticed later when you have more time to check.

Last month we had a real "winner" move out! He first stated that he didn't need his sec. dep. back because we could keep it because he didn't allow us to show the place until he moved out and never answered our request for an inspection either, but since he was a good tenant for a couple of years, based on timely rent payement and courtesy on his side, we expected him to leave it as he stated "in same condition" as he moved in minus wear and tear....

Wow he was one of the worst and no wonder he was single...who wants to live with a dirty smoking ash tray who throws butts throughout the house, on the floor, window sills, etc...It cost us almost $ 1300 for cleaning, painting, hauling off stuff, etc. for only a 800 sqft home.

We also gave him the sec. dep. decuction notice within one day on his old address....no bother to go after this person for the additional money and we rented it within one day even though we rather not showed it in the condition it was a person wanted the house that has very nice curb appeal and a fenced yard....under the condition that we would do a good job and within days it was freshly painted, cleaned, carpets removed and underneath was a nice terrazzo flooring. We did charge him for ruining the carpet since it was only 2 years old....but actually that was already over the amount we got to keep.

The tenant put in our drop box a note stating he expected we would keep money from his sec. dep. for the carpet but hoped to get the rest back...I called him and left him a clear message, never to aply for a rental through us....which he had stated he would do in a couple of months since he was moving in with family for now.

As you probably understand his level of cleaning is definately not ours and not yours and not what is even to be considered "average" this was a health hazard for a person to live in on a daily base.

Just some advise...do everything in writing, take pictures on move in and move out.

We do it and advise our tenants to do so, which makes both lives easier after the rental is delivered back to us.

Btw. I recently received a sec. dep. check back from a tenant who never cashed it....makes me wonder who doesn't want to cash a check over $ 2000.....but according to the mail we receive he might rather get it later when his bankruptcy case is over and it doesn't vanish....we have all kinds of people to deal with.
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Old 02-10-2011, 04:06 PM
 
Location: Colorado
6,602 posts, read 9,155,980 times
Reputation: 8531
Quote:
Originally Posted by bentlebee View Post
The OP might think the blinds were for free but they or someone had to pay for it....

Having said that....How do you think or how could you believe that making a call to document an issue willl be documented without having it in writing.
I should have made sure that the torn linoleum issue was documented in writing and not only via the phone. My fault there -- management just seemed so competent and helpful that I didn't think it would be an issue, but it was and they didn't bother to do it. Lesson learned.

As far as the blinds are concerned, why did they replace them without charging us this past summer when I requested to have a few of them replaced? I should have just requested to have all of the blinds in the entire apartment replaced. They were old cheap plastic blinds that were brittle and weren't new when we moved in. They basically cracked and broke just from being raised and lowered. I just don't understand why I wasn't charged for this when I was a tenant, but was charged for the blinds that were not replaced prior to move out.

As far as the other items -- everything except the drip pans on the stove were clean and in most cases in better shape than when we arrived. When I say that I cleaned the diswasher, stove, etc., I mean I really CLEANED them. As in, scrubbing the oven with oven cleaner, etc etc. The place was spotless. I've moved out of apartments before this one and never had a problem. I may have botched the documentation on the tear in the linoleum floor, but I'm not stupid, and I do treat the property of others with respect.
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