Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm doing some apartment hunting and it seems like a lot of ads rave about how there's no security deposit to move in, but when you inquire more, there's a nonrefundable "move in" fee. for example, one place I saw online was $800 w/ an almost $600 move in fee. what the heck are these fees even used for? I guess I could understand if it was some luxury high rise and the fees were being used to maintain the exercise equipment, clean the pool, keep the common grounds clean and manicured, or even a small fee for carpet cleaning, but some of the places I've seen (including the one for $800) are not fancy apartments and a few were even regular houses. and there are not pet related since some don't allow pets or if they do, require an EXTRA deposit (which I assume is at least refundable). oh, and a few required an EXTRA fee for credit checks and application fees
so what are these fees for? why should a tenant feel the need to leave the apartment in top shape when leaving if it really doesn't matter? at least w/ a security deposit, there's a hope of getting it back if you keep the place nice when you leave, but not so w/ these move in fees. just seems like a great way for these people to make money
Fees like this are extremely common in the apartment industry. You'll see them called administrative fees, redecoration fees, amenity fees, reservation fees, etc. They're essentially used for the same thing. The preparation of your paperwork and the maintenance of the amenities and common areas are usually the main items. Do you know how much it costs to maintain a pool, landscaping, keep fitness equipment and other amenities in working order, keep lighting in working order, etc? It's thousands of dollars every month. The few hundred dollars up front from each tenant hardly makes a dent in it. So the money certainly isn't taken because someone is greedy. It costs a lot of money to run a property of that size. And it typically has nothing to do with your apartment. You're still responsible for cleaning and maintaining it as noted in your lease.
If there is no security deposite, they have essentially created a non-refundable security deposite that they get to keep regardless of how little damage you do upon leaving. By calling it a "move-in" fee they get around the laws regarding what they can do with a security deposite.
Fees like this are extremely common in the apartment industry. You'll see them called administrative fees, redecoration fees, amenity fees, reservation fees, etc. They're essentially used for the same thing. The preparation of your paperwork and the maintenance of the amenities and common areas are usually the main items. Do you know how much it costs to maintain a pool, landscaping, keep fitness equipment and other amenities in working order, keep lighting in working order, etc? It's thousands of dollars every month. The few hundred dollars up front from each tenant hardly makes a dent in it. So the money certainly isn't taken because someone is greedy. It costs a lot of money to run a property of that size. And it typically has nothing to do with your apartment. You're still responsible for cleaning and maintaining it as noted in your lease.
That should all be included in the rent. Amenities, unless ran as a seperate club, are not an extra cost in an apartment complex, they are part of the overhead.
Check the laws in your state, county, city, etc.
Look online... use search engines.... make phone calls.... etc.
Look for tenant/landlord associations and dispute reoslution organizations and advocates.
Don't forget to check with your local universities and colleges. They can be a great resource!
That should all be included in the rent. Amenities, unless ran as a seperate club, are not an extra cost in an apartment complex, they are part of the overhead.
You're right, they are part of the overhead, but their cost is built into these fees as well as rent. The cost is the cost. Some of the money is taken up front in the form of these fees and some is added into the rent. I've managed 30+ million dollar apartment communities for 7 years. Trust me, I know how funds are allocated. It's up to the owner to decide how they want to get them...up front, charge more in rent, or a combination of both.
Mouse & cptn, there's nothing to dispute and move in fees have nothing to do with deposits and are not regulated by most landlord/tenant laws. They're typically taken in addition to a deposit. An owner is able to charge any kind of fee they'd like as long as it doesn't violate Fair Housing....pet fee, satellite fee, short term fee, view fee, month to month fee, trash fee, move in fees, etc. If a tenant doesn't agree with the fees, they're not obligated to enter into a contract and move into that owner's property.
Fees like this are extremely common in the apartment industry. You'll see them called administrative fees, redecoration fees, amenity fees, reservation fees, etc. They're essentially used for the same thing. The preparation of your paperwork and the maintenance of the amenities and common areas are usually the main items. Do you know how much it costs to maintain a pool, landscaping, keep fitness equipment and other amenities in working order, keep lighting in working order, etc? It's thousands of dollars every month. The few hundred dollars up front from each tenant hardly makes a dent in it. So the money certainly isn't taken because someone is greedy. It costs a lot of money to run a property of that size. And it typically has nothing to do with your apartment. You're still responsible for cleaning and maintaining it as noted in your lease.
again, I could understand this if we were talking about high rises w/ all these amenities (though I agree such costs should be included in the rent), but I'm talking about regular 2 flats and small buildings w/ little or no extra amenities beyond a coin-op laundry machine and sometimes no carpet to clean. and does it really cost nearly a full month's rent to process some paper work? such fees don't make any since for these type of buildings. I tend to agree more w/ the comment of these fees being used as a way to get around sec. deposit rules.
obviously I'm not planning on given these units a second look, just curious about the point of them (I suppose I will need to check out IL/Chicago laws since I know in some places, asking for extra fees isn't allowed)
California is quite specific... and I'm sure isn't the only State to have rules regarding this.
Under California law, a lease or rental agreement cannot say that a security deposit is "nonrefundable". This means that when the tenancy ends, the landlord must return to you any payment that is a security deposit, unless the landlord properly uses the deposit for a lawful purpose, as described below and under Refunds of Security Deposits.
Almost all landlords charge tenants a security deposit. The security deposit may be called "last month's rent," "security deposit," "pet deposit," "key fee," or "cleaning fee." The security deposit may be a combination, for example, of the last month's rent plus a specific amount for security. No matter what these payments or fees are called, the law considers them all, as well as any other deposit or charge, to be part of the security deposit. The one exception to this rule is stated in the next paragraph.
The law allows the landlord to require a tenant to pay an application screening fee, in addition to the security deposit. The application screening fee is not part of the security deposit. However, any other fee charged by the landlord at the beginning of the tenancy to cover the landlord's cost of processing a new tenant is part of the security deposit.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
