Annoying Landlord

hardyjessicag

So right now I'm going through this battle to get my security deposit back from my previous landlord. She's an awful women who has no care for anyone but herself and company. The first week of moving in we had a pretty bad rain storm and our living room flooded while we were out, ruining our Nintendo. When we called her, she asked "what do you want me to do about it". (We were living in town-homes, so this wasn't an apartment complex, but we were still dealing with a company rather than an individual home owner).

There were many other things, such as coming into our home without asking or alerting us, but we dealt with her because we had signed the lease (naive first time renters).

Well we finally moved out and went to return the keys. Our lease was up May 30th, and on May 28th we went to the home to really make that place shine, but there was an issue: she had already called in painters and laborers to replace blinds and the like. So we took pictures, dated them and got them notarized, as the house was still technically ours, and we had until the 30th to fix all of the issues.

After turning in the keys, our landlord said that not only were they keeping our $800.00 security deposit, but that they were also charging us another $1500 ($750.00 just for painting our small home). All of the issues she listed were fixed on the 28th when she sent her crew in early, while our lease was still intact. So now we have to go to court to show that we did not have the time to fix these issues, and that these things were technically taken care of while our lease was still intact.

It's pretty tiring, having to deal with people like this. We were completely fine with them taking our whole $800 security deposit (we just expected they would), but trying to take advantage this bad is just frustrating.

Anyone had to deal with some less than great landlords? Did you have to go to court?Did you win?

Reedern

That really sucks. I know when we moved out of our apartment, we worked our butts off cleaning and everything trying to make it look great. We knew there would be a few small things that they would nail us for, but when I saw the final paper of everything they were trying to nail us for, I got really mad and refused to sign it until it was correct. I had to go as high as contacting their corp office to get them involved. When all was said and done, Our cost was reduced by over half. I am glad we didn't have to go to court. In your situation, I sure wish you luck that all will work out in your favor.

onetwopotato

Sorry, I'm not reading all that. Want to hug it out though?

1tenant

I understand your situation, here's what is happening with me. Our landlords (a husband and wife) do not respect our privacy either, what you said about them entering your living space, that's what our landlords do to us. And here is something that just happened this morning. There are "common" areas where you may or may not (hopefully not) cross paths with the landlords. Now the husband of the landlord tag-team used to be in the "common" area at around 7:45am or 8:00am, so I started getting up early so that I could avoid seeing him. And today I was in the "common" area at 7:20am and he walked in. I feel as if I'm being stalked, he keeps doing this. Every time he starts showing up while I'm there I change the time that I'm there and he always changes his time to match mine, this is REALLY ANNOYING, I wish he would stop stalking me.

megalin9

I don't remember the exact details, but a representative from the company who rented out my apartment called me to tell me that my check had bounced and that they would be charging me TWICE and taking me to court. I lost my temper and said, "Are you kidding me?!" It got bad after that. She accused me of using the F-bomb, which isn't possible because that word is not a part of my vocabulary. I just hate it and don't say it, so while I did lose my temper, she started fabricating all these things I was saying to her. I had never had a check bounce until that point, so I didn't know the process, but being taken to court for one missed rent payment after being there over a year seemed extreme to me. I also could no longer use a personal check. I would have to get a certified check from my bank every month and hand-deliver it to the rental company. I ended up getting off of work to go directly to the office and apologize to her for losing my temper, and she wouldn't hear it. She kicked me out.

I think these people were cons. They knew what they had done and they were not going to be reasonable at all, even after a sincere apology for losing my cool. They just wanted the additional money and the court costs. I was more upset that she was lying and making stuff up to make it appear that I was being belligerent than I was about the money. Literally, all I said was, "Are you kidding me?"

They took me to court, and I fought it. I could have easily just paid what they were asking to avoid court, but it was the principle that they were just being jerks. I had to at least stick up for myself, knowing I would lose the case. The judge respected me standing on my principle, but I had to pay up.

SoDamnHungry

Bump for later...

digitalbill

In many cases, rentals have an "assumed wear and tear" item.
Basically, it means that, the place is painted after every move out and the carpet is typically replaced every five years.

How bad were the walls? I mean, did they have massive holes in them or, were they messed up beyone what might be "normal". (blood stains, spray paint, ect)

You said $800.00 + an additional $750.00

that is over $1,500.00
She would need to prover her case, including recipts.

In addition, she would need to prove that any damages were beyond normal wear and tear.

It is scary but, if you have pictures of the "before", you should be OK.
If this goes to court, be respectful of EVERYONE (including the landlord) and don't argue out of turn.

vtmoon

Counter sue, it prove she was a bad landlord and you were nothing but understand with her difficult personality. Mention how the flooding situation was handled.

hamiltonba

I'm a little confused as to why you "expected" them to take your security deposit. Did you leave the place a mess so that they would take it? Did you not pay the last month rent? That is a lot of money to be willing to "give away" if you took care of the place adequately. I would not be willing to allow the landlord to take that much money from me. In addition, as soon as I realized that painters had come in, I would have kicked them out. Technically, the place is still yours. By allowing them to paint and fix the items in question, you were, in essense agreeing to "pay them" the damages incurred during your time at the residence. You could always send the landlord a certified letter stating that the items in question were fixed and demand your deposit back. Or, talk to a lawyer and ask them to send the landlord a certified letter.

harr3mi

In most states it is illegal for the landlord to enter your premises without prior notification of up to 2 days unless deamed an emergency. Maybe you can use that as leverage but I would look up your local tenant laws and go into the conversation armed with whatever knowledge you can find.

jennyrebekka

hopefully you can put them in front of Judge Judy! it would be fun to hear her rip them a new one. good luck!

MsMimidoll

Bump

connie_messina

here in Canada its i legal for a landlord to enter our apartment when were not there, look into that..

Bekahmardis

In most states it is illegal for the landlord to enter your premises without prior notification of up to 2 days unless deamed an emergency. Maybe you can use that as leverage but I would look up your local tenant laws and go into the conversation armed with whatever knowledge you can find.

^^^THIS^^^ exactly. Some landlords don't even know the laws. Whenever I have rented, I always go through the place with the Landlord *and* a camera with a date stamp on it, before signing any lease. I make copies of the before photos and give them to the landlord, then I keep a set for myself along with a copy of the signed lease.

At the end of the lease, I again walk through the aprtment or condo with the landlord and take "after" pictures. So far, I have received every penny of my deposit back except for one instance where my dog scratched at the wall and we had to have a contractor come in and fix the drywall. $50 was taken but the rest of my deposit was returned.

I know this doesn't help you now, but for future?

Also - Renter's Insurance. That will cover costs of any items in your apartment or condo or townhouse that are destroyed or stolen.....it's cheap. Do it.

itsscottwilder

I just assume the security deposit is never going to be recouped.

kf4vkp

I'm a little confused as to why you "expected" them to take your security deposit. Did you leave the place a mess so that they would take it? Did you not pay the last month rent? That is a lot of money to be willing to "give away" if you took care of the place adequately. I would not be willing to allow the landlord to take that much money from me. In addition, as soon as I realized that painters had come in, I would have kicked them out. Technically, the place is still yours. By allowing them to paint and fix the items in question, you were, in essense agreeing to "pay them" the damages incurred during your time at the residence. You could always send the landlord a certified letter stating that the items in question were fixed and demand your deposit back. Or, talk to a lawyer and ask them to send the landlord a certified letter.

I'm under the impression from reading what she wrote that they had already moved their items, just showed up 2 days before the end of the lease to clean, and the painters had come and gone, meaning she wasn't there when they were.

lucystacy71

The last house I rented had bad wiring. Half the outlets didn't work. There was one outlet I never used because it was behind a table in the kitchen, but one day it caught fire. Nothing was plugged in, but it simply caught fire. I wasn't home at the time, but I saw where it had burned when I returned and was thankful that nothing else had caught fire. When I prepared to move out the landlord kept my security and charged me for the damage caused by the burned outlet. He said that he figured it was my fault and that I must have plugged something into the outlet. I didn't, and he knew that I didn't because of its location. Even if I had, you should be able to plug something into an outlet.

I grew up in rented homes and I could really share some horror stories. One of the last houses I lived in with my parents, we were preparing to move. We were paid up on rent, but we hadn't been home for awhile as we were moving into a new place. We came to our house one day and there are people there, hired by the landlady, burning our belongings. We lost all our family photos and even my dad's medals from Vietnam. We went to the police, but they said it was purely a civil matter and that we wouldn't have much of a case since what we lost had more sentimetal value than monetary value.

stillnot2late

I have some pretty bad "office people". When I put in for the apartment, I was told I'd know within two days. In two days I was called and asked a question about the previous apartment. So I waited another week, no word if it was approved. I called, and she told me I was approved 6 days ago. I said, in these words, - "Oh, nobody let me know that I had been approved." She said "just a moment". The manager got on the phone and told me she didn't appreciate me talking to her worker like that, it wasn't very nice. I was flabbergasted but needed the place, so I apologized. My neighbor upstairs plays music at all hours, management won't give him a note to turn it down. Told me to call the security number after hours. So I called that number - a recording, every night for a couple weeks and found out from another neighbor - it is fake. Police could not get neighbor to turn it down cause he would not come downstairs when they knocked on his outside door. Reported it to the office again, they said he denied having his music too loud, that it was someone else. As I type this, he is jamming his az off. August 1st when I paid my rent, I requested my door be fixed, its peeling. They wrote it up. Maintenance came by and looked at the door. Two weeks later, nothing. Contacted the office - my answer was "well if he came and looked at it he's going to fix it." So here it is September 4, no repair. But these things are minor compared to what OP is talking about. That is just awful, and unholy.

Becoming_A_Butterfly

I would never simply assume my security deposit won't be returned. The landlord has no right to the security deposit unless you damaged the property or left it in a huge mess. Renters have rights and need to be aware of them and defend those rights.

Do you have the walk-through checklist from when you moved in (where you should have noted any issues or damage that were present before you moved in)? Are you being charged for anything that was present before you moved in? The landlord can't just say "I'm keeping this money". He or she needs to notify you in writing and break down what you are being charged for. At least that is how it is here in Florida, and you can object.

I have unfortunately had issues with landlords, and I have been to court with two of them. It's amazing how many renters just lay down and give up their rights and don't fight the bullying from landlords. Find your state's landlord/tenant statutes and read them, and contact a landlord/tenant lawyer for a consultation, which much of the time is free.

ItsCasey

I would suggest in the future that you not turn in your keys until you have actually moved out and are ready to surrender the apartment. Unless I'm misreading your post, it sounds like you turned in the keys, and they started working on the place before you had a chance to clean it up yourselves. Giving them the keys is pretty much the signal that you've moved out and won't be returning, even if your lease isn't officially up.

I don't know the laws for every state, but in Texas, they don't even have to wait until you turn in the keys to start making improvements to the unit or showing it to prospective tenants. They can do that as soon as you give notice that you are not renewing your lease, which you are required by law to do at least 60 days before the end of the lease. I've never had a property owner do that, but it's in the contract that they can. I can't imagine that they'd be able to charge you for things like repainting the whole house unless you caused damage to the whole house. But you are probably going to need to talk to a lawyer about that.

Sarahwantshealth

I own a home that I rent out! My past three renters received 100% of their security deposit back. My most recent renter didn't. The place was left in beautiful condition, the home had been kept cleaned and well maintained. However they owed over $800 to the the utilities that we are liable for (added on to property taxes) and skipped out with out paying the last two months rent ($1000 per month) bringing the total to $2800 money owed. Their security was only $1000 so we are out over $1800, They tell friends and neighbors how we screwed them out of $1000 by keeping their deposit but fail to mention their unpaid bills!

Regarding water damage. I am not sure but legally that is what renters insurance is for. We had one water issue a few years back, fixed the problem right away but didn't pay for the clothes that had gotten soaked on the floor to be re-washed.

DashDeV

My landlord is a d!ck. I've told him off twice. He's scared of me so stays away, I see him only once a year.

ETA: Funny story.. he is East Indian. A couple of months ago he came by to renew the lease.. I went to move his shoes and he yelled at me not to. I stopped and asked why. He said because it's his belief that if someone touches his shoes he owes them a favor. So I picked them up and put them in a closet and told him "well I don't want anyone tripping on them".

Now I own him.

TheSlorax

as for the flooding issue.... that's what renter's insurance is for. the landlord is not responsible for your nintendo as much as it sucks.

the rest of it makes me glad I have a cool landlord. yikes.

alexisdc

I just say this situation on one of those Judge/court shows. The tenanats were actually sueing for there total deposit of $600 adn actuall got rewarded double($1200). The won because the landlord didn't provide them an itemized list of why they were keeping the deposit. Apparently in that state (I think it was NY) landlords must give an itemized explaination of why they are keeping the damages. I am not sure what state your in but you may want to look up the laws. They are suppose to provide it to you within 30 days from the date your lease ends. Sounds like they occupied you apt before that; that could be be something you could counter sue ( I would at least research and try). Good luck

whierd

This is why people need to understand their lease and their rights.

Legs_McGee

Take them to Small Claims Court. I did that several years ago when a landlord tried to keep a security deposit and charge us for a bunch of stuff that they're not allowed to charge for. I was the only tenant in there suing a landlord - it was the other way around in every other case. I got a judgment for my entire security deposit

And get renters insurance for your next place.

ldrosophila

In most states it is illegal for the landlord to enter your premises without prior notification of up to 2 days unless deamed an emergency. Maybe you can use that as leverage but I would look up your local tenant laws and go into the conversation armed with whatever knowledge you can find.

^^^THIS^^^ exactly. Some landlords don't even know the laws. Whenever I have rented, I always go through the place with the Landlord *and* a camera with a date stamp on it, before signing any lease. I make copies of the before photos and give them to the landlord, then I keep a set for myself along with a copy of the signed lease.

At the end of the lease, I again walk through the aprtment or condo with the landlord and take "after" pictures. So far, I have received every penny of my deposit back except for one instance where my dog scratched at the wall and we had to have a contractor come in and fix the drywall. $50 was taken but the rest of my deposit was returned.

I know this doesn't help you now, but for future?

Also - Renter's Insurance. That will cover costs of any items in your apartment or condo or townhouse that are destroyed or stolen.....it's cheap. Do it.

good idea

BattleTaxi

This is why people need to understand their lease and their rights.

This.

Also, I never assume I will get back my security deposit. I also take very detailed and extensive before/after photos when moving in. Typically, I do always get my deposit back, though. And when looking for a place, I make sure to get to know the landlord first. Nothing is worse than a great place to live in with a terrible landlord. I'd rather live in a dump with a great landlord!

1tenant

Here's something that just happened today. I went in the bathroom to take a shower and they turned off the hot water while I was in there, the water was hot for like two minutes and then it was cold. No one was in there before me so the water should have been hot. They had done this in the past, turning off the hot water while I was in there, but I complained about it very loudly and they stopped. Is there a place where I can turn them in? I mean we pay rent and they turn off the hot water when we're in the shower? Also, we are not the only tenants here, there are two girls that they are allowing to live here for free.

1tenant

The "stalker" struck again this morning. I was in one of the "common" areas at my usual time and he walked in. (There are two doors a door that we use to enter and exit and a door at the other end of the room that "they" use to enter and exit.) So I was in there doing my thing and he walked in, luckily I was right near the door so I just walked out. From my vantage point I could see what he was doing in there and he just entered the room, walked across the the floor, turned around and exited the room. The whole episode gives me a very uneasy feeling, I find it disturbingly predatory.

1tenant

I was just informed that the landlord is putting a lock on the door that would give us access to the washer and dryer. What can I do about this? We pay rent and part of what we're paying for is access to the washer and dryer.