Ok, so Lately I have been trying to be laid back and not let things get to me. Today, I lost my cool. We have been waiting for our deposit from Hampton Gardens to come in the mail and we were expecting to receive our full 690.00 back or at least most of it. Today we received the check. It was for 70.00. SEVENTY. I called them and tried to remain calm but I lost it. I lost it when the lady said that no matter what condition the apartment was left in you have to pay a 345.00 repainting fee. Apparently it was in our lease and we failed to see it there. I will be checking the lease because that is a HUGE thing to miss.
The second infuriating thing was that they charged us 125.00 to steam the carpets. Apparently there was a check list that we were given which stated that we needed to have them cleaned. We never received a check list and they have no proof that we received one. They have proof that they sent one but not that we received it. That is insane.
The last thing that really pissed me off was that they said that our appliances were disgusting and charged us 150.00 to clean them. That is the most insulting thing to say to someone who spent several hours working their ass off to clean a place. I asked for the pictures.
If I knew that they were going to keep all the money I wouldn't have cleaned it at all. I know that sounds mean but I seriously would not have wasted my time. I hate those people. I wish I didn't but I do. I still feel so angry. Obviously. Hopefully I will chill out again. Sorry for the rant.
Oh by the way, if you have something to say like...you should have read the lease better or anything else that isn't, "you are right and they are wrong" please for my sake, keep it to yourself. This is my blog and I am in the mood to rant so if it offends you...don't read it.
7 comments:
Ugh. That is terrible! I really do not like landlords--thank goodness that you guys are homeowners now, and are no longer under their thumb. But still, the injustice of it is painful--I am sorry!!!
Thanks for sticking by me, Jess. You are a true friend.
Well that really isn't fair at all! You should fight it, and definitely get a copy of the lease and read it. That's crazy. I think by law they may have to repaint anyway.
Was it brand new paint when you moved in?
Also, they should have a signed checklist or it shouldn't count.. they have no proof that things were in better condition.
Check into these things and let me know, I'll be happy to post this stuff on thelookmachine.com which gets tons of google hits and will warn people about Hampton Gardens crappy policies.
Always, merry! And it's funny--I don't think you've ever called me Jess before--But please, don't stop:-)
I'd like to add that Merry did a great job cleaning. I've lived in five rented properties, and I've gotten my full security deposit back each time (with the exception of OakTree, which pulled late fees out of my security deposit). There was no reason for them to say the place was filthy. It was cleaned, vacuumed, and I even spackled the holes in the wall from screws and nails.
I do vaguely remember something about the painting when we signed our lease. It's not a good policy, but I think we agreed to it. But we never got a move-out checklist. I don't think we'll get very far if we fight this directly, but we can post on all the apartment rating sites, and I will look into tenant advocacy groups and see if there is anything we can do without going to court.
It's a shame to take advantage of people like this. The rent was pretty cheap, but I would have rather paid more a month and had a more equitable parting of ways. Most apartment complexes have an exit survey. Galman Group / Hampton Gardens did not. They obviously don't care about tenants who leave.
With their policy, anyone who moves out should just leave their place trashed and not bother to try to clean because they're not going to get their deposit back. Bad business.
This is exactly the thing that I hate most about rental situations. If they decide to financially punish you for no apparent reason, they can and you have to fight so hard just to get justice. I really feel for you guys.
I just have to add that I really like the disclaimer at the end- I literally laughed out loud when I pictured you fuming at someone who had the audacity to lecture you in a comment on your "rant" post.
I also loved your last paragraph. So, since I was going to write a long, judgemental comment, I now have nothing to say. (:
Just kidding, friend.
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