littlebistro Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 So, my wife and I recently moved from an apartment complex into an apartment across town. At our old place we had to put a $300 Pet Deposit down, as well as paying an extra $10 a month on top of our rent. We also had an initial $200 deposit on the apartment. Well, today we received a letter in the mail from our old apartment complex with a bill in it for $850 for carpet damage. They said our dog destroyed the carpet and it and the pad underneath had to be removed. Upon moving out we cleaned that place from the ceiling fans to cleaning the toilets and everything you could possibly think of. The carpet was in really good shape, and if they had it cleaned it would have been as good as new. Well, almost as good as new. In the hallway where the rugs were pieced together there were snags that got vacuumed up and started separating the carpet and unthreading it. However, upon moving in, we put those snags on the checklist so that they knew we hadn't done that after moving in. Other than that the carpet looked good. Any suggestions on how to handle this? They subtracted our $500 in deposits from the bill and are demanding we pay $350 within 14 days or they would take it to collections. My wife and I are doing the first home buyers club and can't afford for this to count against our credit scores. I have a feeling they were going to tear up the carpet anyways because they have in every other unit in the building and are just trying to find a way for us to pay for it. Another thing, in our moving out checklist they put that carpet repairs would be $10-$500. Let me know what you guys think I should do. Thrice55 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aviolentworld Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 unless they can prove with pictures i would say you are in the clear. edit- it's clearly too late and i can't read....haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abovetheearth Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 the snags may not count the same as pet damage...as in soiled, etc. did you get to keep a copy of the move in list? 1. if they subtracted $500 that quick, that tells me they are just wanting money. probably orig. the $350 they 'reduced' it to. 2. if they are tearing it up in the other places, then its their excuse. i think its a scam. bite the bullet and pay so it doesnt effect your score. sucks but i think thats all that can happen before 14 day deadline? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlebistro Posted August 4, 2013 Author Share Posted August 4, 2013 There were no stains on the carpet, which makes us curious as to why they would have tore up the rugs in the first place. We shampooed them on a pretty regular basis because we have a dog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
000000 Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 Did you take pics when you moved out? I did that in college because we knew my landlord was a piece of shit, and when he tried claiming all this stuff, we took him to small claims court with the pictures as evidence and got all of our deposits back. noodle 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlebistro Posted August 4, 2013 Author Share Posted August 4, 2013 I wish I had, I didn't think of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aviolentworld Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 I wish I had, I didn't think of it. did they? i mean it should work both ways right. they can't just claim something without having any proof. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlebistro Posted August 4, 2013 Author Share Posted August 4, 2013 That's what we're going to ask. We drove by tonight and didn't see the carpet in the dumpster, so we're assuming they haven't taken it out yet. We're also going to ask them to prove that no other pets lived in our apartment before us that could have caused damage to the carpet mat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abovetheearth Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 i got fucked when i moved out in college. it was in an old folks basement. my poor mom and i spent 2 full days cleaning. they accused me of about the same thing and i didnt even own a pet. we told them we were going to get legal action and they dropped it. they had dogs and let them in my area when i was in class. fuckwads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abovetheearth Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 also the padding will show soiled stains from decades ago that wont topically show. that shit could have been from the 90's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duff Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 it's a scam and a pretty common one. places claim unrepairable damage to things like carpet/flooring, paint/walls, kitchen appliances like stoves/ovens, dishwashers, microwaves just to keep your deposit so they can replace out dated or worn out amenities at little to no cost to them but at the expense of the previous tenant. never actually heard of places charging on top of the deposit though unless you smeared shit on the walls or took a dump all over the floor. they don't expect people to fight them, especially after they throw out the collection service threat. they expect people to comply so their credit doesn't take a hit. call their bluff. if you have copies of the move in/out checklist argue your case with that and like you said have them prove what they're claiming. pictures or video is the best evidence though, you definitely need to snap some photos and/or video after you empty the place out just to cover your ass from now on. also call the local police department and ask them if anything can be done in this situation. and of course you could fight this through the court system if things progress that far, but you might wind up paying more than $850 you're out now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aviolentworld Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 also the padding will show soiled stains from decades ago that wont topically show. that shit could have been from the 90's this. also not sure if it was your phrasing or what, but does the letter actually say it had to be removed? i mean does the apartment still have the carpet or what? maybe trash came early.. sounds fishy dude. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3arl Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 No matter how this ends, be sure to rate them super low and tell about your experience on apartment rating sites and Yelp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlebistro Posted August 4, 2013 Author Share Posted August 4, 2013 So I just read the bill, and all it says is Charges - "Carpet Damage - Pet Urine $840" I don't know where my wife got that they had to remove the carpet and pad from. It says see next page for property notes regarding your statement. the next page says "Carpet and pad have damage from pet urine. Charge has been prorated to reflect loss of future use." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
000000 Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 Threatening to "let our lawyer take care of it" a lot of times is enough to scare them off from shit like that. Like Duff said, call their bluff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abovetheearth Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 i was going to mention calling their bluff. if they are a big real estate company, they might fight back. "Carpet and pad have damage from pet urine. Charge has been prorated to reflect loss of future use." now this is interesting. especially that last line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weinerdog Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 What garbage. I'd go after them. They kept your $500 that you apparently should have got every dime of, so they are the ones who need to prove the damage they say you caused. I'd check with your local city govt. There should be resources available to help you with this. If you bust your ass for what you earn, why let some lowlife keep your money? This place encourages consultations/telephone inquiries - even if they can't help I bet they can guide you to someone who can. http://www.wojtan.com/1046/landlord-tenant/new-york-state-tenants-rights-guide/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steventangent Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 It's different in every state. Research your state's landlord-tenant laws and hit them back for keeping your deposit. At the very least maybe you can settle with them without paying more. Your local police department won't help, as this is a civil matter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hipsterasfolk Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 normally when this instance is happening it's the landlord trying to collecting extra $$ on the side (where your normal security deposit would be otherwise reimbursed.) Renting an apartment/house/etc. does not however count towards your credit score btw...so if you rented for a year+ it does not boost your credit score. Landlords are normally scummy people (unless you know him and have some sort of pre-understanding.) Luckily all my rental property is to retirees, so I don't have to deal w/ this. If you want a credit score for scoring a house....don't over-utilize your credit limit or allow anything with a hard pull (New CC etc.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abovetheearth Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 whoa. no smileys? 000000 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hipsterasfolk Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 whoa. no smileys? ahah not right now, I'm drunk and hate shady landlords Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlebistro Posted August 4, 2013 Author Share Posted August 4, 2013 Its actually a property management company. Also, handing over a bill to collections will affect credit scores. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steventangent Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 http://youtu.be/OssnQWe5IEg scottheisel and hipsterasfolk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hipsterasfolk Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 http://youtu.be/OssnQWe5IEg pvnk. you can dispute charges, pain in the ass....baseball bats and address always work though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steventangent Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 There might be something in your state laws that can help you. I'm pretty good with how things work in my own pleasant peninsula. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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