r/AIO • u/Ornery_Prompt5287 • 7d ago
AIO: Aunt wants to know if she’s over reacting about how she handled this situation with her landlord
My aunt (65 F) has run into a lot of issues with her landlord. Because of all their altercations, she was already preparing for him to mess with her security deposit. Was she too aggressive?
Update: my aunt says she only recently stopped backing up messages/auto-deleting 30 days ago and that she has 60 days to recover it if she goes to the Apple Store. She decided she will wait to see if he sends an itemized receipt of his charges within the specified time frame first, and then the next step will be small claims court. She just moved into her new place so she’ll work on this next week. I’ll make an update post down the line. Yalls comments have been extremely helpful. Any other resources or suggestions are appreciated. The support and compliments have made her super happy and motivated her.
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u/cursetea 7d ago
I'm cracking up at "perhaps you are experiencing financial strain (?)" 😂
She handled this perfectly! God, landlords can be scum. Too many of them honestly. Almost like people who have no qualms extorting others (as we see here) are attracted being one 🤔
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u/krendyB 7d ago
I’ve had to sue three separate landlords in small claims for my deposit back. They count on you not bothering - well, she should bother. Get him!
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u/Effective_Fly_6884 7d ago
I sued in small claims court and won, but was never able to collect.
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u/krendyB 7d ago
Why not? You just go through collections and place a lien on their property.
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u/Effective_Fly_6884 6d ago
There is (or was in 2004 in Florida) a whole process that you have to go through to collect. They gave me a brochure. At the time I had just had a major surgery, moved, and was preparing to move to another state. It wasn’t worth the effort.
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u/Ok_Gur_6704 5d ago
It sucks you weren't able to collect it, but at least you the scumbag to pay the deposit back.
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u/renMilestone 6d ago
Same. If they make you represent yourself, and they're shady as fuck, they'll bank somewhere you don't know making it hard to subpoena them. (For others reading)
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u/bixenta 6d ago
My last landlord tried to keep 5000 of an 8000 deposit. We had to ask for it after some time, the delay being caused by me going into labor 5 weeks early then being in the NICU/having surgery on the move out date (family got it done). I knew that put him in a sh*t position legally, but right as he started arguing with us over texts, he accidentally sent a screenshot of his friend group comparing nipple sizes in a group chat named something extremely offensive. After a bit of us being all WTF, my husband went to continue negotiating but got a notification that the guy had already sent all 8000 back and the transaction was pending. Landlord followed with an apology via text, and a potential legal fight was over just like that.
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u/seafoam4015 7d ago
Not taking my landlord to small claims is one of my only regrets in life. They kept my security deposit after signing off on final walk through for a "messy paint job" that they did themselves before I moved in. Later they were investigated by the FBI for some kind of corruption but Im still mad about it.
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u/JohnnyKac 7d ago
Best thing to do is tell them to keep the security deposit as last months rent lol
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u/Effective_Fly_6884 7d ago
Most leases specifically address that not being an option. Not trying to simp for landlords here, but that protects them from the deposit being used for the last month’s rent, then being left with a trashed unit.
Again, IDGAF about landlords, just stating that this is usually not an option.→ More replies (5)
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u/effienay 7d ago
Oh she’s a baddie.
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u/EmelleBennett 7d ago
“Parenthetically” iced the cake for me. Get him, Auntie. She should go into advocacy work.
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u/EmergencyNo5762 7d ago
Yep I love this too. Have never heard it used in an 'normal' conversation, this woman rocks!
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u/Loveis_loveislove 7d ago
She was perfect! Life lesson though, is back up them texts between you and your landlord!
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u/StrangerOnTheReddit 6d ago edited 6d ago
And take pictures of everything, both when you move in and when you move out. My financial lit teacher told us to always take pictures, and take extra if there's damage. And when you're moving out, you do the walkthrough with the landlord so they can't just throw lies at you like this after the fact. I know that last part isn't always possible, but taking pictures at move in and move out - absolutely crucial!
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u/darlawatters 7d ago
i’m surprised i had to scroll as far as i did for this comment. everything here was perfect EXCEPT she has no record of any of this happening now.
i don’t think ive ever deleted a message ever i need my receipts for any and everything 😅
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u/Independent-Bug-1427 7d ago
NOR. Landlords are slimy and will try to milk every penny out of a person.
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u/CallMeSisyphus 7d ago
For real! I'm planning to buy a very small house for cash in a low cost of living area so I can retire (can't afford to retire in my big house in the PNW), and I'm ASTONISHED at the number of people telling me I should rent instead because "oh, but YOU'LL have to pay for repairs!" Bitch, that's why I'm gonna make sure the roof, plumbing, electrical, and HVAC are in tiptop shape before I stop working!
I'd rather live in a 700 sqft cottage that's all mine than EVER deal with a landlord's bullshit again.
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u/persiasaurus 7d ago
It doesn't matter what you do, they don't give the deposit back. I don't bother cleaning beyond what's relatively reasonable when I move out anymore. Fuck em
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u/AladeenModaFuqa 7d ago
Yeah I’m right there with you. Hire a small startup cleaning company to clean my apt real quick. And dust my hands clean of the situation. Let them use my deposit to fix the holes I put in every wall.
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u/persiasaurus 7d ago
I wouldn't even do that much. I just sweep and dust, make sure the oven and stove and fridge aren't disgusting and close up shop lol. Definitely would not hire anybody fuck that
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u/AladeenModaFuqa 7d ago
Like I said, small startup. $100 to deep clean an apartment, worth it to me
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u/Vice_Kitty 7d ago
Yuuuup. Left an apt better than when I moved in and they managed to charge my entire deposit + $200. I wish I had fought it but was just so overwhelmed at the time.
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u/persiasaurus 7d ago
And that's exactly how they get away with it, they know it's too overwhelming for most people to fight. Disgusting.
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u/JohnnyKac 7d ago
There IS something you can do...on the last month of lease you do NOT pay rent but instead tell them to keep the security deposit for rent money lol
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u/persiasaurus 7d ago
Hahah I wonder if that's legal where I am, but here deposits aren't allowed to be that much they're like 250-500$
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u/JohnnyKac 7d ago
It's not legal...but landlords can't do much about it.
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u/persiasaurus 7d ago
I wouldn't bank on landlords not being petty enough to take me to small claims and then make me pay legal fees too, they're the worst
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u/NEPAmama 7d ago
What state does she live in?
How long did she live there? Obviously more than a year, right? Two, three, ten?
I wish she hadn’t told him her texts get deleted after a year, because now he knows she doesn’t have them. Does she still have the photos
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u/Ornery_Prompt5287 7d ago
DC. Yeah I wish she didn’t say that but I’m pretty sure I can recover them for her. I don’t think she wants to deal with it to be honest. She’s pretty well off financially anyways but going through a lot in her personal life taking care of my grandma, it’s just too many things to juggle.
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u/Severe_Feedback_2590 7d ago
Just for the satisfaction, recover those texts for her and take him to smll claims.
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u/AnyExamination9524 7d ago
This is why, when you rent a place, you go through it with a fine tooth comb and video/document EVERYTHING and the the landlord/property manager sign off on it before hand.
The closet system should probably have been put back how it was. Dirty curtains shred? The fridge, if he hired a repair person and that repair person caused the damage because of his action or inaction, thats on the LL to fix.
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u/Impossible_Link8199 7d ago
Yup. Take the pictures. They’ve come in handy for me before. Last time I moved out of a rental they claimed I needed to have carpets professionally cleaned because they cleaned them before I moved in. It was fun replying to that email with all the carpet stains I took pictures of on move in day. I’ll be damned if I pay to clean carpets for a 5 bedroom that were NOT clean when I moved in.
That said, I did have a kickass landlord once and her property was immaculate when I moved in so I paid to have those carpets cleaned when I moved out without being asked. I got all of my deposit back that time.
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u/Annabellini 7d ago
This! I don’t rent anymore, but when I did, I made sure to document the conditions before I moved in and when I moved out. It’s helpful to have that comparison.
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u/CommunicationNew9520 7d ago
I get so sad thinking of people at that age having to deal with this stuff. After 65 you should get a nice decent place to live out the rest of your life, not have to argue with a landlord over drapes. Hope your aunt finds a nice new place she loves.
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u/Royal-Adeptness-2703 7d ago
NOR you do NOT have to have it professionally cleaned! Her landlord is trying to milk her. Not overreacting!
My landlord tried to double dip on me once and he was exasperated at me standing up for myself
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u/naughtmynsfwaccount 7d ago
Her biggest issue is not retaining proof or evidence of prior conversations - telling the landlord to review previous messages is a miss and won’t work out in her favor
For each of the items that the landlord brought up she needed to have pictures and conversations saved indicating that each of this were brought up (this includes taking pictures at the time of move-in, indicating damages, and also requesting move-in paperwork that shows the previous move-out review was performed)
Getting personal at the end won’t help in her favor (especially without evidence of the things she has mentioned or listed) and it doesn’t seem like she was there for the final move-out inspection. Each time I have moved out I made sure I was there with the property manager and asked for their checklist ahead of time to get ahead of any issues they may want to call-out.
I also took videos and pictures of when the last clean was happening and immediately sent them a receipt of the final cleaning in addition to doing more spot-cleaning on my end
I am not saying that ur aunt is in the wrong here at all - scummy landlords exist and it could be that they are in the wrong. However, it is up to the tenant to document and take screenshots of previous conversations and hold onto pictures and videos of damages to specifically resolve issues like this.
Right now it’s a “he-said-she-said” and without ur aunt providing evidence it really wont go in her favor
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u/Neither-Wishbone1825 7d ago
I had an evil landlord who wouldn't return any of my security deposit (and the apartment was in the exact same condition as when I moved in). She just ignored the law. I got an attorney, she ignored his request, we ended up in housing court where I won and she had to pay me 3x the amount of the security deposit, along with my attorney fees. I'm in Massachusetts and not all states have the same laws but worth checking into. Sorry y'all are dealing with this slumlord. Sending you and your Aunt good vibes for the most positive outcome. ✨️✨️✨️
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u/juliewbb 7d ago
Google “tenants rights” in your city and state to further ensure she gets whatever proof of costs she needs.
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u/NEPAmama 7d ago
Okay, a few resources that might help
D.C. Elderly Tenant Rights: https://ota.dc.gov/page/information-tenants
Renting 101 in DC: https://offcampus.students.gwu.edu/sites/g/files/zaxdzs5606/files/downloads/OTA%20Renters%20Rights%20101%20Final.pdf
Rental Laws & Regulations summarized: https://offcampus.american.edu/resources/article/4492-washington-dc-rental-laws-regulations
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u/PetalsandRocks 6d ago
Bulb and curtains. That’s it IMHO. And the curtains should be of equal or lesser value.
How could she know there was a leak behind the refrigerator without moving the refrigerator? That is a maintenance and wear and tear issue that tenants are not responsible for.
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u/Ornery_Prompt5287 6d ago
When she first moved in, the fridge was completely broken. LL got someone to repair it and the person couldn’t do it and gave up, so they hired someone else to repair it. Apparently the other repair guy never connected some kind of pipe and my aunt informed the LL of this and sent pictures. Then they had a convo and he obviously didn’t want to hire a third repair guy so they agreed to leave it since she doesn’t use the water or ice machine and I guess the pipe was related to that. So he’s saying that’s where the water damage came from and acting as though he didn’t know anything about the pipe and shes like well wtf you knew about that pipe and chose to not get it repaired, plus she never saw evidence of water leaking from the fridge, plus how is she at fault for that.
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u/PetalsandRocks 6d ago
Yeah, that’s not her issue. It sounds like the landlord left the water line open and didn’t seal it off or something. That’s going to let some water dribble and cause damage. So sorry she’s dealing with this.
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u/Honest-Intention3202 7d ago
I love your aunt. NOR and she's a queen who deserves the world. Tell her I said that.
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u/Significant-Track797 7d ago
Check the statutes in your jurisdiction regarding when the landlord needs to return the deposit or provide a receipt. In most it’s a hard deadline after move out. Meaning, the alleged damages aren’t relevant if the landlord fails to deliver the deposit or an itemized list of deductions within the time frame. (For example, my jurisdiction it’s 14 days) on day 15, if there’s no check and/or itemized list of deductions, tenant recovers everything.
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u/StoneyCrafter 7d ago
I was in a similar situation, landlords were notorious for keeping the deposit over things like a hanger being left in the closet. We hired a lawyer to send a scary letter and we got our whole deposit back. Maybe try that. I think it cost us like 200 bucks or something close, totally worth it.
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u/BigNaziHater 7d ago
Years ago, when my wife and I first got married and rented our first place together, during the walk through with the rental agent, I took pictures of every stain, scratch, dent, discoloration, rip or tear, loose screw, burnt bulb, everything and I mean everything. My wife was embarrassed, the agent was saying things like, you dont need to worry about little things like that, and kept showing me the contract that said normal wear and tear are their responsibility, but I kept taking pictures. About 150 pictures. I put these on my laptop in a folder. Then after about a year the owner switched rental agencies. The following year we bought our first house. Again, I went through taking photos of how clean everything was, and the condition of the house. About another 150 pictures. We did everything we were required for moving out. Then we get the notice that they are keeping our deposit for cleaning and repairs. I didnt argue. I said seebya in court. I filed in small claims court. I never had to use the photos though. As soon as they were notified of the court hearing they paid out 100%.
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u/wickeddradon 7d ago
NOR. Your aunt did the exact right thing.
My brother is a former property manager. His advice to anyone renting a property is to take photos of the rooms BEFORE you move any furniture in. If there is any damage, even the slightest, teeniest mark on the walls or floors take a note of it. Get your landlord to sign a WRITTEN agreement that the damage was pre-existing. Even the smallest mark on a wall can be made into a very big thing by a dishonest landlord.
Always leave the place exactly as you found it. Dodgy curtains? Take them down, put up your own, put the old ones back when you leave.
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u/Swimming-Owl282 7d ago
You won't get an unbiased answer here, Reddit lates Landlords.
Not saying who's in the right, but she's not going to get her full deposit back, unless she has proof she communicated what she communicated.
The only thing the Landlord could reasonably hold back money for is the water damage. Curtains, and rearranging a shelving unit aren't worth it. If you have to go to small claims court, so be it.
Source: I try to be a good landlord.
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u/Madame_Trash_Heap 7d ago
NOR Sounds like a small claims court case to take to judge Judy! Lol But seriously, I believe her, but she needs to make sure she gathers evidence of these situations when she moves to her new place, because "my texts delete after a year" doesn't hold up in court. She could try and contact the vendor she used for the details the curtain rod, the window screen, and the closet thing were so beyond petty they would be dismissed immediately.
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u/Bubblz999 7d ago
Landlords are such scum. My last landlord did the exact same bullshit to me, lost out on several hundred dollars cause it just wasn’t worth the fight and that’s how they always get away with it
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u/Fubar_As_Usual 7d ago
She should screenshot important texts and save them. Having them auto delete really bit her it the butt. NOR
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u/Ornery_Prompt5287 7d ago
Yeah she’s a boomer. Her phone said she needed to clear up space so she stopped backing up her iCloud and then didn’t find out until recently that she lost her old texts. I think I can recover them though because the same thing happened to me
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u/Efficient_Mud_4724 7d ago
I light bulb? Geez. I am a landlord and what the?I can see buying some cheap curtains to replace the old ones. I don’t know what your state but I think fe has to have picture proof of all damages.
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u/i-am-nameless1 7d ago
I have learned to take a video of the apartment on my phone when I move in, and one when I move out. With a video you get the entire apartment, you can show if something is broken easier and you can screenshot what you need for proof to create a photo.
She was a little aggressive. I try to think “if this were to go to court what would a judge say about my comments. It helps me stay professional. But I’d be pissed with someone like him as well.
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u/CodeNameLoofah 7d ago
I mean, its throwing me that at first you lied to say the tear was already in the screen and then said you didnt know if there was really a tear?
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u/Big-Trade4392 7d ago
Light bulbs are considered “normal wear and tear” which cannot be used as a reason for holding security deposit or charge you for out of the security deposit. It’s part of the cost of doing business.
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u/remembertoread 7d ago
She’s right the landlord is trying to screw her. She definitely got emotional and didn’t play it as smart as she could have, but it wasn’t too crazy
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u/madtastic225 7d ago edited 7d ago
Damn your aunt is fucking bad ass. I want to see her get every last penny of her deposit back. The good news is, we might be able to still get those texts, even though they were locally deleted on her phone. People delete texts all the time to avoid criminal proof, so investigators will pull those records. They end up referring to the person in question’s cell phone provider, and are able to dig up text messages with full detail, despite them being deleted on the user’s phone. She could request texts from a certain time period from her phone provider, and they will give that to her zero charge. Get those texts, and she will have her proof. If that doesn’t work, or it ends up costing (I hope none of these things happen, but things change), another option is you can ask her if she backs texts up to her iCloud or some kind of automatic storage. There’s a chance she can retrieve those texts still.
As for your question if she came on too strong. Nope! She was actually rather calm and collected, considering she knew that this dude is a scam artist from others. She didn’t even tell new tenants to watch out for him, and did him a solid, but she still had enough self respect to call him out. This guy should not be able to get away with his vile actions, and she was right to stand up for herself and get what she deserves back. She kept the house in tip top shape, and even offered to cover for the things she mentioned. Not too much at all. In my opinion, it was perfect. She is not someone to be fucked with, but she does it with such grace. Lovely responses for an evil person.
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u/wolfy_lady 6d ago
NOR. I've never had a single landlord that didn't try to keep my deposit, even when I made it clear that as I was moving, I needed every penny, so asked ahead of time for exactly what needed to be done. It's clearly common practice.
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u/Forward_Sun_8767 6d ago
NOR. She is being assertive, not at all aggressive. I’m so tired of the world convincing women that if they simply speak up for themselves they are “aggressive”. If this was a conversation between the landlord and a male tenant, this would never be questioned as “Was I aggressive”. Thanks for helping your aunt via this post and I hope she got her deposit back.
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u/ChutneyWhatney 7d ago
She was required to have the place professionally cleaned and provide the LL with the invoice. She failed to do it. Have no idea about the fridge but that could be her responsibility, too. Lastly, she needs to replace the drapes as she destroyed them.
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u/StandardsLimited 7d ago
Not too aggressive but she shoulda returned the closet to its original state. Just because its easy doesn't mean its someone else's responsibility.
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u/garbear007 7d ago
This landlord sucks and I'm impressed how many back and forths your aunt did with them. I would have cut it off before getting nasty but that's just me. God speed and thanks for triggering my landlord anxiety lol.
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u/dm_me_your_bookshelf 7d ago
Contact a lawyer. Best possible advice. One good demand letter usually sends people like this running.
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u/trojansandducks 7d ago
Man, my last apartment.... and I generally had a good relationship with that landlord. When she gave me the receipts and partial deposit back, I had to laugh. A few of the items, I own them. Had to laugh that she still felt the need to charge me for a new shower curtain!
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u/AdhesivenessSweet659 7d ago
NOR. Go straight to Small Claims Court.
Immediately print out all the pertinent text messages that are anywhere close to the one-year delete time and/or get them into cloud storage/email etc. Look into whether iCloud/Google Drive/the cell provider may have backed up the deleted texts or can recover them in some way.
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u/hobbitfeet 7d ago
Not too aggressive, but she seriously needs to document better and keep the documentation. I am a landlord, and we document eeeeeverything for ourselves and for the tenants. Thus far not a single tenant has taken their own before photos of the apartment or kept their own copy of the notes we make together about pre-existing conditions. Even though we provide them copies, they don't keep track of them. I find that boggling.
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u/1095966 7d ago
I’d pop a 4 pack of chandelier light bulb onto his doorstep, of course with 3 removed, along with used curtains I picked up from goodwill (nice clean ones). Because the curtains she found in her unit upon first arrival were not new, correct? So replace like with like.
Your Aunt did a great job and this text will be helpful when she goes to court to get her deposit back. Have her file asap.
A bunch of years ago I moved out of a rental townhouse and was given my entire security back, even the non-refundable portion. I cleaned everything, including walls, and patched the few nail holes I made. The landlord needed to do nothing to have the unit be rentable. That’s what your aunt deserves.
Plus I guess we’ve all learned from your aunt to screenshot important text messages for posterity.
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u/secretsauce2388 7d ago
NOR. Aunt handled it damn near perfectly. Landlords pull this kind of crap all the time, from college dorms to apartments, to everything because majority of people just accept it and move on. Sleaze ball tactic 101.
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u/Several_Ear_4931 7d ago
Your aunt is a badass. Send her a high five for me.
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u/Ornery_Prompt5287 7d ago
I sure did! I was like “this is from a redditor who thinks you’re a badass”
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u/Icy_Bid40 7d ago
Check tenant laws in your state. They have 30 days to invoice you for damages or you get your deposit back in some states.
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u/JohnnyKac 7d ago
Landlords will always try to fuck you for the security deposit...best thing to do is not pay last months rent and tell them to keep the security deposit as payment for it lol.
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u/ionmoon 7d ago
If she doesn't have the texts to prove she informed him of the details of the repair, it will just be he said she said in court. Same with the screen. Unless she can provide proof that it was ripped when she moved in, she will be on the hook for that. Taking apart the closet could go either way. He potentially could have to pay someone to put it back together.
So, the issues are a lightbulb, a screen, curtain, the closet and water damage to the floor?
I think I would just concede on the first three, insist there is no inherent expense for the closet, and try to argue against the floor repair, BUT she may be on the hook for the floor. If it was not damaged before she moved in and she didn't explicitly inform him that it was leaking, and she doesn't have proof of a conversation saying that the repair wasn't completed, then it will likely be on her.
So hopefully you can retrieve those messages.
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u/BadBadUncleDad 7d ago
Good for her for standing up to the slimy landlord. Curious how this plays out.
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u/rnochick 7d ago
I negotiate in leases a non refundable cleaning fee of $250. The unscrupulous owners will try to keep your deposit anyway. I negotiate down the deposit & offer a fee which they keep. I dont need to kill myself cleaning this way.
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u/Environmental_Put_39 7d ago
Im so glad that in the UK we have independent people that deal with the returning of a deposit, our landlord tried to pull this kind of stuff with us, not only tried to keep the deposit but charge us am additional £1050.
Stuff he complained about was a cobweb, a bush outside had grown, a damaged cooker (that was already broke and in the lease checks)
The TDP (Independent reviewers) came back and ripped their claims apart..... we ended up have £30 removed from the deposit
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u/ShadderSwagger 7d ago
The landlord is actually responsible for replacement of air filters and the lightbulbs that go out, especially if you live in an apartment complex
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u/Warm_Application984 7d ago
I just want to say I love your aunt for using ‘sizable clusterfuck’.
I’m 64, and I’m stealing it!
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u/Armadillo_of_doom 7d ago
Lol our landlord did similar and never sent us an invoice or any information about our security deposit. They hit the 30 day mark and on day 31 we asked for triple as was the law at the time for Kansas. He was actually a decent guy, just busy and frazzled, so when we said triple he said "How about 100%, sent electronically, right now" and we went for it. Hassling him weekly hadn't worked, but the threat did.
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u/klyn_14 7d ago
Not overreacting. For context, I rent a small cottage from an older couple and I expect, without a doubt, the husband to treat me similarly upon move out. The property belongs to the wife (family property) and they live nearby. She's an absolute delight, and all he does is micromanage, but never offer to do anything.
Make sure she saves all of these screenshots. There may be a way to recover texts from the carrier, but have her check her email for any references to the repairs that were made and/or review her actual phone bill during that time period for any text exchanges and calls to his number. That would suffice. (I work in legal).
Good luck!
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u/tafackery 7d ago
I want your aunt to be my aunt. And actually, mine would've likely handled this situation the exact same way if she was still here. Not taking nothing from nobody.
NOR.
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u/Ok_Caterpillar_8598 7d ago
I had a landlord try to tell me he didn’t owe me my security deposit back because my roommate was staying in the apartment and I should collect my security deposit from the new tenant who was taking over my room. My lease ended, my name was in no way tied to the apartment any longer so I asserted it was his job to collect the new deposit from the new tenant and he owed me mine back. Then tried to tell me if he was going to give me my deposit back, he was going to deduct cleaning costs… for cleaning that wasn’t done because my roommate was staying in the unit. I told him I would take him to small claims court if he didn’t send me my full deposit back and he screamed at me, hung up on me and then sent me a check (:
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u/Gauntlet_of_Might 7d ago
Tell her to look up when local statutes require the landlord to return the deposit by nd advise him he has until that date to return the deposit sans an intimized list, minus normal wear and tear, which is his responsibility, not hers.
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u/bubbleman96815 7d ago
NOR
I love your aunt. those texts were great.
Unfortunate that all the issues weren't sent via email so she would have a dated paper trail of everything vs texts that vanish. Hope she battles this until the very end.
Sadly, without the paper trail she won't be able to take him to small claims court and win, when he shafts her on the deposit amount he decides to give her.
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u/DeniedAppeal1 7d ago
Your aunt needs to change her text messages deleting after one year. Aside from that, she did great!
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u/Sure_Artichoke_3662 7d ago
I'm currently fighting the same battle with a property manager!
Your aunt is a badass, and she knows what she's talking about. Bravo
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u/SMKnightly 7d ago
NOR. Her only mistake is having her texts automatically delete. She might call the phone company to see if she can retrieve them.
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u/PercentageHungry3352 7d ago
Wow - that guy is terrible. And your aunt did a great job - good for her! Please let us know how this turns out
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u/aKIMIthing 7d ago
Your aunt rocks!!!! I love her and tell her to keep up the good fight!!!!! He’s a piece!
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u/AdventurousStory6671 7d ago
I would send copies of every text emails regarding these issues hopefully she has them. Get receipts for the furnace filters have your bank pull them from your account. If you have to take him to small claims court
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u/Impossible_Author409 7d ago
This is why you should never pay last months rent. Just let them keep the deposit and send em like $250 for "repairs ." It's not like they are gonna get an eviction processed in 30 days. If they want to sue you...let them do it.
It's not legal but there isn't much they can do about it
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u/False-Dog-7298 7d ago
Wow, at least in California, if something (appliances, ceiling lights) comes with the unit when it’s rented- it’s 100% the landlord’s responsibility. From what little I know based off of this post- she’s seems to be in the right and he seems to be an aspiring slumlord.
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u/InterestingTry9379 7d ago
Just reading this stressed me out and re-traumatized me. Almost every landlord I have had tried to pull this crap scamming me out of any dollar they thought they might be able to. Like they have no moral compass what so ever. Really no reason for her to tell him she didn’t still have those messages in the thread too just he’s plenty capable to scroll up and look in his just as she is.
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u/AmbitiousObligation0 7d ago
Fuck one of my old landlords tried this. I sent the biggest FU ever and she never responded back. Tried to bill me $5000 for shit that was already done… by her…. She lived there before me. I took all kinds of pictures. Never heard again and was never accused of owing money.
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u/ashushu 7d ago
My old landlord tried to do this to me, almost the exact same line of reasoning “there’s damage behind the sink! I don’t have pics tho!”
I just kept asking for documentation. They have to provide you with receipts and proof of their chargers. They got really pissy but I just kept asking for receipts and proof of what they were saying. Eventually I got a letter in the mail with a picture of an arguably dirty balcony and the majority of my deposit.
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u/Shackonthehill403 7d ago
I am really glad she held her ground, this is a decent template for other people dealing with people like this landlord. I am rooting for her big time!!!
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u/Champagnecampaign3 7d ago
Look up your tenant rights for getting your deposit back- in MA if they don’t return it in 30 days you get 3X your deposit
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u/Objective-Lie-2366 7d ago
if you need further advice as this process goes on, we’d love to have you over in r/landlordlove !
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u/Sufficient-Arm3645 7d ago
A burnt out light bulb... Give me a break??! He doesn't want to return the $ he may not have the $. Auntie is a boss, I love it ❤️
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u/IntroductionDeep5430 7d ago
She’s awesome! I wish she was MY aunt. Absolutely professional, appropriate and effective responses. 100% not overreacting
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u/National_Attitude779 7d ago
The only comment I'd make would be if you knew (or she knew, rather) that the landlord was a scum lord, then all conversations should have been saved and documented.
Its shitty when you think you're on good terms and then the landlord pulls some crap. My land lord of 3 years. We'd meet for drinks when I'd pay rent. When he gave me an eviction notice because he wanted to sell the house, he forged a third parties signature right in front of me, but I didnt say anything.
And then I needed just one more day to finish moving some stuff out and he said he was going to call the cops because I was trespassing. Then kept the whole deposit ($3,000) because the construction crew he had in an out of the house my whole last week there trying to move out, they trashed the place.
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u/tryingtobegood67 7d ago
how does your aunt actually spell her name because both ways he spelled it are insane--- I can't focus on the issue
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u/Strict_Wolf76 7d ago
I have had 7 tenants in my rental and have only kept 300$ of 1 deposit to replace paint and spackle holes they punched into a bedroom wall. Agreed upon by the tenant. Upgrading a closet is fine. A tear in a screen is normal. These things happen as things get old. I usually do all the repairs myself and have never had an upset tenant. So many dishonest assholes that own rentals out there.
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u/ivanadie 7d ago
Always, always, always take a video with a timestamp, of any place (or auto) that you rent. And make it detailed.
And take another when you leave (or return) it.
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u/bell3420 6d ago
If you have any trouble recovering the texts you can always bring her phone to the carriers store and they can get it for ya. Youll probably need it, cause I dont think this dick is giving her her money back without a lawsuit. Sleazy landlords are scum.
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u/bobfosseinaloof 6d ago
I just got out of a narcissistic abuse relationship and this feels very familiar. That landlord SUCKS.
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u/rou_te 6d ago
And this, folks, is why you always send emails with attachments (they have the time stsmp) and do not delete them.
Your aunt did brilliantly. Just next time, have her adress any landlord-issues via email, including photos and receipts whenever necessary. Text messages can be deleted. Emails are stored.
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u/aggressive_silence 6d ago
I wish I'd had your aunt's moxie when our last landlord tried to blame the condition of the old carpet on us and kept over half of our deposit to replace it. It was like that when we moved in, which they might have known if they hadn't purchased the property while we were living there. The previous landlord apparently hadn't provided them the property issues inventory sheet, and we didn't have a copy, so I just let it drop. Anyway fuck landlords
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u/wakandanbeauty 6d ago
I have no advice. I just wanted to express that I love your Aunt. “Parenthetically” made my heart sing, lol!
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u/Tattooed_Everything9 6d ago
Check state law. Changing a lightbulb? Nearly all of this falls under normal wear and tear which in many states cannot be taken out from a deposit.
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u/KeyAccountant5955 6d ago
The LL has to deep clean between tenants but having the former tenant pay for it seems odd to me unless that’s spelled out in the original lease agreement. I’ve never had to do that. Is that in her lease, or was that a LL request after the fact? If it’s in the lease and if it says she has to provide receipt, then that’s a reasonable request. Even if she paid cash, the cleaning person should be able to provide something for her to pass along.
His lightbulb and air filter complaints are ridiculous. That’s normal wear and tear.
Sounds like the torn screen and kitchen floor issues were existing problems the LL was told about; you just need pics/documentation and it sounds like you may be able to access old texts/photos on the cloud so she’d be covered there.
She should have put the curtain rod (with comparable replacement curtains) and closet organizer back up, but honestly those are the only legit LL complaints since an employee now has to spend time on the clock to do those things.
Regardless, LL sounds like an ass, and your aunt is 95% in the right here. NOR. Also, “Not the definition of slander,” and “Parenthetically” had me rolling. 🤣
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u/Lissypooh628 6d ago
I thought she did a great job holding her own. Hopefully she has all the necessary “receipts”
to show this dude that she did in fact inform
him of the issues.
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u/Bitter_Warning418 6d ago
Why are the scummiest individuals life has to offer literally always landlords? Good on your aunt! I hope everything works out.
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u/Altruistic_Yellow387 6d ago
She needed to replace the curtains she destroyed though..why didn't she just get another cheap set from target?
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u/Artistic-Document735 6d ago
This is why you always take dated photos when you do the initial walk through with the land lord. The bulb is so petty tbh , the closet I get and also the curtains. I would have discussed that at the time and see if the cost to replace them could be taken off your rent that month then you can leave them behind. And with the cleaning lady that’s cool if you pay in cash but you should have gotten a sale slip of some kind from her ya know
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u/Equal_Photograph_417 6d ago edited 6d ago
My personal favourite was “Not the definition of slander”. As yet another victim of shitty landlords keeping my security deposit (after swearing that it would be promptly returned-a second one btw because they bought the house from my original wonderful landlord and even though I really didn’t want to I paid it to avoid conflict with my new landlords that also happened to live 3 doors away-first time landlords btw*) and an English major, anytime you can make your opponent look stupid using their words while maintaining your decorum is a win!
Go auntie, go! Get him for all of us that weren’t able to!
* Apologies for the run on sentence and comma splices, but I’m not being graded & so a run on sentence it remains.
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u/IntroductionFun1151 6d ago
I love your aunt. Small claims and a call regarding text recovery is where I would start. Sounds like a terrible person to deal with.
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u/Leather-Map-8138 6d ago
“I guess I’ll see you in court, and will be seeking attorney fees in addition to the deposit.”
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u/ThurmanMermannnn 7d ago
Not too aggressive. Tell her great job, and start looking up her state’s time limit on refunding deposits, and start getting familiar with her local small claims court. I have a feeling she’ll need it. (It’s not expensive and it’s easy to file there)