Landlord not returning deposit (lease, gated community, renters, security deposit)
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 was looking for rental properties around pembroke pines and got hold of a realtor. She sent me pictures of a property which was good and she introduced me to another realtor who is the listing agent of that property. The listing agents daughter owns this property. The house looks good and i signed the lease documents immediately. We have asked her some questions like who takes care of cleaning the common areas and the lady (listing agent) told us the association is supposed to take care and not sure why it is dirty. We never paid much attention, since we assumed that the guys have not turned up to clean that day or week.
Per the condo policy, i and my wife went to meet the guys at the office for an interview and thats when we got some shocks. They guys clearly told us there is nobody to maintain the property (cleaning the common areas). Then i called up the property management company and found the following:
1. There is no janitorial company to take care of the property.
2. The tennis court is very very dirty and not maintained and in very much not usable condition, since the association did not budget the maintenance. They say many people are not paying the HOA fees and many properties are under foreclosure.
3. The pool is horrible, the maintenance company says that kids throw furniture, bricks and what not and they cannot help with this.
4. There is nothing called a gym, which the realtor mentioned that there is one.
5. There is no security guard to the appartment, its just a gated community.
6. They cannot feed my phone number into the box to dial for visitors, since i have an out of state number. I need to walk all the way to the gate evey time i have a visitor. I dont want to change my phone number, since i have been using it for the past many years.
The very day we have informed the realtor that we are not interested in moving into this property, since we have found the above.
Now the listing agent says that i will not get my advance back. I was kept in dark about the points mentioned above. The realtor takes it easy, since she doesnt want to get involved. The listing agent says that she is ok to break the lease provided i lose my deposit.
I have requested all parties for an amicable solution and ready to lose 1/2 of my money. They want all my money.
I feel why should i lose my money, which i have not stepped into. What is the job of the realtor ? Is it not her responsibility to guide me about the property. Who do you think has right towards the deposit.
I was looking for rental properties around pembroke pines and got hold of a realtor. She sent me pictures of a property which was good and she introduced me to another realtor who is the listing agent of that property. The listing agents daughter owns this property. The house looks good and i signed the lease documents immediately. We have asked her some questions like who takes care of cleaning the common areas and the lady (listing agent) told us the association is supposed to take care and not sure why it is dirty. We never paid much attention, since we assumed that the guys have not turned up to clean that day or week.
Per the condo policy, i and my wife went to meet the guys at the office for an interview and thats when we got some shocks. They guys clearly told us there is nobody to maintain the property (cleaning the common areas). Then i called up the property management company and found the following:
1. There is no janitorial company to take care of the property.
2. The tennis court is very very dirty and not maintained and in very much not usable condition, since the association did not budget the maintenance. They say many people are not paying the HOA fees and many properties are under foreclosure.
3. The pool is horrible, the maintenance company says that kids throw furniture, bricks and what not and they cannot help with this.
4. There is nothing called a gym, which the realtor mentioned that there is one.
5. There is no security guard to the appartment, its just a gated community.
6. They cannot feed my phone number into the box to dial for visitors, since i have an out of state number. I need to walk all the way to the gate evey time i have a visitor. I dont want to change my phone number, since i have been using it for the past many years.
The very day we have informed the realtor that we are not interested in moving into this property, since we have found the above.
Now the listing agent says that i will not get my advance back. I was kept in dark about the points mentioned above. The realtor takes it easy, since she doesnt want to get involved. The listing agent says that she is ok to break the lease provided i lose my deposit.
I have requested all parties for an amicable solution and ready to lose 1/2 of my money. They want all my money.
I feel why should i lose my money, which i have not stepped into. What is the job of the realtor ? Is it not her responsibility to guide me about the property. Who do you think has right towards the deposit.
Sorry once you signed the lease you agreed to the terms and can be held to it including the rent owed for each month.
You can try and put pressure on the listing agent buy telling her that she lied to you and you will be filing a complaint against her with the State Realtor Licensing board if they don't return your deposit.
And next time don't sign a lease without completely checking a property out.
Ageed. You should have asked those questions and gotten the answers proir to signing the lease. Some things, like cleaning and maintenance should have been dealt with in the lease. You jumped too fast. Take it as laerning lesson and know that the next time get it in writing before you sign any contract.
You can report he listing agent to the state board. That's about all you can do.
If all is as what you describe you should get your security deposit back. Only if you are telling the truth since we only hear one side.
You can file a complain with the FREC if it was a realtor in Florida otherwise you have to check your States laws.
If you are not telling the truth and have renters remorse as we have seen happening, than you will not be able to get a dime back.
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.
