Corporate Landlords - who can figure them out?

[jazz4cash]

Yeah had an acquaintance go through something like that. The law required release from lease for certain life events. Landlord stipulated acknowledgment of written diagnosis. Acquaintance provided the documentation but landlord simply refused to acknowledge. The authority was always in some far off corporate office. Acquaintance was focused on treatment and could not pursue any legal remedy. They moved out and cleaned throughoughly left a quit letter with forwarding address. The weird part is the corporate landlord came out way ahead based on what they could charge for rent after a refresh.

 

[Winemaker]

I guess my point is that landlords are in court all the time (except for me, as I followed the law to a tee and never had troubles) and the last thing they want is to get a bad reputation from a judge. They would never ever win a case.

 

[rk911]

I despised that apartment complex and all associations.

We shared walls and ceilings for the first 4-years of marriage. The neighbors were generally OK but there were incidents. One July 4th the drunk, mental midget on the floor just above us threw lit fire crackers over the railing at us. We both absolutely dred the day we have to move into a CCRC multi-resident housing building. I expect our neighbors will be quiet but we tend to stay up late watching TV. And I can hardly wait for the self-appointed guardian of the rule to come calling. We're putting in stairlifts to keep us in this house as long as possible.

 

[ransil]

Were you provided an itemized list for your deposit? As a past landlord, I had a clause that stated that a carpet cleaning charge would be taken out of their deposit at the end of their lease. Of course, it was listed in the final summary.

I moved out of Navy housing once with a detailed list and carpet cleaning was on it, I rented a cleaner and spent all day cleaning it. my checkout was around noon and I was out front of the house waiting on the vehicle shipper as I'm waiting a truck pulls up and guy goes in the house and comes out with carpet, they ripped out all the carpet.

 

[COcheesehead]

We shared walls and ceilings for the first 4-years of marriage. The neighbors were generally OK but there were incidents. One July 4th the drunk, mental midget on the floor just above us threw lit fire crackers over the railing at us. We both absolutely dred the day we have to move into a CCRC multi-resident housing building. I expect our neighbors will be quiet but we tend to stay up late watching TV. And I can hardly wait for the self-appointed guardian of the rule to come calling. We're putting in stairlifts to keep us in this house as long as possible.

I had a commuting year prior to retirement. My wife was in the new house four hours away, I was in an apartment transitioning the business I sold and would bounce back and forth. That one year in the apartment was horrible and it was an “executive” complex. I could hear all my neighbors conversations. People/guests would park where they shouldn’t. Noise in the halls was expected. All the single women asked me to always fix things. The lady upstairs peed every night at 2am and sounded like she wore heals to the bathroom. The furnace fan squeaked.
Some residents were permanent and talked about their desires to someday upgrade to a unit with a fireplace. Aim high in life I guess. No more apartments in our future.
On the positive side, I got all my deposit back from the corporation based a thousand miles away.

 

[NgineER]

This is where AI can be very helpful. Use whichever one you'd like a get a properly worded document with information on what you plan to do.

 

[NgineER]

Dear [Landlord’s Name],

This letter serves as a formal demand for the immediate removal of unlawful move-out charges assessed to me for so-called “refreshing” of the apartment at [Apartment Address], which I occupied for approximately 30 months.

Under New York General Obligations Law § 7-108, a landlord may charge a former tenant only for actual damage beyond normal wear and tear. Routine turnover costs—including general cleaning, repainting, cosmetic repairs, or “refreshing” a unit after a long-term tenancy—are explicitly considered normal wear and tear and are not legally chargeable to a tenant.

The charges you assessed are ordinary make-ready expenses incurred to prepare the apartment for re-rental. These are the landlord’s responsibility under New York law and do not constitute tenant-caused damage.

Additionally, GOL § 7-108(1-a)(d) requires landlords to provide an itemized statement of any lawful deductions and limits deductions to legitimate damage. Any improper withholding or assessment exposes the landlord to liability, including return of all improperly withheld amounts, interest, court costs, and statutory damages.

Your attempt to charge me for routine “refresh” work after a 30-month tenancy is unlawful and unenforceable.

DEMAND​

I hereby demand that you:

1. Immediately remove all improper move-out charges, and
2. Confirm in writing that my account balance has been corrected.

If this matter is not fully resolved within 10 days of receipt of this letter, I will proceed without further notice to:

• File a claim in New York Small Claims Court,
• Seek recovery of all unlawfully charged amounts,
• Request statutory damages under GOL § 7-108, and
• Pursue any additional relief the court deems appropriate.

This letter constitutes a good-faith attempt to resolve this dispute prior to litigation. I strongly encourage you to correct this matter promptly.

Sincerely,
SunnyOne
[Your Phone Number]
[Your Email Address]