When other options are exhausted, what is one’s recourse when a landlord (apartment complex) isn’t behaving?
Not a lot of information here. If repairs aren’t being made you can file for placing rent into escrow until repairs are made. Look on your counties website for this process.
It depends. Are you on a lease? because it should call out what both of you are supposed to do and how to resolve it. Also, your state, county and city have laws which govern things. Then there is the case where the lease has expired and you are on a month-to-month which can change things. (I literally just watched a case where a guy was on a verbal agreement with a roomate, waited years fuming and tried to sue and the case did not go well for him. As he was on a month to month, he had no fines or fees if he just aid ‘I’m outta here at the end of the month’). Realizing that is not your case, but as mentioned above, specific information of your issue is needed.
In many cases, you would notify the rental company in writing and keep records. If the issue is safety or health-wise you may be able to move and break any lease or at least get reimbursed for expenses. If it is an annoyance like the refrigerator not working, you can notify the rental company, perhaps put them on notice and replace the unit yourself. In some cases, you notify them and then escrow part of the rent until the issue is resolved.
You have to put them on written notice and ensure that they receive it with your issues.
Also check with your local landlord/tennant office as to your rights, not just listening to us as every situation and location may have different rules. My suggestions are just that and not necessarily correct.
Talk to Legal Aid.
Sorry for being so vague. We believe the landlord is not honoring the terms of the lease as regards moving out. To whom do you take your dispute? It seems like the steps would be to first contact the parent company of the complex, then the Attorney General, but am looking for guidance on this.
What are they doing/not doing specifically? Agreeing to a walk through? Returning security deposit? Something else?
Make sure you have written communication with them on what you need. If you cannot get them to schedule a walk through, make to to take plenty of time stamped photos showing clean, damage-free rooms. If they are refusing to return security, look up the timeframe for your jurisdiction. Most places require that the landlord provide a written list of discrepancies within a certain timeframe if they want to keep any security. And many also add penalties if the landlord does not provide that information or return the deposit in the specified time
We do have a lot of written communication. They are imposing an additional months rent on top of already paid an additional months rent due to what they are claiming was insufficient notice. The problem is that over the past 2 months, we’ve spoken with possibly as many as 6 different employees in the office and have gotten different sets of instructions and/or responses to questions. It’s a ‘left hand - right hand’/employee turnover issue, we suspect.
Get a copy of your state’s Landlord/Tennant Act and read it, also carefully read the fine print of the lease you signed. If there are discrepancies in the actions of your landlord or between the law and your lease, go see legal aid or your own attorney.
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Did you give written notice of you moving out? Keep referring back to that as the date you notified them. Someone is the boss of the various people who apparently don’t communicate with each other. Push your issue up to the boss.