Rent Problems Are Frustrating; but you're not alone: Thousands of tenants rely on RPA to solve problems
Landlord Refuses To Refund Holding Deposit | Case#**-*295
LA JOLLA,
CA -
92037 2575
Lease agent has refused to refund the holding deposit of $500 as he claims we are past 72 hours from the application. I disagree with his decision under several factors:
1. The application was acknowledged on September 16, 2022.
2. In the printout he sent me with his denial to refund the holding deposit, it states: If the application is not accepted by management within 72 hours within the date of receipt, said amount shall be returned in the mail to Applicant.”
3. Lease was not approved until September 20, 2022 at 5:52 pm. On September 21, 2022 at 3:53 pm I responded and advised them we will not proceed with the lease. I called several times, with no answer and left a detailed message that we did not intend to lease the apartment, and asked them to acknowledge the message. I emailed again the next day asking for an acknowledgment of the email. No response.
3. On September 22, 2022 at 10:30 am, we finally received a response from Andy indicating he will not refund our holding deposit as we were past 72 hours of the application process.
4. A leasing agent cannot delay their approval and expect tenants to wait while missing opportunities to secure other properties.
5. Holding Deposits were created in case the landlord incurs a loss for not renting out the unit while the tenant has time to secure it. There is no loss incurred with a move in date is October 8th.
Andy has acted in bad faith in withholding the refund of the holding deposit by delaying his response to our emails. He indicated we would be approved on Sunday, September 18th, but we did not hear on the approval until September 20th. He has not replied to my demands of an explanation as to why he is not refunding the holding deposit.
Lastly as a side note, which speaks to his character, when telephone screening a 23 year female potential tenant, his questions were condescending and unprofessional. The words of “I want to make sure you’re not earning money from a drug dealer” is completely out of line.
Harassment To Move After Accept Rent | Case#**-*587
Lawrencburg,
Tennessee -
38464
He wanted us to live here and 1rst every month he\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s always saying after he received money he wants us to move asap and complaining thieves kids need to clean up his mess after him this place is infested with roaches,maggots,and filth he is spanish male in his 50\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s and brags all the time his green card has expired
He\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s very bossy and rude and is very disrespectful
Eviction Without Written Notice And Unethical Demeanor | Case#**-*471 Mr. Guzman along with Ms. Rosa scheduled a meeting with my mother, Maria M. Melgar, at 07:30 on Wednesday, January 7, 2015. During this meeting, Mr. Guzman and Ms. Rosa subordinated, bullied, coerced, and threatened my mother, Maria, with false statements. Since my mother has no formal general education, they told her that she could go to jail for that, she could no longer live here, Jimmie coerced her to give him a date to vacate which she did not provide because of lack of financial resources and she is permanently disabled, she and her adult children must vacate her apartment by 1/30/15 but because Jimmie is such a good man he allowed us until 2/15/15 and cannot go pass this date, that there's nothing else he could do, everything is done, and she must move out, they had to follow their boss's directions or they would lose their jobs and that was not "suitable" for them; if she were to refuse to vacate he could destroy her credit history, rent history and ability to rent another apartment, driving record, as well as those of her two adult children including their school records; and that if she moves out by 2/15/15 he would not charge her rent or deposit for the remaining days of February. When Maria requested to speak with his boss, he told her that she cannot speak with them, and that it was a serious crime she had committed. My mother felt humiliated and returned home terrorized early in the morning with tears in her eyes....
Purpose of meeting: to discuss the accusation of a female neighbor by the name of Marina from apt. 3. Marina accused Maria of throwing things around the apartment's doors, hallways, and sprinkling bleach over her car while Maria was picking up some recyclables in the trash cans in the rear alley on her way to the local grocery store on Sunday, January 4, 2015 around 20:30. Marina called the apartment security guard along with an L.A. Police officer, but no police report was completed even though Maria provided them with her identification card.
Everything was verbal; there is no written eviction notice. This is a very unethical and unprofessional property personnel.
Continuous Repair Issues | Case#**-*731
LUBBOCK,
Texas -
79415
I have placed numerous work orders reporting a scratching vermin in the wall. The maintenance team cut a hole in the wall and left if open for over a week until I requested it be sealed. Initially the head of the crew heard the scratching and stated \"That\'s no pipes\". The request was closed stating \"determined it is water pipes.\" The scratching is inconsistent and does not correlate with water usage. Now, the lights in the ceiling are flickering on and off intermittently associated w/ the scratching. I fear the creature in the wall may chew/damage electrical wiring causing a fire hazard. Also, the maintenance team has entered my apartment a number of times without leaving me notice of entry. My husband and I entered our apartment one day and found several items including mounted frames off the walls and dishes moved around and we thought someone had broken in...I have a police report and an officer who documented the disarray. I was so scared that the police had to clear a bedroom that still had the door closed. My car has been broken into twice and the glass is still in the parking lot . We don\'t move out until June 1st but this apartment complex has blocked my ability to enter any further work orders. I am concerned for the next and current tenants safety for lack of proper maintenance, I am also concerned that these people are going to charge me obscene charges in retaliation of my frequent concerns.
bed bug | Case#**-*974
henderson,
Nevada -
89014
shortly after moving into my unit on 3/15/2011, i starting receiving bug bites on a frequent basis (3+ times a week) for several months i just assumed it was an outside flying bug from when i enjoyed my patio ( which may account for some, but not all insect bites). I did seek medical aid a few months ago for relief of insect bites because of the discomforting nature of them. on 9/12/2011 i caught a bed bug biting me while i was on my couch. i saved the specimen and showed it to the leasing office the following morning. the leasing office did have a pest control agent come and inspect my unit that afternoon, ( by that time i had caught and saved a second bed bug). the pest control agent was unable to locate any other bed bugs other than the ones i had already caught, but did agree that i had bed bugs in my unit, and it should be chemically treated to rid the unit of the bed bug problem. up to this point i was told that there was a chance that the renter may be charged if it was proven that the bugs were introduced by the renter (me). upon being told the extermination was scheduled for the next day, 9/14/2011, i was then informed that the leasing office has no proof of how the bed bugs were introduced into my unit, therefore i would be charged the fee of the pest extermination (around $650.00).
Broken Property | Case#**-*095
Houston,
Texas -
77099
My official move out day from the Kirkwood Landing Complex was on May 6, 2013 but I had already been moving stuff out and in to my new apartment one week before but I was not fully done. Therefore on the 5th of May I retuned to my old apartment at Kirkwood Landing to pick up my few last items and clean up to do the walk through with the office manager, but when I went to unlock the door the key locks were changed. After this I walked around to the back of the apartment and sa that some of my items were unproperly disposed of they were actually thrown over and out of the second floor patio on to the ground. My microwave and charcoal grill were broken and not at all able to work or be fixed. Then when I went to the front office to ask why and who did it they said they did not know but would find out who and why they disposed of it in that manner and give me a call back, but till this day I have not received one call or explanation.
Repair Issues, Reason To Believe House Is Unsafe And Uninhabitable | Case#**-*997
INDIANAPOLIS,
IN -
46219 1944
List of things/issues that affect tenant safety and habitability in home that must be repaired and/or stopped immediately. Landlords must provide notice if planning on entering the home, for whatever reason. Landlords are to stop coming in home when tenants are not home, or unannounced without knocking, or being invited to enter home. Harassment notes, letters, and phone calls are to stop. The landlord was provided a written, and signed, list of problems that needed to be repaired, replaced, and issues that needed to be dealt with immediately, on June 5, 2015. Some of the issues and complaints, have existed since move in date, without resolve. Smoke detectors have not been placed in the home until this past week, and only two were placed in home. Carbon monoxide detectors not present, in any area of home, with gas used in home for water, stove, etc. Living rooms and bedroom ceilings leak when it rains. Basement of the home floods when it rains, which causes loss of electricity, loss of hot water, and strong mold smells. Power surges, and occasional loss of power, occurs in every room of the home each day due to poor wiring and non-updated electrical fixtures/wiring. In addition, some rooms of the home have unsafe exposed wires which causes electric shock hazard. Roaches, spiders, and ants throughout home, even after multiple forms of insecticides. Bathroom floor believed to be unsafe, due to bowing, and improper floor placement. All pipes, sinks, etc. constantly leak. Kitchen sink, on one side, not even working due to garbage disposal problems. Possibly dangerous mold in many areas of home, including kitchen, bathroom, laundry room, and basement.
Neighbour Issues | Case#**-*776
Houston,
Texas -
77099
The people living below us have annoyed us so much . They are making complaints for silly things . They have problem with everything . Even in daytime they are banging there ceiling . I can’t deal with this anymore now
Security Deposit Problem | Case#**-*597
WESTERVILLE,
OH -
43081 9730
Our final day of our lease was on November 30, 2018. We were to be provided with a written list of damages to show why any or all of our money was to not be returned. I believe this is within Ohio statutes. We were never provided any documentation to show why our security deposit would not be returned in full. At this time we have attempted to make contact with Dan on 3 occasions and he has not responded. Prior to that he had been responsive, so we are now under the impression that he is dodging us in order to not pay us. At this point we simply want our full security deposit to be returned.
inhabitable. | Case#**-*976
new brunswick,
New Jersey -
08901
unable to move in the aprtment. today is march 8, 2012 lease was signed for march 1, 2012.
Complaint Process in 3 Simple Steps:
File Apartment Complaint: Fill out complaint form with your proposed resolution. Instantly recieve your case number.
Check Status: See the current status, respond, upload files or images, accept fair solution or purpose alternative solutions.
Landlord Public Record: Positive or Negative record is attached to landlord based upon their responses. Your (tenant) information is not made public.
Complaints Tips:
Uploading pictures / files is helpful
Try to request fair solutions
Focus on major issue, not on many
Check your status every 3 days
Avoid accusations or hostile tones
Be willing to accept alternate solution
How Does the RPA Help Resolve Rental Problems?
Once you file a complaint, the RPA will contact your landlord or property manager to mediate a prompt resolution. The RPA online mediation system provides an effective complaint resolution process that helps solve problems quickly. Complaints filed through the RPA are documented and help protect tenants' rights by providing a program that protects against landlord retaliation and unfair practices. Agreements reached through the RPA Apartment Complaint Center are legally binding and enforceable. When required the complaint can be used as evidence in court.
The RPA requires a $35 one-time processing fee to cover the cost associated with contacting the landlord, online mediation, paperwork, and public record filing. Prior to 2006 the RPA complaint program had no fee. However, due to abuse by tenants that were filing bogus complaints; the RPA found it necessary to charge of fee to eliminate fake complaints and to cover costs associated with complaint handling. If you are looking to report the problem only and not seeking a resolution, you can use our free Report Landlord option. (The report landlord option will only document the problem and will not provide any assistance in resolving disputes.)
Tip: On your complaint form you can request that management reimburse you for RPA filing fees.
How long does the process take?
The RPA is able to resolve complaints fairly quickly, unlike court or other legal options. Cases are normally assigned in the order received; however, you can upgrade your case to be rushed if you need your case escalated. (option available immediately after filing)For fastest processing try to submit your complaint before the next processing deadline. (Count down shown next to "File Complaint" button.) Once the mediation process begins, your landlord will have 3 business days to respond to the mailed notice. If a landlord email address is provided the RPA will send out both a written notice and email notice which can provide an immediate resolution. Many times cases are resolved immediately after receiving the RPA® notice, however depending on the complaint, it can take longer if both parties are unable to reach an agreement quickly.
Tip: To speed up the process... On the complaint form request reasonable and fair solutions.
Does the RPA Guarantee to Resolve Every Complaint?
Each complaint is guaranteed to be worked by the RPA complaint system. The RPA mediation system will work to resolve every complaint regardless of how big or small the complaint. However, the RPA can't guarantee the end results of any complaint. While we work to solve each complaint, the guarantee is limited to our processing of your complaint. All fees associated with the complaint are non-refundable dispute the outcome of the complaint. Each complaint is Guaranteed to be worked by our complaint system and will be documented against the landlord should they fail to cooperate.
Tip: To get positive resolutions to your complaint; try providing resolutions that are fair.
What Happens After I file a Complaint?
Upon filing your landlord / property manager complaint you will instantly receive a case number. Your complaint case number can be used to immediately access your complaint status page. The RPA will process your complaint and contact your landlord for an immediate resolution. On your status page you can view case status, upload files or images, respond to the complaint, update/ change resolutions, accept or close complaint. The RPA complaint center updates your case status in real time and provides you with tracking to see exactly what is happening with your complaint. Once the case is closed, the complaint will be attached to your landlords public record which is quickly indexed by all major search engines. (Your information is never made public)
Tip: Check your case status at least every 3 days. (Respond / update your case as required)
Protection Against Landlord Retaliation
Its unlawful for your landlord to retaliate against you because you filed a complaint. Your landlord cannot evict, harass, limit access, raise rent, or treat you unfairly because you filed a complaint. As a tenant, you must still pay rent and comply with rent terms stated within your contract. Filing a complaint does not eliminate your responsibilities.
Tip: Check your case status at least every 3 days. (Respond / update your case as required)
Who Can File a Complaint with the RPA?
Any renter located in the United States of America has the right to file a complaint with the RPA. The RPA does not accept complaints outside of the USA. In general, the RPA will accept every complaint regardless of how big or small the problem may be.
Tip: When possible, try resolving your problem with your landlord before filing a complaint.
