Should i take this to court?

Question

The story:

I'm moving out of my apartment complex in October.
I've been here for 2 years. I pay about $900/month for a 2 story, 2 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath townhome (5 YEARS OLD).

There is carpet all through the apartment (except bathrooms, kitchen, laundry room).
*My lease states: Tenents ARE NOT allowed to replace carpet.

When i recieved my puppy he chewed up some of the carpet (about 3 feet long, 2 inches wide) .. in the living room.

*I've talked to the manager at my apartment complex to see how much the downstairs carpet would cost me to replace.
**She then explained to me that if there is a room that needs replaced they replace ALL of the carpet throughout the house. Not just one room, EVEN IF IT DOESN'T NEED REPLACED.
**IT DOES NOT state that in my lease.
She said it would cost me a good $2000.00!!!

So i'm thinking if i take this to court there is NOWAY the courts are going to make me pay for all of that. I should only have to pay for what is damaged.

Advice??

This apartment complex uses the SAME carpet all the time, for every unit .. if i get the carpet clean by a prof. .. then it is not going to show that they do not match. It's the same color!!

I have no problem with the whole living room carpet being replaced .. because that's what is damaged .. the rest of the carpet throughout the house is in GREAT condition .. it will look brand new when i get it cleaned.
But there is noway i'm paying another $1000-$1500.00 for them to replace the steps and all the upstairs bedroooms when they are in GREAT condition .. am i really out of my mind? lol

Answer 1

If the carpet is a solid piece from the living room to connecting rooms, I could understand the Manager's reasoning. If the carpet is a style or color that would be hard to find a match for, I could understand that too.

However, if those 2 things are not the case, I think it is an unreasonable request.

If the property is managed by a Professional Management company (Not Joe from down the street), I would contact the office of the President via letter and CC it to the Attorney Generals Office and the office that manages your property.

I would not take this to court, it is unlikely that you would win the case. You were responsible for maintaining your unit and making sure that there were no significant damages.

Your dog did damage the carpet and they could probably argue that the dog caused other damages as well, even if you know that he/she didn't.

In any event, it is unlikely that you will even get your security deposit back. Unless you take this up with the Management company. You NEED to go over the head of the local property Manager and get their superiors involved.

If you do have anything replaced or the Management company agrees upon a certain amount of money to cover the damages, Get everything in writing and make sure they sign it! It will mean absolutely everything if they go back on their word.

I recently vacated an apartment after 7 months, while I waited for my home to be built. Upon moving out, the Management company refused to give me my $2000.00 security deposit.

They claimed that the floors were "filthy" and that I damaged the "beauty bar" and "vanity".

The beauty bar was a cheap 5 bulb lighting fixture and the vanity was the counter top. I had the carpets cleaned prior to moving out and there were no damages to either things sited.

They wanted me to REPLACE the counter top, lighting fixture and all of the downstairs carpet! Not only keeping my security deposit, but billing me for the excess amount!

I contacted the President of the Management company and told them that the claims the local office had made were completely fraudulent. I contacted the Attorney Generals office as well as several other state authorities.

Not only were the claims erroneous, but I believe that the Manager of the property profited off of tenants security deposits.

I won my dispute with the management company, received my security deposit and an additional months rent totaling$3,700.00.

Good luck with your ordeal, if you do as I said, everything will work out. Take care =)

Answer 2

Call 3 carpet suppliers. Get quotes in writing for the cost per yard of a carpet similar to what you have, and ask them for an approximate cost to lay one room.

Offer your landlord IN WRITING that you will pay the cost of replacing one lineal yard (usually 12 feet x 3 feet) of that carpet.
Make sure that any reply is in writing.

Worse case scenario, the maximum you should need to pay is for the total carpet replacement in the damaged room. Their "relace all" policy is not your responsibility.

I would make every attempt to resolve this without going to court - it may end up costing you a bucket.

Bobbo - the question is valid and has nothing to do with nationality. I don't know where you're from, but where I'm from (and it's not America) fair play is highly regarded. The manager is pushing the boundaries of fair business practice, is being unreasonable, and needs to step back.

Answer 3

I am not sure why YOU would take it to court - not sure why you had a discussion on this with them

I would just move and not say a thing - they will likely not pay you your security deposit back - certainly within their right in my opinion

Then it would be up to them to sue you for the additional amount above your deposit - they would need to decide if it was worth it

By the way - having a dog in an apartment is really stupid - and $2,000 to carpet an entire apartment that size IS reasonable - that would be their argument in court

Answer 4

Apartments tend to use the same color and type of carpet in all of their units so I don't see why you would have to pay for the upstairs carpet to be replaced. As unfair as it is, I would just pay for the cost of the carpet. Sueing them will cost a lot of money in court fees and attorney cost and it will drag out in court forever. Sometimes it is just better to suck up your losses and move on.

Answer 5

If carpet can be replaced in one room, that would be the landlord's claim. Sometimes carpet can be repaired. If there is a closet, it might be possible to use that as a remnant to patch the damaged carpet. You do not have any grounds to sue. Pay for the damage. If the landlord wants more, he will have to sue you.

Answer 6

There should be a tenants tribunal near where you live, this seems very unreasonable. Taking it to court would be a last resort thing. They might need to see the damage, maybe ask the owner to have a look, say you have been talking to a lawyer and you would like to do this sensibly and without outside help if possible. Good luck

Answer 7

I would offer to pay for one room only - the damaged room obviously. If she refuses, settle it in court and tell the judge the same thing. Make sure you take plenty of photos so she can't say there is damage in other rooms (take to court if necessary). Make the payment offer in writing and keep a copy to take to court if necessary.

Answer 8

Typical american!

Stop sueing people and taking people to court.

Firstly you should have known getting a dog wouldn't be the best idea for the furniture.
Secondly, YES YOU DO HAVE TO REPLACE ALL THE CARPET. If they don't match with each other it just looks stupid.

God, what the hell is wrong with you yanks nowadays? Use common sence!

Answer 9

to me thats sounds totally unfair. yes take that asshole to court. and only pay for the damaged rug.

Answer 10

take it to court!!! that's bad!! i hate people who do these stuf!!