Azalea Hill Apartments    |    Megan Eason, Jennifer    |    Montgomery    ,    Alabama 36117    Landlord Complaint 23-0071

I previously had an issue with my landlord at Azalea Hills Apartments. At the time, the landlord would not provide me with a new washing machine. The old washing machine was leaking and I was suffering health related issues due to the molding, wet carpet. I tried talking to the manager several times. I also tried calling the corporate office. I was always told that the contact person in the corporate office was not available. In addition to this, I wrote a letter to the corporate office. Finally, I contacted a law office to find out my legal options. After contacting the law office, the landlord finally provided me with a new washing machine. I do not know if it was because the law office contacted them, but they finally brought a new washing machine. It took over 5 months to resolve that issue. I have given this background because I feel they are trying to defraud me now partly in retaliation for this. I have since given notice and moved out of the apartment. I was renting month to month because I was in the process of purchasing a new home. My original lease was from February 1, 2011 to July 31, 2011. My landlord called and asked me if I was planning to sign a new lease instead of continuing the month to month plan. I told her that I would continue the month to month because I would be giving my notice and moving out soon. The very next day after informing the landlord that I would not be signing a new lease, and that I would soon be giving notice of my intent to vacate, garbage started being left outside of my apartment door. During my last few days as a tenant, I was subject to garbage being left outside my door. I did not see who put it there, but in all of the years as a tenant there, I had never experienced any such actions until giving verbal notice of my intent to leave after the landlord tried to get me to sign a new lease. I also recognized an old office chair that I had previously seen in the leasing office among the garbage that was left outside my door. After everything that I have gone through with the apartment, I felt like this form of retaliation was only going to get worse. I did not even feel safe leaving my apartment without either I or my sister being there. I didn't know what might happen to my personal property while I was away for any extended period of time. I planned to move as soon as possible. I had even gone to look at several other apartment complexes prior to my home being finished. I gave 30 days written notice on May 11, 2012. The letter stated that I would turn the keys over to Azalea Hill Apartments on or before the 30th day (Saturday, June 9th). The landlord accepted and signed off on the letter and never informed me that there was any issue with receiving the notice and vacating on or before the 30th day. I turned in my keys and did my final walk through of the apartment on June 2, 2012. At that time, the landlord informed me that my notice was not acceptable and that I would have to pay the full month's rent for June ($860.00). I brought a copy of my lease back to the landlord's office. The landlord said that the lease stated that I had to give the notice on the last of the month. Stipulation number four of the lease says that “Either party may terminate this agreement at the end of the initial term by giving the other party 30 days’ written notice prior to the end of the term. If notice is not given this agreement will be extended on a 30 day basis with all terms remaining the same until terminated, hereof except that the rental payment shall be the market rate at the renewal date plus a continuous lease fee of $100.00.Termination must be the last day of a calendar month, by either party upon 30 days' written notice.” This is the section of the lease that they are saying makes me owe the Improper Notice Fee. Since I was on a month to month plan, my term started on May 1, 2012 and ended on May 31, 2012. I gave 30 days notice prior to the end of that term (May 11, 2012). According to their lease, if I continued to rent on a 30 day basis, these terms would stay the same. Is that correct? In any case, I was not aware of this at the time, and I was not informed that the notice I gave was not acceptable. However, the lease never stated that I would have to pay a full month's rent if notice was not given on that day. The Uniform Residential Landlord Tenant Act also stated that if a landlord accepts rent and they believe the tenant is default in payment, they waive termination rights. When I agreed to pay for the time I actually lived in the apartment, they accepted and cashed the check. Also, they are requesting a fee and not rent. They already accepted the rent check that I paid. My lease also does not make any mention of an Improper notice fee, which is what they are claiming that I owe. I also read in the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act that if a tenant was subject to retaliatory action as I have been, they could terminate the lease. Since, I made a written complaint about the leak, I have been treated differently. In addition to this, when I contacted the Alabama State Attorney General’s office for Consumer related issues and filed a complaint to receive mediation, they retaliated by sending my name to a collection agency for a debt I do not owe. I agreed to pay the prorated amount for the time that I actually occupied the apartment. I also provided her with a copy of the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. At this time, the landlord stated that she would call her supervisor. She called someone on her cell phone and then agreed to accept a check for the prorated amount. She told me the amount due was $60.00. I wrote a check “paid in full” to Azalea Hill Apartments for the $60.00. I have a copy of the check with the landlord's initial and date on it. The check was cashed. I have a copy of the check and my bank statement. On Friday, June 29, 2012, I received a letter stating that I owed $657.00. The letter stated that they were applying the $100.00 security deposit toward an Improper Notice Fee. It stated that I owed $657.00 after applying the security deposit to the Improper Notice Fee. The letter actually looked like it might be a scam. It looked like they were now trying to charge me a fee in the place of the rent. The letter was not on the company's letter head. It is simply on a white sheet of paper with an upside down number 2 at the top. There was also no signature on the letter. The contact number they gave was 334-279-8700. I called this number, and an older gentleman answered and verified that it was not Azalea Hill Apartments. The number that I had for the apartment is 334-270-8700. I wasn't sure if it was a typo or if someone just wanted me to mail a check and not actually contact the office. I decided to consult a lawyer or some other legal aid. I did not want to send a check to some person trying to scam me out of my money. However, Azalea Hills has since confirmed that the letter was from their company. I was content to leave everything alone after moving. Even though I do not feel that they should have kept my security deposit, I was content to pay the prorated rent and let them keep the security deposit. I just wanted to be left alone. I received a call on July 6, 2012 from Azalea Hills threatening to take legal action against me for a fee that I feel I do not owe. I contacted the attorney general’s office to file a complaint and hopefully resolve the matter without further incident. However, the Attorney General’s office informed me that the apartment had failed to reply. I was told that if they do not respond, I could seek legal help. I received another call from Azalea Hills on July 18, 2012. Each time, the person I spoke with (Jennifer) has taken a threatening tone with me. She called me at 10:09 a.m. on the 18th, but I was unable to answer my cell phone because I was at work. I attempted to call her back at 10:40 a.m. She was unavailable. I left a message for her with one of the other workers to let her know that I was returning her call and that if she attempted to reach me again she could leave a message on my cell phone. She called me again on my cell phone at 3:05 p.m. and did not leave a message. In the next few minutes, she called my work phone, and threatened that their attorney was turning me over to collections for the fee. I did not feel that it was appropriate for her to call me at work. Also, she has stated several times that I would have to pay for their Attorney and collections fees. They put this in their lease. I did not know this when I signed the lease, but according to the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, 1.403, this is prohibited. I asked her to put this in writing and also reply to the Attorney General’s Office with this information. I had previously spoken with the Consumer Complaints division of the Attorney General’s office and was informed that Azalea Hills had also failed to reply to a letter sent to them on July 10, 2012. The lady, Jennifer, informed me that they would not. She said that she was told by her supervisor to contact me by telephone. She also refused to give me a justification of the Improper Notice Fee and Statement of my Account (showing the payments that I have made to Azalea Hills since I have been a resident there). The supervisor, Kenna Rominger, did finally send a response to the Attorney General’s office. She is still attempting to charge me this fee. They still refuse to provide me with justification for the fee they are charging, and they have refused to speak with anyone acting on my behalf. Instead, they just make harassing phone calls to me. I believe they initially attempted to leave the garbage outside my door to charge me for leaving garbage outside my residence, as their policy allows them to charge $25 per bag of garbage. Now they are attempting to defraud me out of an amount nearly equal to my rent in the form of a fee since they have already accepted the rent in full. I believe they refuse to provide an accounting of my payments because it will show every month’s rent was paid on time and in full. Each time, I have attempted to resolve this issue and move on with my life, they have tried to retaliate in some way. Following contacting the Attorney General’s office, I received a call from a collection agency on July 30th. According to the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, an apartment is not allowed to retaliate when a tenant contacts a government agency with a complaint. I feel they have again violated my rights. I have an excellent rental history and my credit has always been good. I have not had any problems until D.E.L. Development took ownership of Azalea Hills Apartments. I do not want any of this to negatively affect my credit record and rental record. I would like to resolve this matter I would also like damages for the harassment, defamation of my character, and any violations to the Uniform Residential Landlord Tenant Act. I also want my name taken out of collections. I want them to clear my record with all of the Credit Bureaus, and I want a statement in writing to show any credit agency or other party if necessary to prove my credit was marked negatively in error.