Upon moving out of our apartment we did a walk through with the apartment staff when they filled out an inspection report. The report noted that everything was in good condition. There were no issues with broken, damaged or dirty/unclean items in the report.
However, when they returned our security deposit a couple weeks later they retained most of it citing cleaning and painting fees. When questioned they stated these were "standard fees" that applied regardless of the condition of the apartment. We told them there was no provision for these fees in the lease but they refused to refund the money.
We had to sue them in small claims court to recover the money. The judge awarded us all the money they kept plus our court costs. The judge agreed there was no basis for the "standard fees" in the lease.
Don't let them get away with this unethical practice if they try it on you. Just remind them that the Washington County Courts have already told them once they can't do it. It should be fresh in the mind of the apartment complex manager Laura Miller and her husband, the owner of Affinity, Richard Miller.
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