Prior to moving in, we were shown apartments that looked nice. We were told that they were going to have an officer living in each section of the complex (there are 3 total). We were told such wonderful things. We were also told that because we had great credit, that we would only have to pay the security deposit. Upon coming into the office on July 27; our security deposit changed to full upon arriving. We probably should have realized that something wasnt right. After we signed the lease, we were then informed that there was a massive leak that had soaked the master bedroom and mater bathroom, therefore, we were unable to move our items in these areas because carpet, baseboards, etc. Would have to be replaced. Mind you, we had already looked at this unit and it was fine a few weeks prior.
We went into the unit that evening. We just wanted to cry when we entered. There was no A/C working (it was 101 degrees outside), the stove/over was missing, the spare bathrooms floor was soaked due to a leak, both the bathrooms contained cabinets that were extremely damaged and corroded by mold and mildew literally eating it up, the apartment was filthy and I spent the entire first day cleaning it, the locks had not been changed, and we found black mold growing on the wall behind the master bathrooms toilet. We were disgusted.
We went into the office the following day (it was closed when we tried to go back that evening) and gave the property manager a walk-through form with everything wrong and went over each thing with her. She then informed her maintenance man who was standing there and told him, its no big deal, you can deal with this stuff on Monday. She told us that he was actually off that day, but was there because they were having a pool party. We assumed the party was more important that our living conditions. On Monday, a A/C man came, it took him the entire day to fix the A/C because the company had recently removed a power box, so he had to rig it to work. They also fixed the leak in the spare bathroom. They also brought in an old stove/oven and told us that we could only use the stove part because the oven did not work, they would order us one that did. We didnt get this until August 2nd. The corroded cabinets were NEVER fixed or replaced, the master bedroom carpet was replaced on August 1st. We had also signed and paid for a washer and dryer to be placed in our unit. This is an additional fee by the company. It was to be delivered and installed on Wednesday, August 1st. It never came. I called up to the office and spoke with the property manager who first tells me, I didnt know you wanted a washer and dryer. I then told her, I signed the forms and paid for it, how do you not know? She then changes her story and says, Well, the truck didnt have enough room on it for your units. So, I will put it on the books for next Wednesday and give you a $10 credit. I was ticked but let it go. Then the following Wednesday came and again, no units. So, again, I called up at the office and this time, the property manager was on vacation. I spoke to the other girl who tells me that it was not on the list for today. I then asked for the corporate phone number and called them. A little while later, the regional manager called me and stated that he was in the office when she promised me the units would be there that day. So, he said that he wanted to make this right and I would not be charged for the units until January and he would make sure they made a special trip to bring it to me the next day. They did. The no charge will come back in play later in this story.
On August 13th, I had called the office because someone had tried to break in. I got no response and sent a letter. I requested that my locks be changed as they had not been yet. They werent changed until September 12th and they were so poorly installed, it was very hard to even turn the knob, we ended up having to fix it ourselves. On the 13th, we had also called because of refrigerate had stopped working, and frogs and spiders were coming under the door into the unit. We did not get another refrigerator until August 29th. The refrigerator was the size of one you would find in a basement for an extra refrigerator, there are 5 of us total, so this was hard. At this point were wondering what we moved into. Unfortunately these apartments are for low income families, so the company is aware it is impossible for the residents here to pay $1800 a month for rent. The door draft was never put on until September 19th.
Now is when everything gets even worse, yep, even worse. On September 24th, we called the office because we had no hot water. The maintenance man came out and said he knew nothing about plumbing and couldnt help us. The maintenance supervisor then came over and looked at it. He said that he would tell the office that they needed to get a plumber out here. The 25th, still no hot water. The maintenance supervisor comes back over and said he thought it was the hot water heater and brought one over and sat it on our balcony the entire night. The 26th, still no hot water, the supervisor then changed the hot water heater and said it should be fine now. It still didnt work. Finally on the 27th, the plumbers came out and stated that they fixed it. The hot water did work that night. Then the next morning, the hot water was out again. We called the office and told the girl. She then said shed have to call the property manager. We called a few hours later, we kept getting the run-a-round. We then looked up the VA laws and called and told them that per law, they had to get someone out here. They refused. The 29th, same thing all day long. Then the property manager calls us and tells us that shell have the plumbers out, she never did. She calls us later and tells us that the plumbers will be there first thing Monday morning. On Monday, now October 1st, the supervisor came back out and tells us that the plumbers would not be coming and that he was told to do whatever he could to help. He then proceeded to tear out large portions of the walls and ceiling, trying to find the plumbing pipes. Finally he did. He then tells me that he has to run to the hardware store and get a piece that will fix everything. I had to get my kids from school and came back around 4pm, the supervisor was gone and left a note that read, Fix plumbing, will be back to clean up. I went to use the toilet and it wouldnt flush, there was now NO water. Then we hear this huge gushing water and found that were he had messed with the pipes, there was water gushing out into the walls and floor. It short circuited the power outlets around this area. I called the office and found that the maintenance supervisor had left. They said that we would have to wait until he came in the next day. I was pissed, we had no water anywhere in our apartment. The 2nd, the supervisor came back out and said there was nothing he could do. All this time, weve had to take our family to a convenient store, to use the facilities. And to shower, we had to drive 30 miles.
On the 3rd, we had left dozens of messages with the corporate office for someone to call us. No one ever did. We hand delivered a legal letter to the office demanding they do something, either move us, fix things and some how reimburse us for the gas, etc. We went as far as to quote all the VA laws they were violating. The property manager then claimed, Weve done all we can. We cant move you to another unit because someone has already put a deposit down. The plumber cant come until tomorrow, so that isnt my problem. The 4th, finally the plumbers came out and informed us that she did call them the Saturday before and they told her that they could come out, but it was an emergency charge. They said that she told them she would not be paying any additional charges and hung up. They didnt hear from her again until the 3rd. Again, I went to get my kids from the bus and come back home to open my front door and see a waterfall in the middle of my living room. I walked right back out and got the property manger on the phone. She tells me that she knows, the plumbers had already called her and informed her what happened, I said that enough was enough, if the regional manager does not step in, the courts would. We get water back late that evening.By this point, we really didnt care, everything was soaked, weve had to live like homeless people for the last 2 weeks, we were mad. The regional manager decided to finally grace us with his presence claiming that he didnt call us back, etc. Because he wanted to resolve the issue first, in person. I had another resident with me the entire time we spoke, as a witness to everything going on and said. I showed him all the other issues never resolved, etc. He then tells me that no one should have even been placed in this unit, it is inhabitable. So they finally agree to move us on the 7th and credit us Novembers rent and water bills. We just wanted our lives back and agreed. We were assured that the apartment we were going into was 100%.
So, we were given another walk-through on October 8th. We let the property manager know that the master bathrooms toilet was constantly running. We went back in on October 24th to sign our new lease and went over the toilet issue, we had a large amount of tiny red ants everywhere and that we were having a hard time turning off the faucets in the bathrooms. We ended up with a water bill $50 more then normal as a result. The toilet was not fixed until Mid November. We never saw a pest man for over a month, then hes been here at least 6 times since October because the ants are a problem throughout the building, but the pest man only sprays ours, so they keep coming back. It has been so bad that they got into a brand new XBOX 360 system, the first time we sent it into the service department, they fixed it, but told us that they had found hundred of ants inside and if the system malfunctions again because of this, they would not service it. It did, about 2 weeks later and Microsoft sent us a letter that they had to condemn the unit. A few weeks later, the ants got inside our DirecTV DVR and we had to replace the access card and fees associated. This is just some of the items destroyed or damaged by these ants. We requested that something be done and each and every time have been ignored, to-date.
As to the faucets, In Mid November, a new maintenance assistant came in and claimed that, my 3, I mean 5 year old could turn this off. I argued as he couldnt even turn them off without them dripping. This issue has never been resolved and our water bill keeps going up because the faucets are either dripping or running at all times. Again, these are just the bigger items never fixed, there are several more.
In January and February, 2 of our 3 children were getting very ill. Both of them were put in the hospital twice (separate times) and at that time, the doctors thought it was related to the Beef recall for the schools. They were diagnosed as having a very serious allergic reaction, undefined. Our unit (as all the units on the 2nd and 3rd floors) remain very warm all year long. Most of us only use the A/C all year and hardly ever the heat. (Temperatures usually between 80 and 100 degrees).in March, our A/C began blowing hot air. We went to the office and informed them. Someone finally came out on the 10th and claimed to have fixed it. We went to use the A/C on the 14th and found that it was not working. I personally spoke with the property manager and told her this. I then informed her that I would not be home until later in the day, they had keys to please fix it. When I got home, I called and asked if it was fixed because someone was in my apartment and had left the doors unlocked. She placed me on hold then comes back and tells me that they did fix it. The office then closed, we again found out that it was not fixed and left a message with the answering service. On the 19th, we called again and told them. No one ever came out, we sent a legal letter to the office on the 25th. On the 26th, we received a retaliatory letter stating that we owed them money (posted on our door for everyone to see). We have always paid our bills before their due date and were very upset by this and emailed the corporate office. We also left numerous messages for the Regional manager. The maintenance assistant and grounds keeper comes over on the 27th and tells me that they cant do anything and would have to wait for the maintenance supervisor the following day. On the 28th, myself and several neighbors heard loud banging outside our windows at 8:30am. They men were speaking very loudly and the grounds keeper made threatening remarks. A couple neighbors had knocked on my door to find out if I had heard what was just said. The threats of personal injury and bombing the apartment building and some other nasty remarks continued. They were out there for quite some time and finally came into our unit. The supervisor claimed that the cable company drilled into our line and that no one in the building could have A/C. This was not true as my neighbors checked and theirs were working just fine. All they could do is to contact the cable company to remove the box and place a large floor unit in our living room. We all had to sleep on the hard floor. This was not fixed until April 4th. The odd thing was that both our kids that were sick, were fine the whole time the furnace did not work. As soon as it started working again, a few days later, they got sick again. But Ill come back to this.
After they fixed the unit and left, about an hour later, we hear the doors being slammed shut in the unit below us. We knew that the resident had left and no one was home. So I walked out and went down the stairs to see the grounds keeper leaving her apartment. When she got home, she found her doors unlocked and came and asked if we saw anyone in her apartment, I did and told her. She then went with her brother-in-law to the office and was stopped by two other residents who informed her of the same thing. When she got to the office, she told the property manager what was going on and it needed to stop. The property manager then got abusive with her and her brother-in-law stepped in. She made it clear she wouldnt do anything, they left.
The same day, most of the neighbors were all outside talking about this issues here. The property manager, her assistant and the grounds keepers were driving around on the golf cart, deliberately away from all of us. I waited patiently to speak to her. I asked her if anything would be done to fix the problems in my apartment and she became very hostile and verbally abusive. (twice in the last two weeks up to this point, she had avoided us. The 1st time, my husband told the supervisor that he was leaving work early to speak to her. She pulled out as soon as he pulled in and the assistant to him that, she would have waited for you had she known you were stopping by. The second time, I went to pay the rent, as soon as I walked up to the door, the assistant placed a note on the door stating, the office is closed due to a management meeting.) I told her what I had seen in regards to her grounds keeper earlier. She tells me, you didnt see s*t. I then told her that since he was a grounds keeper and not a maintenance man, he had no legal right in anyones apartment, therefore, we were forbidding him entrance. She became hostile again. I told her that I needed to know when people would be coming over, most of the time, no one knocks, they just come right in and we have had no privacy since moving in, not to mention we feel as though we have been avoided. She gets loud and asked me why I would say that that she never avoided us, etc. I told her just last week that my husband came in to see her and she left. The assistant then starts getting in my face telling me that my husband was a liar she didnt say any blank, blank thing to him. I told her that I was tired of the games. At least 6 residents heard all this. That evening, I sent a letter to the office detailing the abusive actions by the management and the illegal actions of the grounds keeper and putting in writing her was not to be in my unit, I also stated that at this point and per VA laws, they were required to give a 24 hour notice of coming into our unit and we expect this.
The next day, I went to the store to come home and find that my balcony door and storage room door were wide open. Myself and a neighbor went upstairs to see who was in my apartment. We go in to find the grounds keeper standing in my living room and the supervisor in my storage room, working on the furnace. I told the grounds keeper, You were standing right beside the property manager when I said that you were not allowed in my apartment. He laughed and said, I dont recall that. I called my husband. He got home a little while later and the grounds keeper had come back twice when he was there. He then handed me a letter addressed to my neighbors and I handed it to them. They read it and said that it was addressed wrong, it was for me. It was a letter from the property manager stating that she would not be doing anything to fix our unit. Since the grounds keeper still wouldnt leave we called the police.
In the meantime, the police showed up for my neighbor and her brother-in-law. She put a trespassing warrant on her brother-in-law restricting him from the property and placed a lease violation paper on her for having 3 cats (but was in accordance with her lease). She questioned how she could have known what pets she had if the grounds keeper wasnt in her apartment? She was ignored. She then went to the office to showed her the papers stating 3 cats. She recorded the conversation with her where the property manager tells her that I dont care how many animals you have or even what you do as long as you stop talking to your neighbors and tell me everything they do. She refused.
On April 1st we filed a civil suit against the property. We also sent several certified letters about these long list of violations to both the corporate office and local office. Since this time, I have come home numerous times to find my doors unlocked and my things gone through. On the 8th, while I was in my bedroom, I heard the maintenance men talking in my living room, again there was no knock, no warning nothing. On April 10th, the property manager was served with court papers. As soon as the papers hit her hands, she then went and pulled our rental application. Now, for low-income housing, you fill out an application prior to moving in and all your information is verified prior to moving in, it is just that an application. After moving in, the application has no legal standing to go back through. So, she called my former landlord and claimed that she was calling to verify our information. She began asking questions about us and eventually asked if we had ever filled a civil suit against them. Little did she realize, this was my mother and her response was, now why would my daughter and son-in-law do that to me? Then the property manager ended the conversation. Of course I got a call about what just happened. Since this time, we have had to deal with stalking, harassment, threats, trespassing and additional issues on a day-to-day basis. It has gotten so bad that we recorded these actions and my husband doesnt want me to go anywhere until he is home. I have been approached by dozen of different residents who are going through the same thing, but have seen what I have been put through, so they are afraid to file suit because of the retaliation going on.
On the 15th, My neighbor was packing to leave this place. She noticed that the ceiling in her storage room was falling from our unit and there was mold and mildew growing all over the ceiling, walls and floor, it was grouse. We walked inside and noticed that there was mold growing on the carpet by the furnace intake. She pulled lightly at the carpet and there were thousands of ants and termites all underneath the carpet. She immediately called the health department. I then went into my units storage room, where I found mold and mildew growing all over the walls and floor. Neither of us heard back, so she called over to the office when they opened and demanded something be done. Later that afternoon, the pest man came and sprayed and said that they cant shampoo the carpet and will need to rip it all up to find out how bad the unit is. Then the maintenance supervisor comes in and stated that the ceiling collapsing was how the ceiling is made. Then he told us that he had some mold and mildew killing spray and as soon as he was done with her unit, he would come to mine. He leaves and comes back with these 3 cans that looked and smelt like spray paint. We questioned him. He again said it would kill the mold and mildew. My husband got home and was talking to him and saw him spray it right into the intake. SO, my neighbor couldnt turn the furnace on. He finishes and claimed that all the mold and mildew was gone, never came to my unit, and that he would send someone to shampoo the carpets. We told him we were told they cant do that. We got the name of the spray off the can. It was called KilZ Original. It was spray paint and used to cover up stains. We even emailed the company and they responded that in no way does it kill mold or mildew and was in fact a primer used to cover stains, like water stains. They seemed very upset by the manner in which they used their product.
On the 17th, I received a letter from the corporate office telling us that they also would do nothing to fix our unit, it went as far as to state, since you field a suit, you can deal with our attorneys and the courts. We had sent letters to ALL applicable agencies to try to get some help with these living conditions, especially since our childrens doctor told us that their sickness was caused by the mold and mildew spores going into the house from the furnace. We cant open the windows since we have no screens, except in the living room and only because they screwed everyones screens in, so they wont fall out. Then on April 24th, I had heard my door knob being turned at around 5:10pm. I opened the door to find the maintenance assistant placing a letter on my door. The letter stated that management and maintenance would be in my apartment the following day to review previous work orders. That was the problem, no work orders were ever done. Again, less than a 24 hour notice (at least this time we got something), and we had two letters stating they would be doing nothing, so we found this strange. I then went online and checked my emails to find that the housing department had sent an email to the corporate office at 5:07pm. So, now we knew what was going on.
The following day, they showed up around 2:40pm. My neighbor was there with me as a witness to anything said. They knocked and before I could get up, already walked into my unit which I let go. Then my neighbor pointed to the two maintenance men who were hold large bottles of chemicals. The property manger had walked out to my balcony and started taking pictures if the mold and mildew. I walked near the door and asked what was the cause for her being in my unit and what was the chemicals the men had and how would they be used? She turned to me and said, I dont have to tell you anything, it is none of your business. I then said, Maam, this is my unit and you have sent me letters stating you would not be doing anything. I have children that live here and have every right to know what you are doing here and what those chemicals are. She stuck her nose up to me and ignored me. I then called my husband. I walked to my kitchen to speak with him and she walks near me yelling and using abusive language at me. My husband tells me to ask her once again the same question, I did and she got very abusive again. He then told me to tell her to leave. I did, several times, she refused. He told me to call the police since she is refusing to inform you as to what shes doing, being abusive and now refusing to leave. I got off the phone with him and told her that if she did not leave I would call the police. She then started walking around my unit, as if it were hers. So I dialed 911. The two maintenance men then left and I walked onto my balcony away from everyone and started explaining everything to the operator. She then tells me to tell her again to leave, I did, she refused. Then she starts approaching me and yells in my ear, excuse me I told her the door was the other way and she needed to leave. She then pushed me and hard enough that I fell backwards into my satellite dish. My neighbor jumps off the couch to see if Im OK and tells me to stay calm, that I needed to tell the operator what she just did and have them come and arrest her for assault. I did and the property manager walked over to my front door, Im relaying all this to the operator and the property manger then placed her foot between my door and frame preventing me from shutting it. I told the operator, who tells me to tell her that the police are on the way and she needs to leave. I tell her this numerous times. She finally leaves when the deputy pulls up.
We told the deputy everything we told the 911 operator and even showed him what she did. He said that I needed to file charges in Fredericksburg, which I was unable to do until Monday. The following day, Im getting my kids ready for their baseball games when I get a call from the deputy informing me that she somehow managed to obtain a warrant for my arrest for assault. I questioned how on earth she could have possibly done this when she not only assaulted me, but trespassed and this was all recorded by 911. He said that he informed her of this, but she went and got a warrant anyway. So, I had to go through the embarrassment of all the criminal stuff at the police station. I have no record of anything, this woman has a record that would prevent her from being a resident, but she can be a property manger. My question to them was when this goes to court, what will happen when they find out that she lied to retaliate and harass me even more. I was told that they would get her on perjury, but all other actions I would have to file on my own. Nice right? The worst part. That Monday, I left to speak with the police department about my rights. Upon leaving the property, the grounds keeper gave me the finger. When I returned, he and the assistant started making nasty comments and threats again and actually followed me to my unit and stood by my door making these statements. I called my husband very upset and he then came home and said we were going to Fredericksburg to have this stop. We wait almost 2 hours to see the magistrate, I fill out all the papers needed to file the appropriate charges and was denied on the basis that this is a civil issue, these are the staff and can do what they want. So, basically, in VA, you can have people commit criminal acts against you and can do nothing, but they deliberately lie and accuse you and you have to suffer. Nice judicial system we have. So, Im the victim and am being treated as though Im the criminal.
This behavior from them continued and again, is video taped. Then we go into court on the 30th. They got an attorney the day before, we received a letter on May 1st stating this from their attorney. So he claimed to the judge that he was not prepared and got a continuance. So we go back in on the 28th of May, only now we need a continuance because of this being a holiday week, my husband can not take the day off. We already had the building code inspector scheduled to come out on the 1st of May, so them delaying is actually good for us. The building code inspector sent them a violation of numerous codes, some weve complained about, others we have not. Now, we just wait until court.
0 comments