I have been looking at new apartments (as well as office space). I found a great apartment in Old City and I decided to move on it. I liked the place and I was eager.
I quickly filled out the application, submit my $50 application fee, and forked over a certified check for a full month’s rent for the deposit. I was excited.
I asked for a 2 year term so that they knew I would be a good tenant that sticks around. Apparently committing to a longer term ISN’T desirable for a landlord because they were not keen on the idea but agreed to a 2 year term. They did come down a bit, but not much.
A few days later the lease was ready. When I got there I sat down and carefully scanned the lease.
Something was wrong….
I had wanted to move into the apartment in June or would have to pay double rent for a month as my current apartment ends May 31st. I asked for June, or middle of May. They insisted on April 27th and because I liked the place, decided that the extra month wasn’t the biggest deal in the world. But when I looked at the lease, it had a prorated amount for April. We never discussed that. Not only would they not accommodate my timeline, they were charging me for their timeline.
The language in the lease was also very aggressive, the late fee was extremely high, and they had the right to begin eviction if rent hadn’t been paid by the 15th of the month.
I don’t intend to miss paying my rent, it’s not that, it’s that I wasn’t comfortable signing my name that I agreed to those terms.
I got a bad feeling about this…
They refused to change much: the late fee, the aggressive language, nothing. They wound up waiving the prorated days, but the damage had been done, I no longer trusted them.
So I walked…
The language in the lease was very harsh and made me nervous about different scenarios.
The realtor tries to keep me, assuring me that the lease is “no big deal.”
“Don’t worry, our group is very lenient, if something comes up it won’t be a problem.”
I told him
“I’m uncomfortable signing my name to these terms. If a disagreement ever came up, this is what would be used to settle it.”
He again reassures me.
I give him my final answer that I’m not comfortable signing my name. I’d read the lease and it was not in my best interest to sign it and I asked about the process for getting my deposit back.
He informs me that during the application process I signed my name stating my understanding that the deposit was non-refundable.
No big deal
Let me get this straight, the disagreement is about being held to the letter of the law on a document, and I’m walking away because I’m uncomfortable about that. So in order to reassure me that what I sign would be “no big deal” they decide they’re going to keep my entire security deposit?
It’s MY fault
In the end, this is MY fault.
Is it shady that they kept the entire deposit? Oh, most certainly
Am I a fool for not READING what I’m signing? Oh, most certainly.
What I lost was substantial. What I gained was a valuable lesson.
Be careful what you sign your name to.