ComplaintsforCapital Assets Inc

• Initial Complaint

  06/28/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  We lived in the *************** Apartments for two years before moving out. During this time, my wife got an emotional support animal as a puppy, with proper documentation from a therapist. After we moved out, we were notified that one of the corners had some pet stains, and because of this, we were being charged a prorated amount to fix the carpet. The bill was over $500 dollars. It was not until I did some investigation that I learned that they wanted to replace the whole carpet and carpet padding in the home for some spots in the corner. They would not work with me and constantly evaded my questions on why they were charging me for the whole house rather than just to fix the affected area. During our stay, the carpet was already degrading from age and the complex was able to patch the damaged areas. Now, patching damaged areas is "Impossible" and no one can tell me why. Additionally, as I begin to ask more questions, the complex has gotten more forceful in telling me that they will sell the debt to a debt collector and report it as unpaid to all three credit bureaus in an attempt to bully me into paying for the replacement of the whole apartment's carpet. I believe that this company is trying to get back at me for having an emotional support animal that makes the collection of pet rent illegal. These bullying tactics are unfair, unethical, and illegal. it is a shame that the BBB allows them such a high rating and allows them to part of the organization.

  Business response

  07/25/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 10, 2022/07/11) */ Please find below my correspondence with Mr. ******** and our resolution. Thanks! Mr. ******** - Thank you for your email below. The carpet was replaced according to our policy and we receive premier pricing of carpet and pad installed from our preferred vendor and have for over 20 years. I do apologize if you felt that anyone was lying to you regarding the carpet charge or how our collection policy works with delinquent accounts. I do know that your community manager does work hard to communicate with our residents and address any questions they may have. In a good faith effort, since there is only one photo of the carpet showing pet urine saturations, I will divide the total depreciation replacement cost of $564.08 into four areas (LR/DR/BR1/BR2) and only charge for the dining room area. I have adjusted your carpet charges to $141.04 which will leave you with a refund due of $30.21. Your refund of $30.21 will be processed to and mailed to the forwarding address you provided within 30 days: *************************** ******** *********************************** Feel free to reach out with any further questions. Thank you, *************************************************************************************************************************************************************************** "The key to our success is the people who represent our company! Superior customer service and a community that the resident can proudly call home is our #1 priority" ...************ From: ******** ******** <**************************> Sent: Thursday, July 07, 2022 5:12 PM To: **************** <*******************> Subject: Re: Move Our Charges Follow Up ********: Thank you for your response. I have had a ton of trouble getting any kind of information about this issue up until now. I still believe that the carpet was older than one year old when we moved in or that the carpet that was installed as it was ratty and low quality when we moved in. I do not contest that there was some damage to the carpet from pet stains but I still contest that a total replacement was necessary. The complex patched a part of the carpet near the kitchen because it was coming apart and was not attached very well to the floor. While I would be fine paying my part for the area that was damaged by the stains, I do not think that it was necessary to replace the whole unit, nor do I think that the carpet you installed would last a full five years under normal circumstances. In the few months before moving out, I have seen almost every vacated unit get carpet replaced. I feel that I am not being unreasonable when I say that the apartment manager would have replaced the carpet when we left regardless of whether or not there were pet stains or an alleged odor. My biggest problem is that my wife and I feel lied to and because of that we cannot trust you. The apartment manager hid that she was trying to replace the whole unit's carpet for almost a week before coming clean about it in spite of my incessant asking about how on earth a single room of carpet could cost what we were being asked to pay. I had to call a carpet installer to find out that we were being way over charged. Would you trust a company that did something like that? The manager of the complex was extremely evasive when I tried to get any information out of her. In fact, I still can't get information of exactly what was done or if the carpet was of the same quality or if it could be patched because the company won't give me the info and the manager won't get the documentation for me. An invoice is all I am allowed? Acting like that makes me question everything that I am being told and I still need some explanation. I asked early on why you are installing carpet that is roughly double the price of what I have been quoted as normal by **********. I still haven't received an answer on that. The lack of trust is why I am insisting on proper documentation and answers for all of my questions before I pay anything. I guess the main questions that I have so far are: 1. Why did you replace the whole unit? I know that a patch was used before and dont understand why you are not patching it now. The alleged odor was not mentioned at all until I started asking questions which makes it seem pretextual. 2. Why are you using $7.39 per square foot carpet in that unit? My research indicated that builder grade carpet is about $3-4 per square foot. 3. Is the carpet you installed the same quality as what was taken out or did you upgrade to a better carpet? 4. Why was I not contacted before you ripped all of the carpet out? I have no way to verify any of the claims other than a blurry photo. 5. Could I get the invoice for the last time the carpet was replaced? That may sound silly, but recent events make me doubt the truthfulness of anything not in an official document. 6. Where are you getting that the carpet should last five years? Is that the manufacturer's warranty, or something else? How many units actually have carpet that make it to 5 years? 7. What action are you going to take to ensure that your employees don't keep lying to people? It is not acceptable to hide why someone is being charged and then threaten them with **** debt collectors when they start asking questions. I also wanted to mention that the carpet was falling apart within a few months of moving in. It has had to be repaired at least twice because it was frayed and shredded near the edges. In many places the carpet was so thin that you could stab yourself by stepping on the spike strips that hold the carpet down. We dealt with it because it was a cheap apartment and we didn't want to complain too much. If I had to guess, I would say that either the Carpet company shortchanged you and put in old carpet, or that the carpet was never meant to last more than a year or two. On a different topic, what would be the best way to pay the water bill to ensure that it gets applied correctly to our account? I would like to pay for what I actually owe, but I disagree with a lot of your claims and reasoning. I will not pay for something just because I am told to do so. I am willing to settle this dispute with you if you wish to be reasonable. The dining room area is 8'3" by 8 for a total of 66 square feet. Replacing it with standard builder grade carpet is between $3 and $4 usually so I will use $3.5. This comes out to about $231 without depreciation. If you wish to keep the security deposit of $200, we will pay the water bill, $33.75, in exchange for the settlement of this alleged fee, any interest or claim upon it, and a contractual promise that you have not and will not sell this alleged debt to any other person, or report it as an outstanding debt to any credit bureau, credit institution, person asking for reference, or any other third party, (NDA). Additionally, I will resolve my complaint with the BBB if you agree to this settlement. This is honestly very generous because it pays for the damage that you have proof of and only depreciates the value of the carpet by about $30. ******** ******** ************************************************* On Thu, Jul 7, 2022 at 4:02 PM **************** <*******************> wrote: Good afternoon Mr. ******** - Thank you for your email communication regarding your move out balance at *************** Apartments. I have had an opportunity to discuss your concerns with the property manager and the President of our company. Attached is my response to you questions regarding your move out charges and alleged discriminatory action from our team regarding your service animal. I am happy to discuss further if you have any additional questions. Feel free to reach out anytime. Have a great evening! Consumer Response /* (2000, 12, 2022/07/12) */ I was contacted by the company I made a complaint against and we have resolved the issue. They reduced the bill to only the amount they had evidence of and refunded the extra portion of my security deposit to me. I would like the complaint to be marked as resolved.

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩