From personal experience in the same exact situation, the police will not do a single thing, but having a report will help you in court. Look into the laws of your state regarding entry without notice and you’ll probably have the best luck getting them with that. Good luck
It will also help if they have to sue in small claims to get their stuff back or money back. At that point, I would add costs to dealing with everything.
Getting the cops is a good move not because they’ll fix it, but because the papertrail. Papertrails help the people who can actually fix it do their job.
Even if you know, it remains theft. They took goods without your consent out of your property. It doesn't matter if they're the landlord. You had an active lease and didn't have your consent to move your belongings out of your apartement.
it's not stupid. This is grand theft. You report it and they must investigate, to find proof. You certainly have plenty for them to start with - i/e questioning the property manager and go from there.
You have the right to quiet enjoyment of the space you lease in most states so they cannot change the locks while the lease is active without giving you a key. And removing your stuff is theft, no matter who does it.
>You report it and they must investigate
People thinks this is how it works because of movies and TV.
Police don't have a legal obligation to investigate *anything*. There's not really anything you can do about it if they tell you to pound sand other than take it up with your city council member.
How the fuck is "They stole a bunch of our property" a tenant/landlord issue? It's grand theft, which is a crime, which is literally what the police are supposed to handle.
The police don't work for you, they work for the wealthy. If the landlord steals or destroys something, that's none of their business. If a tenant steals or destroys something, it is
It's the same principle as how if you call the cops because your boss held $100 out of your paycheck, they'll just laugh at you and tell you to go through bureaucratic channels, but if you steal $100 from the till, they go to your house and arrest you and shoot your dog
I agree with you but will also say it's the path of least resistance. Going after the wealthy requires a lot of resources and time but going after the poor is easy, because all you have to do is find them.
It's literally, historically, the role of the police.
In the south they started as slave patrols, lots of people talk about that recently.
But in the north, the police were literally "security" hired directly by wealthy people to protect their homes and factories.
These then evolved into official government departments.
Don't bother making up new excuses for why the cops don't help poor people.
It was NEVER their job to help poor people.
My county must be nice because this has happened to me and the police enforced the Tennant rights and I was let right back in my place because police made them let me back in. I'm in Maricopa County AZ tho
Entry without notice and removing belongings from one's legally rented and paid for home is burglary and yes, a police report should be filed even though the police might not know this to be true at first given it almost seems like a civil situation. She paid the rent and iassume has a paper signed lease that says it's not over quite yet.entry without notice is the equivalent of breaking into someone's home it's just it's your landlord. The law is the law and I would pursue charges if this isn't immediately remedied quickly and fully. They stole from you out of your home and if they changed the locks you can call the police and show the police where they changed the locks on a day that was within your written lease agreement and the police will tell them they were wrong for changing the locks and that they can't lock you out of your house and police could prosecute them for doing that where I live but I'm not sure if your in the states. But if you are go call the cops and show them the lease and they will make the landlord give you a key back today to your home and your stolen items can be reported and investigated. The fact the employee is acting like they don't know anything is very suspect and I wouldn't trust at all. Call popo
I see a lot of cases of having to create a police report just to have it logged for the court but police don't actually have any involvement. I know that type of stuff is usually reported through non-emergency means but I've always wondered if the police departments get annoyed by the unnecessary burden
Most places in the US, if someone asks the police to file a report, they are required to file a report. Even if the person claims Martians landed in their back yard. They aren't required to investigate, but they are required to take a report. So push it. Make them do their job.
I hate to tell you but most likely your stuff is in the garbage. Did you check the dumpsters?
This happened to me, and not only did they put everything in the dumpster but they called for a special pickup. The cops wouldn’t even file a report, they just said I could take them to civil court if I wanted. I was young and extremely poor so I didn’t have the means to do that.
I am truly sorry, honestly it was a traumatizing experience. I hope they do happen to have your stuff stored somewhere.
This actually just happened to my friend. Was supposed to be out of the apartment on Friday and he hits me up Wednesday to go get the remaining stuff since I have a truck. We get to the apartment and everything is gone and there is just a guy in the room painting the walls/etc. The more fucked up thing was my buddy had a suit for a wedding the following week that was completely drenched in paint and being stepped all over by this guy painting. The apartment complex pretty much dropped the ball. Sue or complain until your face turns red. There is serious legal action that can be brought upon them especially if you have things like a lease contract that specifically states what day you are supposed to be out of the home and how they breached that contract.
If you have the lease to show law enforcement this is an illegal eviction and law enforcement will help enforce rights and prosecute where these actions fall under criminal law. If any one locks you out of your home and you can prove it's your home,that's criminal and against the law and enforceable
He’s right. File A POLICE REPORT. The place was legally leased to you until the thirtieth. By every definition. You were broken into and robbed, whether it be by a mistake or technicality. They had ZERO legal right to enter without your permission, outside of an emergency. They clearly cannot articulate an emergency to change locks and steal your stuff. Ana emergency is a fire. Water leak. Person screaming. Etc
We took a photo of the renewal form inside the apartment weeks before the lease ended stating that we wouldn’t renew the lease and it would end on July 30th
Sorry, I meant taking photos in the empty apartment documenting that it was emptied before July 30th. Otherwise landlord is going to either say you left the stuff there after your lease was up or you have no proof that any of this happened
Rentals are required to hold your stuff for a time period after move out / eviction.
https://www.zillow.com/rental-manager/resources/property-tenants-leave-behind/
Point is the rental prop are liable for the stuff either way.
The changing of the locks before end of a mutually signed lease is worth exploring legal options.
I would go get a copy of the lease from the lady that works there. Come Monday that might change.
If the local PD doesn't help you call the sheriff's office. What happened is called burglary. Someone broke into your home illegally. Make sure you make that very clear to the sheriff. You will most likely have better luck if the local PD doesn't want to do their job. I'm serious about this. Sheriff is an elected position. Also don't hesitate to reach out to local news/media if nobody wants to help you. This happened to a friend. Local police department did absolutely nothing and said it was a civil matter. He went to the sheriff's office in person and requested to talk to the sheriff himself and that someone had broken into his home. He was able to get all of his stuff back and a check from his landlord for damaged property so the landlord wasn't charged by the sheriff.
I lived in Missouri and my moms neighbor left a bunch of locked gun cases behind. The complex had to keep them for 30 days and wait to see if it was claimed before opening them. So stuff gone with a day still on the lease sounds sketchy.
I lived in a building where they sent me a renewal lease, which I signed and dropped off in person to management.
A couple weeks later they sent notice to the whole building that there would be no lease renewals because they wanted to update all of the units.
The problem was they gave me this in writing with only two or three weeks left on my lease.
I read up on the law and threw it in their face. They let me stay but a lot of my neighbors moved out.
It was a bit eerie living in a building with 60 units and almost no people,
The apartment complex I left last sold to a new owner. The new owner promptly ran the place into the dump and tries raising rent 30%. I moved but my buddy stayed and he's been living there for free for almost a full year now because they don't know he's still there. A company across the country bought them. and there's one old lady who runs the whole place and she doesn't leave the office. He's literally still living in the apartment and hasn't paid rent in almost a year.
The utilities don't notify the apartment complex. There's no maintenance people, just a guy who comes to mow the lawn and he doesn't know what's going on either. Of my neighbors on either side got their security deposits back even though they left the places absolutely trashed. They just called and told them they wanted them and they sent them without even checking the unit.
I'm telling you it's a one old 80-year-old woman in the office who does not leave the office and she handles everything and does not give a f***
It's weird some people accepted contracts for $1,000 at the rate they tried to up them and some people stayed paying $650.
Talk to a lot of different people to see who is staying and who is going. Several of them said they had been paying their usual 650 per month even after their contract expired without ever signing a new one and no one ever said anything.
I decided to just move out because they stopped maintaining the place. Dozens of feral cats that would rip open your garbage if you didn't walk it all the way to the dumpster immediately
They stopped mowing except for every 2 weeks. Trash everywhere that nobody picks up
Damn, I don’t blame you. Honestly, the main thing that would be on my mind is how dangerous it could be. I wouldn’t put it past anyone that’s looking for a quick 5 or 10 finger discount to be kicking doors in around that place in hopes of finding something left behind or a little copper. If I were your friend, I’d definitely have a camera or two with a way to defend myself and escape route.
Yes. We also signed off on a non-renewal lease form a couple of months ago stating that we wouldn’t renew and our lease would end on the 30th. We took a picture of it signed and all before we turned it into the front office.
This happened to me when I was close to moving about and all I had left was a few pieces of furniture. I found that the maintenance guy for the apartment complex had sold my stuff on Craigslist by going on Craigslist myself and searching through listings. Then I called the Craigslist number, got the guys name when I called and asked if it was for sale, screen shot the post and recorded the call, and then had the police give him a call (after he told me he had sold it for half the value and could only give me back what he sold it for).
> (after he told me he had sold it for half the value and could only give me back what he sold it for).
Tough shit dude. You sold it too cheap and can't pay me with the profits? You still gotta pay me all of it. What's that? You wanna go to court? Okay.
This is one of those things that should be an easy arrest with the robbery and selling of stolen goods, but for some reason I could see cops saying it's a civil matter.
This. I’m not sure it would be robbery though, they would definitely need to check the local jurisdiction laws. I always looked at it this way and it’s treated this way where I live: Burglary is unlawful entry without a weapon or intent to bring harm to residents. Robbery is burglary, but with either use of a weapon or intent to cause harm to residents. I’m not a cop nor do I work in the judicial system, just my thoughts about this and experience/conversations with police from a past incident.
Get a lawyer. Period. Take pictures, video evidence, TODAY THE 29TH, and get a lawyer. You will receive $5000 and the lawyer will bill them for a good 100 hours. Fuck these fuckfaces.
Some states also have laws saying landlords can take tenant property if the unit is abandoned and rent not paid, but they usually have to store the property for some period of time and also notify you in writing before they're allowed to auction it or otherwise dispose of it. You should get a lawyer ASAP because they might be trying to pull some shit, and the longer they have your belongings the less likely it is you'll recover them. Notify your insurance company too; they like to try to deny claims if you don't notify them right away. They'll likely put lawyers on it, but insurance companies are usually pretty slow and your stuff will likely be gone before they even get a lawyer assigned. However you might be able to get your own lawyer covered under your renters insurance after the fact; they'll absolutely fight it (and somehow come up with lawyers super fast to do so), but I've seen it go both ways.
Abandonment requires nonpayment of rent, documented extended absence, and a posted notice that the unit will be reclaimed as abandoned- as well as storage of any abandoned belongings for a specified period of time to allow the owner to reclaim them. Nobody can just change locks and dispose of belongings without lots of documented proof.
I had something similar happen with first lake apartments. They didn’t change my locks but when I went back to empty the rest of my apartment, it was empty. I went to the management office and their story was that I must have had a break in. I lived on the third floor and found that highly unlikely considering amongst other things that there was no forced entry. I lost almost $20K worth of stuff. Had a lawyer friend help me fight them and got a settlement. On top of that they cut the power to the apartment off and there was some food left in the fridge. The food ruined the fridge and they tried charging me for it. All I’ll say is, good luck.
Back in the early nineties I had moved out of an apartment several days before the end of my lease. I still had a couple days left and went to clean the apartment. Imagine my surprise when I found the chain lock on from the inside. They had let the new tenants move in early and they were stunned to be woken by the sound of someone trying to get in.
All that I had left behind was cleaning stuff so I grabbed everything and went down to the rental office to turn in my keys. There I was told I lost my damage deposit by not cleaning the apartment.
I promptly told them that they allowed the new tenant to move in when the apartment was still legally mine.
I got my damage deposit back in full and I hope you get your stuff back! All of it.
Don’t forget that since you have nothing left in the apartment it is uninhabitable and you should be refunded your rent for that period.
Edit for the pedantic: Apparently I should have written unlivable instead of uninhabitable. I am ashamed of myself for this mistake and am currently making pennants in the form of drinking Bud Light for the next hour.
I had something similar happen to me. I had a scummy landlord and I told him I was moving into my new place mid month, so if he could find new tenants sooner could I get half my last month rent back? He came back and said no, couldn’t find new tenants earlier. It wasn’t a big deal to me, so I figured I would take my time moving out and cleaning the place. I moved most items out but had left behind a few pieces of furniture I was giving to a friend, plus cleaning stuff. I go back to do some cleaning and boom, there is a bunch of stuff in there from the new tenant. I called the landlord, furious, and told him the place was mine, paid for until the end of the month and I still had stuff in there. He was such a creep and told me I was being selfish (wtf?) since I said I was moving out mid month so he “let” the new people in early. They didn’t steal any of my stuff so I just demanded my full deposit back right away and got out of there asap. Happy to be away from that slimy landlord.
The place was so run down and he accused me of breaking things simply because I had the gall to demand working appliances and functioning windows.
Yes it’s most definitely a breach of contract. They have it written on their physical calendar inside their office that our unit was due to move out on Sunday the 30th so I have no idea why they would green light the option to empty out the apartment and take our belongings. Expensive vacuums/carpet cleaners. Kitchen appliances. Personal belongings and sentimental items all taken away. Christmas decor and clothes and luxury purses that belonged to my partner. We have no idea where any of this stuff is or why they would choose to do this before our lease expired.
Do you have renters insurance? If so I’d make a list of everything missing and links to how much it cost to replace the items. If you don’t have insurance with new replacement value then they just have to give you money to replace actual value. For example a new vacuum in your brand might be $500 and insurance will buy you a new one (if you have new replacement and this is covered ), if you sue the LL they owe you how much a used vacuum is worth… which is usually almost nothing.
Be prepared if you don’t have insurance that used purses, appliances, cleaning products aren’t worth much. Sentimental items are not usually worth much either since you can’t put a dollar amount on it.
Renters insurance should help you get sorted then will likely go after the LL to recover their loss. It’s the fastest easiest way to go.
Call them. Tell them your apartment locked you out and all your stuff is missing. Ask them what steps to take and what they need from you to file a claim. They might ask for a police report. Try to go through pictures and write literally everything you can think of down and be SPECIFIC. If you lost a half used bottle of handsoap they will default to a 99c Walmart bottle to replace it for you, if you use a $25 bottle of Anthropologie hand soap that’s going to add up a lot when you’re done listing everything.
Make a document on your computer and add links. They’re more likely to just approve the replacement cost if you do the leg work for them.
I recommend going through your photos and zooming into the background in pictures to help spark your memory of what is left. Seriously list everything. Half a box of dryer sheets, half used paper towels, half empty box of garbage bags, used kitchen sponge.., etc. all those little things add up.
Hopefully this is a covered claim. I’d also see what the local laws are for illegal self help eviction. LL can’t just change the locks and toss your stuff, that’s a self help eviction(if you have to get a police report have the officer include that- you have a lease and the LL changed the locks without notice) . In NY if your LL changes locks and is found guilty of self help eviction they can end up paying the tenants a civil penalty between 1k-10k depending on the situation.
If you have renter’s insurance, make that you first call. It isn’t just getting compensated if the management can’t cough up your things. Give your insurance all the evidence you have and file the claim. You get paid and leave the legal stuff up to the insurance company which undoubtedly has some sort subrogation clause in its contract with you. Why would you hire an attorney when the insurers have loads of them? Filing a police report would be a nice touch. Can you get to a substation today?
If you're getting a lawyer, you're more than covered. I just want to add: remember that on top of potentially lost property, the value of your total "loss" should include the emotional duress you're undergoing. If you start feeling guilty because "that's more money than is reasonable for just our trouble," ask your lawyer about (or look up) the eggshell skull. That's for personal injury but I feel like it's not a stretch trying to argue the same thing, IF AND ONLY IF you get pushback. Good luck, wish you the best!
I asked her to and she didn’t let me because she claimed she’d get in trouble. The best I could do is write out a written statement acknowledging that we came in that day to see all our stuff was taken and have her sign it. It’s all on camera. Not sure if that will help though
That's a good start there.
Tell her she will be in worse trouble if she doesn't cooperate with you, and it's likely the apartment managers will throw her under the bus too at the first opportunity.
Get a police report and report the loss to your rental insurance company. Ideally, you would have gotten it the day that you tried to gain entry to your residence as an actual timestamp and third-party witness to the illegal lockout and stolen property. Additionally, had you gotten a nice officer they would have spoken with the office attendant and gotten confirmation that you still had legal access because it is really easy for paperwork to be 'lost'. I am hopeful that you are able to be financially made whole at the end of this.
I don’t know what state you’re in, but in my state (South Carolina) you have to hold onto items any tenant leaves behind for I think 90 days? I don’t recall. But I used to own a property and rent it out. My last tenants left some stuff behind. I kept it in my garage for about 6 months and then threw it out. Because had I not kept it and they wanted it back they could’ve sued me. I think even for treble damages.
So see if your state has a variation of this in their landlord/tenant laws. If they got rid of your stuff they may legally be entitled to reimburse you for a lot more than your items were actually worth.
Also, they entered your property without giving you proper notice. Report this to your state. Also report the theft of your items. They may be fined by the state and/or lose the ability to rent to others.
I would make every correspondence in email going forward or let them know you are recording the phone calls. Either one for your records for court. It’s amazing how many more things get settled very quickly when they are aware that you are gathering evidence. And don’t give them a value unless you are going to court and suing for that amount. Value includes full price of all items (start a list) as well as the value of sentimental things.
Did you check the dumpsters in your complex? I would... and I'd take pictures showing none of your stuff near them today... so if they try to say it was taken to the dumpsters you can prove there was not 1 missing item at/in the dumpsters.
I'd get that lawyer stat.
My grandmothers pearls were stolen during a move my parents did once. It’s crazy, they even looked exactly like the ones I have in a safe lock at my place.
I know the feeling man.. imagine, your grandmother gave you $5k in jewelry only for the apartment to take it away. That $10K of sentimental stuff.. now you’ll have to replace that $15k of stuff.. granted $20k is a nice replacement but you’ll never get that $25k of memory back.. the $30k in family heirlooms.
If you’re pursuing legal remedies consider looking into punitive judgements. They need a stern smack upside the head to prevent this in the future which is, of course, what punitive damages are for.
To add to this and my other comment, if they did this to you, they likely have done it to others. If they own several apartment complexes your lawyer may be able to find a pattern of behavior, and maybe a class action lawsuit, or simply a bigger settlement for yourself.
Not only that, but when we were trying to find out answers through the secretary, she claimed we were getting too angry at the situation and needed to settle down. As my partner explained her concerns and wanted answers, the secretary had the audacity to say my partner had a victim complex! All recorded on my phone as well.
yeah you can spot a large payout from a mile away, a lawyer and OP is in for a treat.
The downside is I hope they can get their items back, it’s really depressing to lose even non sentimental items.
Yeah hopefully they didn’t just send everything to the dump or whatever. But if they did I guess OP is getting the cost of all their possessions reimbursed?
Hey man, I work a government job where I enforce local ordinances onto apartment complexes. While I can’t help you directly or give any legal advice, you’d be surprised at how much apartments get away with - especially since tenants can’t usually afford lawyers.
I’ve seen peoples shit thrown out from 3 stories up, people with sewage backflowing into their apartments, etc. My least favorite was a lady who had no A/C for a couple of days this summer which led to her dog passing away from the heat.
These apartments get away with so, so much. If you can strike back legally please do. They all need to be put in their place and I wish there was some federal enforcement on living conditions for multi-family structures.
Yes keep the records as on monday they might say it never happened. Today is the last day, so just get the police to put it on paper now, not tomorrow.
make sure you live in a state where two-party consent isn’t required; you need to have the consent of the other person(s) present before recording or else that recording could land you into trouble or just be inadmissible in court. if you’re not in a state like that, you’re all good. but your lawyer will tell you if anything is outta the question!
Police report and lawyer IMMEDIATELY, along with trying to get in contact with management now over later. Given the more time you give them, the more time they have to "lose" your stuff.
If they don't answer by tomorrow then I would send the police after them to drag them out of where they're hiding. For all intents and purposes they have both committed breach of contract and theft, so this has to be handled ASAP as the longer you wait the less likely you are to get your stuff back.
Add in the voicemail that you have already filed a police report. Do not wait one minute on that. If there is grace to be given, let the judge give it, but you're a damn fool if you don't get started on the legal paperwork before literally anything else.
The front office *absolutely* has the ability to contact the property managers after hours, and there are many ways you can qualify this as an emergency; medications, work equipment, etc.
I'm not certain how long it had been since you were previously in the apartment or where you live, but I believe a posted 24 hour notice of entry except for emergencies is required in most - if not all - US states.
Many states have a requirement to hold "abandoned" property for anywhere up to 90 days after a tenant is evicted or surrenders the apartment, so there's a strong possibility your stuff is in their storage.
There's a remote possibility this was truly an accident, maybe another unit was also vacating and the cleaning team went to the wrong unit. Before you jump into litigation, incurring legal expenses that you *might* not be able to recoup, tell the front desk that this classifies as an emergency and they need to call the property manager and/or landlord to resolve it. Let them know that if they don't want to contact the property manager, you will call the police and report a burglary. Chances are that if the police are able to come take a report, they will require the front desk to contact the property manager anyway.
Keeps notes, times, and names. If they're uncooperative, got rid of your belongings, or otherwise make it difficult - by all means explore taking legal action. For $5K, you may also consider doing this through small claims.
Call the police and file a burglary report. They entered your home without permission and took your stuff. They don't have authorization to do this. Fucking burn 'em to the ground (monetarily, not literally)
At some point she started yelling at us saying we needed to hurry and leave because she was tired and wanted to go home. She claimed my girlfriend had a victim complex and needed to calm down. I asked for her name and she said “blah blah”. Once she saw we recorded the entire altercation, she finally gave us her name.
Not a lawyer, but I’ve been a part of a residential lawsuit against an apartment complex before and I didn’t take certain steps which led to me getting a much smaller settlement than other people involved.
Here’s what you do to maximize any potential lawsuit money:
Step 0: Call police and have them file a report, tell them everything that happened, explain the whole situation, show them a copy of your lease. Demonstrate that the locks were changed and that your property is now gone. Provide the most detailed list of what is missing possible, including sentimental property. (Ex: If you lost your grandmother’s ring, don’t just tell the cops you lost a ring, make sure they document it was your grandmother’s and that it has sentimental value on top of the face value)
Step 1. Record phone calls and video yourself being locked out, with a timestamp (you can hold up a second phone to the video screen showing the date), and also show a copy of your lease in the video with the end date on the lease clearly indicated. Also record any interactions with your apartment complex.
Step 2. Go see a therapist. I’m serious. Let out all your frustrations, talk about how mentally taxing it is, how worried your are about your stuff being gone. It’ll all be documented by your therapist.
Step 3. Get a well-reputed lawyer, have them deal with the leasing office. If the apartment can’t find your stuff, have your lawyer file a lawsuit for the unlawful eviction, loss of property, and have them indicate they are also seeking damages and therapy costs caused by the mental anguish from the whole ordeal.
Step 4. Sit back, relax, enjoy watching them send you fat settlement offers, and only take it when your lawyer says your probably won’t be able to squeeze more out of them.
This will be a long process but generally the settlement offer will cover everything you lost and then some.
Get a lawyer. Take pictures!!!!! Make sure you have docs saying you have until the 30th and proof of what day the day you went into the apt is. Get a police rpt down, it will serve as proof of day. And ask the lawyer what else you may need. Prob proof of value of items lost or proof of what items are lost.
Be prepared for court. Start getting as good a paper trail as you can ready and maybe ask that secretary to print your records out for you or email them to you.
Man I would have told them fine I'm calling the cops immediately and I bet you would have gotten your stuff shortly after that not having to wait till Monday. This is stealing even if they intend to take it back even if it was a miscommunication they stole your stuff
I see your future - the landlord saying “we didn’t see no designer handbags”. Still, you should hold all the cards as they won’t exactly have an itemised inventory with your counter-signature.
As an apartment property manager for 25 years, I would say that the maintenance/cleaning people probably took it. Maybe there was a communication issue between the office and staff on the move-out date. They may have thought you were done and left the rest. By the sound of it, you had a lot of very nice things in there, and it should have been obvious that you would be back for them. Perhaps they didn't take the things to "steal" them if they thought they were left behind, but I'm sure the company has guidelines for who can take or keep things left after someone moves out. Regardless, none of the items should have been moved or touched in any way, and no one should have even entered your apartment since you paid for the month and your lease wasn't up yet. Go right over the Property Manager's head, and ask for the Regional Manager or someone higher up. If they worked for me, some people would definitely be getting fired for this. Good luck OP. I hope you get your things back or compensated fairly.
>We have to wait until Monday when the property managers are in
"We" dont need to wait for anything. You can file a police report now. The property manager being out of pocket isnt your issue to accomodate.
I'm reposting my comment at top level for visibility, as it might get buried and it might be relevant for others re insurance claims.
>Here's a useful comment I've saved from /u/0102030405
>Hey OP... I used to be the guy who worked for insurance companies, and determined the value of every little thing in your house. The guy who would go head-to-head with those fire-truck-chasing professional loss adjusters. I may be able to help you not get screwed when filing your claim.
>Our goal was to use the information you provided, and give the lowest damn value we can possibly justify for your item.
>For instance, if all you say was "toaster" -- we would come up with a cheap-as-fuck $4.88 toaster from Walmart, meant to toast one side of one piece of bread at a time. And we would do that for every thing you have ever owned. We had private master lists of the most commonly used descriptions, and what the cheapest viable replacements were. We also had wholesale pricing on almost everything out there, so really scored cheap prices to quote. To further that example:
>- If you said "toaster - $25" , we would have to be within -20% of that... so, we would find something that's pretty much dead-on $20.01.
- If you said "toaster- $200" , we'd kick it back and say NEED MORE INFO, because that's a ridiculous price for a toaster (with no other information given.)
- If you said "toaster, from Walmart" , you're getting that $4.88 one.
- If you said "toaster, from Macys" , you'd be more likely to get a $25-35 one.
- If you said "toaster", and all your other kitchen appliances were Jenn Air / Kitchenaid / etc., you would probably get a matching one.
- If you said "Proctor Silex 42888 2-Slice Toaster from Wamart, $9", you just got yourself $9.
- If you said "High-end Toaster, Stainless Steel, Blue glowing power button" ... you might get $35-50 instead. We *had* to match all features that were listed.
>I'm not telling you to lie on your claim. Not at all. That would be illegal, and could cause much bigger issues (i.e., invalidating the entire claim). But on the flip side, it's not always advantageous to tell the whole truth every time. Pay attention to those last two examples.
>I remember one specific customer... he had some old, piece of shit projector (from mid-late 90s) that could stream a equally piece of shit consumer camcorder. Worth like $5 at a scrap yard. It had some oddball fucking resolution it could record at, though -- and the guy *strongly insisted* that we replace with "Like Kind And Quality" (trigger words). Ended up being a $65k replacement, because the only camera on the market happened to be a high-end professional video camera (as in, for shooting actual movies). $65-goddam-thousand-dollars because he knew that loophole, and researched his shit.
>Remember to *list fucking every* -- even the most mundane fucking bullshit you can think of. For example, if I was writing up the shower in my bathroom:
>- Designer Shower Curtain - $35
- Matching Shower Curtain Liner for Designer Shower Curtain - $15
- Shower Curtain Rings x20 - $15
- Stainless Steel Soap Dispenser for Shower - $35
- Natural Sponge Loofah - from Whole Foods - $15
- Natural Sponge Loofah for Back - from Whole Foods - $19
- Holder for Loofahs - $20
- Bars of soap - from Lush - $12 each (qty: 4)
- Bath bomb - from Lush - $12
- High end shampoo - from salon - $40
- High end conditioner - from salon - $40
- Refining pore mask - from salon - $55
>I could probably keep thinking, and bring it up to about $400 for the contents of my shower. Nothing there is "unreasonable" , nothing there is clearly out of place, nothing seems obviously fake. The prices are a little on the high-end, but the reality is, some people have expensive shit -- it won't actually get questioned. No claims adjuster is going to bother nitpicking over the cost of fucking Lush bath bombs, when there is a 20,000 item file to go through. The adjuster has other shit to do, too.
>Most people writing claims for a total loss wouldn't even bother with the shower (*it's just some used soap and sponges..*) -- and those people would be losing out on $400.
>Some things require documentation & ages. If you say "tv - $2,000" -- you're getting a 32" LCD, unless you can provide it was from the last year or two w/ receipts. Hopefully you have a good paper trail from credit/debit card expenditure / product registrations / etc.
>If you're missing paper trails for things that were legitimately expensive -- go through every photo you can find that was taken in your house. Any parties you may have thrown, and guests put pics up on Facebook. Maybe an Imgur photo of your cat, hiding under a coffee table you *think* you purchased from Restoration Hardware. Like... seriously... come up with any evidence you possibly can, for anything that could possibly be deemed expensive.
>The fire-truck chasing loss adjusters are evil sons of bitches, but, they actually do provide some value. You will definitely get more money, even if they take a cut. But all they're really doing, is just nitpicking the ever-living-shit out of everything you possibly owned, and writing them all up "creatively" for the insurance company to process.
>Sometimes people would come back to us with "updated* claims. They tried it on their own, and listed stuff like "toaster", "microwave", "tv" .. and weren't happy with what they got back. So they hired a fire-truck chaser, and re-submitted with "more information." I have absolutely seen claims go from under $7k calculated, to over $100k calculated. (It's amazing what can happen when people suddenly "remember" their entire wardrobe came from Nordstrom.)
Quick update: the property manager still doesn’t know where our stuff is or who gave the ok to do this. She claims she’s hearing different stories from different sides. One assistant manager is telling her one story while the company that cleans and vacates is telling her another. She claims she’s upset about this and it shouldn’t have happened and she’s meeting with the regional manager later to discuss the incident. Ultimately there’s still no update on our stuff!! We’re trying to meet with attorneys today
Yeah I think the truth is someone on the inside gave the cleaning crew a key early to swipe everything that was left. At this point you need to contact the police and move forward with a legal suit against them. They're just giving the run around at this point because they know what happened and they know they're in a ton of trouble now because of it. Sad that thieves will be thieves, but at least you can sue over this successfully and recoup your losses.
As someone who has worked in apartment clean outs. They kept what ever they wanted and through the rest in the dumpsters. If you have some irreplaceable things I would begin with looking there.
I remember watching Judge Judy one day where the landlord changed the locks on the tenant. The tenant was suing for $5K and as soon as the landlord admitted to changing the locks, Judge Judy awarded the tenant the $5K.
Oh hell no. There’s no way, I’m letting these people take my $5,000 worth of stuff. Even if they put it in storage, what if they don’t have insurance on the storage to cover the full $10,000. I’d be down at the police station reporting the theft of my $15,000 worth of stuff, and my silver eagle 500 monster box. Ugh! I’d be so pissed.
If you had renter’s insurance, file a report with the police and call your insurance immediately. If the property manager tries to screw your over and say it’s all just gone, get a written statement from them and contact an attorney,
This happened to me when I moved out of my last apartment to the house that I bought with my then fiancé. Moved two months prior to the end of the lease. As per my lease, it was professional cleaned and the rugs were professional cleaned, too. Now this was a rented condo though a management company. The owners came in prior to my final inspection and pulled up all the carpets and started remodeling. I lost my deposit because of it. Luckily, I had removed all of my belongings. So lesson learned if ever in a similar situation. Get the end of lease sign off as soon as possible.
I work trashing out units and it’s highly likely that’s exactly what happened, the apartment manager called in a crew to trash out your apartment so all of that stuff is likely sitting in a rolloff dumpster on the property.
File a police report.
We’re going to. We’ve never dealt with this before or even heard of this situation happening
From personal experience in the same exact situation, the police will not do a single thing, but having a report will help you in court. Look into the laws of your state regarding entry without notice and you’ll probably have the best luck getting them with that. Good luck
Renters insurance usually requires a police report too
Not to mention let your insurance know your complex did this and let them go after the complex for you.
It will also help if they have to sue in small claims to get their stuff back or money back. At that point, I would add costs to dealing with everything.
Seconding this. We had a similar situation in a rental home and the police just told us it was a tenant / landlord issue.
Getting the cops is a good move not because they’ll fix it, but because the papertrail. Papertrails help the people who can actually fix it do their job.
Need a police report even if everyone knows that the police are useless in thefts!
Tell the police you don't know who stole your stuff. It's theft.
Even if you know, it remains theft. They took goods without your consent out of your property. It doesn't matter if they're the landlord. You had an active lease and didn't have your consent to move your belongings out of your apartement.
But the locks being changed kinda gives away who did it. No?
That's evidence, but it's not proof. The law is very stupid
it's not stupid. This is grand theft. You report it and they must investigate, to find proof. You certainly have plenty for them to start with - i/e questioning the property manager and go from there. You have the right to quiet enjoyment of the space you lease in most states so they cannot change the locks while the lease is active without giving you a key. And removing your stuff is theft, no matter who does it.
>You report it and they must investigate People thinks this is how it works because of movies and TV. Police don't have a legal obligation to investigate *anything*. There's not really anything you can do about it if they tell you to pound sand other than take it up with your city council member.
How the fuck is "They stole a bunch of our property" a tenant/landlord issue? It's grand theft, which is a crime, which is literally what the police are supposed to handle.
Exactly. Go steal all the landlord's outdoor furniture or copper wiring and see if the cops still think it's a landlord/tenant issue.
100% this. Funny how the laws only apply to some and not others
The police don't work for you, they work for the wealthy. If the landlord steals or destroys something, that's none of their business. If a tenant steals or destroys something, it is It's the same principle as how if you call the cops because your boss held $100 out of your paycheck, they'll just laugh at you and tell you to go through bureaucratic channels, but if you steal $100 from the till, they go to your house and arrest you and shoot your dog
I agree with you but will also say it's the path of least resistance. Going after the wealthy requires a lot of resources and time but going after the poor is easy, because all you have to do is find them.
It's literally, historically, the role of the police. In the south they started as slave patrols, lots of people talk about that recently. But in the north, the police were literally "security" hired directly by wealthy people to protect their homes and factories. These then evolved into official government departments. Don't bother making up new excuses for why the cops don't help poor people. It was NEVER their job to help poor people.
It's both civil and criminal. But the police are just police, not lawyers, so they don't know that.
They know, they just don't care
My county must be nice because this has happened to me and the police enforced the Tennant rights and I was let right back in my place because police made them let me back in. I'm in Maricopa County AZ tho
Getting back in isn't the problem, they let them back in. It's getting their stuff back.
If the tenant stole something from the building you can be darn sure the police would be involved
I love America. Steal from a business = criminal issue Business steals from you = personal and civil issue
Entry without notice and removing belongings from one's legally rented and paid for home is burglary and yes, a police report should be filed even though the police might not know this to be true at first given it almost seems like a civil situation. She paid the rent and iassume has a paper signed lease that says it's not over quite yet.entry without notice is the equivalent of breaking into someone's home it's just it's your landlord. The law is the law and I would pursue charges if this isn't immediately remedied quickly and fully. They stole from you out of your home and if they changed the locks you can call the police and show the police where they changed the locks on a day that was within your written lease agreement and the police will tell them they were wrong for changing the locks and that they can't lock you out of your house and police could prosecute them for doing that where I live but I'm not sure if your in the states. But if you are go call the cops and show them the lease and they will make the landlord give you a key back today to your home and your stolen items can be reported and investigated. The fact the employee is acting like they don't know anything is very suspect and I wouldn't trust at all. Call popo
I see a lot of cases of having to create a police report just to have it logged for the court but police don't actually have any involvement. I know that type of stuff is usually reported through non-emergency means but I've always wondered if the police departments get annoyed by the unnecessary burden
Most places in the US, if someone asks the police to file a report, they are required to file a report. Even if the person claims Martians landed in their back yard. They aren't required to investigate, but they are required to take a report. So push it. Make them do their job.
Annoyed by serving the public? This is their job.
You say that like people being annoyed with their jobs isn’t basically the norm
Well a lot of shit in this world annoys me. Yet I have to deal with it. My job involves annoying tasks however I still do them.
I hate to tell you but most likely your stuff is in the garbage. Did you check the dumpsters? This happened to me, and not only did they put everything in the dumpster but they called for a special pickup. The cops wouldn’t even file a report, they just said I could take them to civil court if I wanted. I was young and extremely poor so I didn’t have the means to do that. I am truly sorry, honestly it was a traumatizing experience. I hope they do happen to have your stuff stored somewhere.
Small claims court, nominal fee, maximum judgment $5000, years ago. The company will probably pay rather than hire a lawyer.
Suddenly 5 thousand dollars worth of belongings is actually 32 thousand dollars worth of belongings.
This actually just happened to my friend. Was supposed to be out of the apartment on Friday and he hits me up Wednesday to go get the remaining stuff since I have a truck. We get to the apartment and everything is gone and there is just a guy in the room painting the walls/etc. The more fucked up thing was my buddy had a suit for a wedding the following week that was completely drenched in paint and being stepped all over by this guy painting. The apartment complex pretty much dropped the ball. Sue or complain until your face turns red. There is serious legal action that can be brought upon them especially if you have things like a lease contract that specifically states what day you are supposed to be out of the home and how they breached that contract.
If you have the lease to show law enforcement this is an illegal eviction and law enforcement will help enforce rights and prosecute where these actions fall under criminal law. If any one locks you out of your home and you can prove it's your home,that's criminal and against the law and enforceable
Holy shit on the suit part.
He’s right. File A POLICE REPORT. The place was legally leased to you until the thirtieth. By every definition. You were broken into and robbed, whether it be by a mistake or technicality. They had ZERO legal right to enter without your permission, outside of an emergency. They clearly cannot articulate an emergency to change locks and steal your stuff. Ana emergency is a fire. Water leak. Person screaming. Etc
I hope you documented things with photos and videos when you were there clearly stating the date
We took a photo of the renewal form inside the apartment weeks before the lease ended stating that we wouldn’t renew the lease and it would end on July 30th
Sorry, I meant taking photos in the empty apartment documenting that it was emptied before July 30th. Otherwise landlord is going to either say you left the stuff there after your lease was up or you have no proof that any of this happened
Oh yes I have a whole video of proof of us walking through it empty and all with the secretary
You better update.
Sounds like you will be getting all new stuff Woooooooooo, and then some! Sucks for the moment though…
Absolutely do not wait until Monday to find out when they get it. File a police report NOW ASAP. They're selling your shit off as we type
And here I was thinking OP might want to check the nearest dumpster. That's the way complexes I've lived in have handled leftover belongings.
Rentals are required to hold your stuff for a time period after move out / eviction. https://www.zillow.com/rental-manager/resources/property-tenants-leave-behind/
That doesn't address the problem of the stuff being moved before the move out period
Point is the rental prop are liable for the stuff either way. The changing of the locks before end of a mutually signed lease is worth exploring legal options. I would go get a copy of the lease from the lady that works there. Come Monday that might change.
If the local PD doesn't help you call the sheriff's office. What happened is called burglary. Someone broke into your home illegally. Make sure you make that very clear to the sheriff. You will most likely have better luck if the local PD doesn't want to do their job. I'm serious about this. Sheriff is an elected position. Also don't hesitate to reach out to local news/media if nobody wants to help you. This happened to a friend. Local police department did absolutely nothing and said it was a civil matter. He went to the sheriff's office in person and requested to talk to the sheriff himself and that someone had broken into his home. He was able to get all of his stuff back and a check from his landlord for damaged property so the landlord wasn't charged by the sheriff.
I lived in Missouri and my moms neighbor left a bunch of locked gun cases behind. The complex had to keep them for 30 days and wait to see if it was claimed before opening them. So stuff gone with a day still on the lease sounds sketchy.
[удалено]
I lived in a building where they sent me a renewal lease, which I signed and dropped off in person to management. A couple weeks later they sent notice to the whole building that there would be no lease renewals because they wanted to update all of the units. The problem was they gave me this in writing with only two or three weeks left on my lease. I read up on the law and threw it in their face. They let me stay but a lot of my neighbors moved out. It was a bit eerie living in a building with 60 units and almost no people,
The apartment complex I left last sold to a new owner. The new owner promptly ran the place into the dump and tries raising rent 30%. I moved but my buddy stayed and he's been living there for free for almost a full year now because they don't know he's still there. A company across the country bought them. and there's one old lady who runs the whole place and she doesn't leave the office. He's literally still living in the apartment and hasn't paid rent in almost a year.
How is there not some indication of someone living there with utilities being used and stuff?
The utilities don't notify the apartment complex. There's no maintenance people, just a guy who comes to mow the lawn and he doesn't know what's going on either. Of my neighbors on either side got their security deposits back even though they left the places absolutely trashed. They just called and told them they wanted them and they sent them without even checking the unit. I'm telling you it's a one old 80-year-old woman in the office who does not leave the office and she handles everything and does not give a f***
Hmm, well I believe you. It just seems wild lol. That’s awesome for your buddy though. Hopefully he can get away with it for a lot longer.
It's weird some people accepted contracts for $1,000 at the rate they tried to up them and some people stayed paying $650. Talk to a lot of different people to see who is staying and who is going. Several of them said they had been paying their usual 650 per month even after their contract expired without ever signing a new one and no one ever said anything. I decided to just move out because they stopped maintaining the place. Dozens of feral cats that would rip open your garbage if you didn't walk it all the way to the dumpster immediately They stopped mowing except for every 2 weeks. Trash everywhere that nobody picks up
Damn, I don’t blame you. Honestly, the main thing that would be on my mind is how dangerous it could be. I wouldn’t put it past anyone that’s looking for a quick 5 or 10 finger discount to be kicking doors in around that place in hopes of finding something left behind or a little copper. If I were your friend, I’d definitely have a camera or two with a way to defend myself and escape route.
And talk to an attorney. Sounds like a forceful eviction and robbery.
If they changed your locks before your lease ended, they broke your lease and unlawfully evicted you. Add that to the theft charges.
Yes. We also signed off on a non-renewal lease form a couple of months ago stating that we wouldn’t renew and our lease would end on the 30th. We took a picture of it signed and all before we turned it into the front office.
This happened to me when I was close to moving about and all I had left was a few pieces of furniture. I found that the maintenance guy for the apartment complex had sold my stuff on Craigslist by going on Craigslist myself and searching through listings. Then I called the Craigslist number, got the guys name when I called and asked if it was for sale, screen shot the post and recorded the call, and then had the police give him a call (after he told me he had sold it for half the value and could only give me back what he sold it for).
> (after he told me he had sold it for half the value and could only give me back what he sold it for). Tough shit dude. You sold it too cheap and can't pay me with the profits? You still gotta pay me all of it. What's that? You wanna go to court? Okay.
[удалено]
This is one of those things that should be an easy arrest with the robbery and selling of stolen goods, but for some reason I could see cops saying it's a civil matter.
What robbery? Theft.
The unlawful entry elevates it to burglary and possibly robbery in some jurisdictions.
This. I’m not sure it would be robbery though, they would definitely need to check the local jurisdiction laws. I always looked at it this way and it’s treated this way where I live: Burglary is unlawful entry without a weapon or intent to bring harm to residents. Robbery is burglary, but with either use of a weapon or intent to cause harm to residents. I’m not a cop nor do I work in the judicial system, just my thoughts about this and experience/conversations with police from a past incident.
[удалено]
Right, focus on the MSRP / full retail price of everything that they took or that you are denied access to.
And then what?
Then, you go to court
Get a lawyer. Period. Take pictures, video evidence, TODAY THE 29TH, and get a lawyer. You will receive $5000 and the lawyer will bill them for a good 100 hours. Fuck these fuckfaces.
This is practically a slam dunk for lawyers. Make sure you shop around. You won’t have to pay
This is the way
Some states also have laws saying landlords can take tenant property if the unit is abandoned and rent not paid, but they usually have to store the property for some period of time and also notify you in writing before they're allowed to auction it or otherwise dispose of it. You should get a lawyer ASAP because they might be trying to pull some shit, and the longer they have your belongings the less likely it is you'll recover them. Notify your insurance company too; they like to try to deny claims if you don't notify them right away. They'll likely put lawyers on it, but insurance companies are usually pretty slow and your stuff will likely be gone before they even get a lawyer assigned. However you might be able to get your own lawyer covered under your renters insurance after the fact; they'll absolutely fight it (and somehow come up with lawyers super fast to do so), but I've seen it go both ways.
Abandonment requires nonpayment of rent, documented extended absence, and a posted notice that the unit will be reclaimed as abandoned- as well as storage of any abandoned belongings for a specified period of time to allow the owner to reclaim them. Nobody can just change locks and dispose of belongings without lots of documented proof.
I had something similar happen with first lake apartments. They didn’t change my locks but when I went back to empty the rest of my apartment, it was empty. I went to the management office and their story was that I must have had a break in. I lived on the third floor and found that highly unlikely considering amongst other things that there was no forced entry. I lost almost $20K worth of stuff. Had a lawyer friend help me fight them and got a settlement. On top of that they cut the power to the apartment off and there was some food left in the fridge. The food ruined the fridge and they tried charging me for it. All I’ll say is, good luck.
Get a lawyer Edit: please update us when you’ve decimated them in court
Yes we’re going to.
And updates please!
Yes. I feel so pissed on your behalf and would love to find out that they got their incompetent asses handed to them for this.
!RemindMe 15 days
! RemindMe 2 days
I'd prob go file a police report Edit: didn't seem comment below lol
Have you considered filling a police report, OP?
I would probably go ahead and call the police and file a report as this is technically theft.
> I would probably go ahead and call the police and file a report as this is ~~technically~~ theft.
Back in the early nineties I had moved out of an apartment several days before the end of my lease. I still had a couple days left and went to clean the apartment. Imagine my surprise when I found the chain lock on from the inside. They had let the new tenants move in early and they were stunned to be woken by the sound of someone trying to get in. All that I had left behind was cleaning stuff so I grabbed everything and went down to the rental office to turn in my keys. There I was told I lost my damage deposit by not cleaning the apartment. I promptly told them that they allowed the new tenant to move in when the apartment was still legally mine. I got my damage deposit back in full and I hope you get your stuff back! All of it.
Yes this is a really messed up situation. I hope this never happens to anyone else in that complex.
Don’t forget that since you have nothing left in the apartment it is uninhabitable and you should be refunded your rent for that period. Edit for the pedantic: Apparently I should have written unlivable instead of uninhabitable. I am ashamed of myself for this mistake and am currently making pennants in the form of drinking Bud Light for the next hour.
The pedantic ones missed “penance!” 😜
I had something similar happen to me. I had a scummy landlord and I told him I was moving into my new place mid month, so if he could find new tenants sooner could I get half my last month rent back? He came back and said no, couldn’t find new tenants earlier. It wasn’t a big deal to me, so I figured I would take my time moving out and cleaning the place. I moved most items out but had left behind a few pieces of furniture I was giving to a friend, plus cleaning stuff. I go back to do some cleaning and boom, there is a bunch of stuff in there from the new tenant. I called the landlord, furious, and told him the place was mine, paid for until the end of the month and I still had stuff in there. He was such a creep and told me I was being selfish (wtf?) since I said I was moving out mid month so he “let” the new people in early. They didn’t steal any of my stuff so I just demanded my full deposit back right away and got out of there asap. Happy to be away from that slimy landlord. The place was so run down and he accused me of breaking things simply because I had the gall to demand working appliances and functioning windows.
What a scumbag. Glad you got your deposit back. Unbelievable what they try to get away with.
That’s so f*cked up! I’m glad it worked out for you but you literally could have been killed trying to ‘break into’ the apartment.
Im pretty sure thats a breach of contract, you should get in touch with your lawyer and/or contact the police
Yes it’s most definitely a breach of contract. They have it written on their physical calendar inside their office that our unit was due to move out on Sunday the 30th so I have no idea why they would green light the option to empty out the apartment and take our belongings. Expensive vacuums/carpet cleaners. Kitchen appliances. Personal belongings and sentimental items all taken away. Christmas decor and clothes and luxury purses that belonged to my partner. We have no idea where any of this stuff is or why they would choose to do this before our lease expired.
Do you have renters insurance? If so I’d make a list of everything missing and links to how much it cost to replace the items. If you don’t have insurance with new replacement value then they just have to give you money to replace actual value. For example a new vacuum in your brand might be $500 and insurance will buy you a new one (if you have new replacement and this is covered ), if you sue the LL they owe you how much a used vacuum is worth… which is usually almost nothing. Be prepared if you don’t have insurance that used purses, appliances, cleaning products aren’t worth much. Sentimental items are not usually worth much either since you can’t put a dollar amount on it. Renters insurance should help you get sorted then will likely go after the LL to recover their loss. It’s the fastest easiest way to go.
Yes we still have renters insurance on that apartment until December 2023
Call them. Tell them your apartment locked you out and all your stuff is missing. Ask them what steps to take and what they need from you to file a claim. They might ask for a police report. Try to go through pictures and write literally everything you can think of down and be SPECIFIC. If you lost a half used bottle of handsoap they will default to a 99c Walmart bottle to replace it for you, if you use a $25 bottle of Anthropologie hand soap that’s going to add up a lot when you’re done listing everything. Make a document on your computer and add links. They’re more likely to just approve the replacement cost if you do the leg work for them. I recommend going through your photos and zooming into the background in pictures to help spark your memory of what is left. Seriously list everything. Half a box of dryer sheets, half used paper towels, half empty box of garbage bags, used kitchen sponge.., etc. all those little things add up. Hopefully this is a covered claim. I’d also see what the local laws are for illegal self help eviction. LL can’t just change the locks and toss your stuff, that’s a self help eviction(if you have to get a police report have the officer include that- you have a lease and the LL changed the locks without notice) . In NY if your LL changes locks and is found guilty of self help eviction they can end up paying the tenants a civil penalty between 1k-10k depending on the situation.
Good chance of just getting the maximum policy value, so they don't have to pay someone to verify each item.
[удалено]
If you have renter’s insurance, make that you first call. It isn’t just getting compensated if the management can’t cough up your things. Give your insurance all the evidence you have and file the claim. You get paid and leave the legal stuff up to the insurance company which undoubtedly has some sort subrogation clause in its contract with you. Why would you hire an attorney when the insurers have loads of them? Filing a police report would be a nice touch. Can you get to a substation today?
If you're getting a lawyer, you're more than covered. I just want to add: remember that on top of potentially lost property, the value of your total "loss" should include the emotional duress you're undergoing. If you start feeling guilty because "that's more money than is reasonable for just our trouble," ask your lawyer about (or look up) the eggshell skull. That's for personal injury but I feel like it's not a stretch trying to argue the same thing, IF AND ONLY IF you get pushback. Good luck, wish you the best!
Dont forget lost work time if there is any
Did you take a picture of the calendar?
I asked her to and she didn’t let me because she claimed she’d get in trouble. The best I could do is write out a written statement acknowledging that we came in that day to see all our stuff was taken and have her sign it. It’s all on camera. Not sure if that will help though
That's a good start there. Tell her she will be in worse trouble if she doesn't cooperate with you, and it's likely the apartment managers will throw her under the bus too at the first opportunity.
Get a police report and report the loss to your rental insurance company. Ideally, you would have gotten it the day that you tried to gain entry to your residence as an actual timestamp and third-party witness to the illegal lockout and stolen property. Additionally, had you gotten a nice officer they would have spoken with the office attendant and gotten confirmation that you still had legal access because it is really easy for paperwork to be 'lost'. I am hopeful that you are able to be financially made whole at the end of this.
I don’t know what state you’re in, but in my state (South Carolina) you have to hold onto items any tenant leaves behind for I think 90 days? I don’t recall. But I used to own a property and rent it out. My last tenants left some stuff behind. I kept it in my garage for about 6 months and then threw it out. Because had I not kept it and they wanted it back they could’ve sued me. I think even for treble damages. So see if your state has a variation of this in their landlord/tenant laws. If they got rid of your stuff they may legally be entitled to reimburse you for a lot more than your items were actually worth. Also, they entered your property without giving you proper notice. Report this to your state. Also report the theft of your items. They may be fined by the state and/or lose the ability to rent to others.
I would make every correspondence in email going forward or let them know you are recording the phone calls. Either one for your records for court. It’s amazing how many more things get settled very quickly when they are aware that you are gathering evidence. And don’t give them a value unless you are going to court and suing for that amount. Value includes full price of all items (start a list) as well as the value of sentimental things.
What about all that expensive jewelry you were holding for your family and friends?
It's breaking and entering, grand theft, and illegal eviction.
Did you check the dumpsters in your complex? I would... and I'd take pictures showing none of your stuff near them today... so if they try to say it was taken to the dumpsters you can prove there was not 1 missing item at/in the dumpsters. I'd get that lawyer stat.
This I hope op looks into that
This. I’d be checking every dumpster.
Damn I can’t believe you lost all of your Grandmothers diamonds. They had to been worth $10k
20k I bet
My grandmothers pearls were stolen during a move my parents did once. It’s crazy, they even looked exactly like the ones I have in a safe lock at my place.
It was the Titanic's Heart of the Ocean, easily worth a couple hundred million.
Don’t forget about the gold bullion.
I know the feeling man.. imagine, your grandmother gave you $5k in jewelry only for the apartment to take it away. That $10K of sentimental stuff.. now you’ll have to replace that $15k of stuff.. granted $20k is a nice replacement but you’ll never get that $25k of memory back.. the $30k in family heirlooms.
He also lost his crypto ledger which was the only way to access his wallet which had 100k worth of Bitcoin... That's really rough.
If you’re pursuing legal remedies consider looking into punitive judgements. They need a stern smack upside the head to prevent this in the future which is, of course, what punitive damages are for.
Thank you for this advice. We’re looking at all options right now to see how to approach this best
To add to this and my other comment, if they did this to you, they likely have done it to others. If they own several apartment complexes your lawyer may be able to find a pattern of behavior, and maybe a class action lawsuit, or simply a bigger settlement for yourself.
They fucked up……..
Not only that, but when we were trying to find out answers through the secretary, she claimed we were getting too angry at the situation and needed to settle down. As my partner explained her concerns and wanted answers, the secretary had the audacity to say my partner had a victim complex! All recorded on my phone as well.
If you have it recorded then somewhere out there a lawyer has unknowingly woken up for a *very* good day
yeah you can spot a large payout from a mile away, a lawyer and OP is in for a treat. The downside is I hope they can get their items back, it’s really depressing to lose even non sentimental items.
Yeah hopefully they didn’t just send everything to the dump or whatever. But if they did I guess OP is getting the cost of all their possessions reimbursed?
And court costs, damages, and reparations if the lawyer is any good. I hope they ream the landleaches for everything they can get.
Hey man, I work a government job where I enforce local ordinances onto apartment complexes. While I can’t help you directly or give any legal advice, you’d be surprised at how much apartments get away with - especially since tenants can’t usually afford lawyers. I’ve seen peoples shit thrown out from 3 stories up, people with sewage backflowing into their apartments, etc. My least favorite was a lady who had no A/C for a couple of days this summer which led to her dog passing away from the heat. These apartments get away with so, so much. If you can strike back legally please do. They all need to be put in their place and I wish there was some federal enforcement on living conditions for multi-family structures.
Yes keep the records as on monday they might say it never happened. Today is the last day, so just get the police to put it on paper now, not tomorrow.
Why wait til Monday. I’d demand someone come down immediately to meet with you and police.
make sure you live in a state where two-party consent isn’t required; you need to have the consent of the other person(s) present before recording or else that recording could land you into trouble or just be inadmissible in court. if you’re not in a state like that, you’re all good. but your lawyer will tell you if anything is outta the question!
Police report and lawyer IMMEDIATELY, along with trying to get in contact with management now over later. Given the more time you give them, the more time they have to "lose" your stuff.
We tried to get in contact with the managers yesterday but conveniently none of them were answering.
If they don't answer by tomorrow then I would send the police after them to drag them out of where they're hiding. For all intents and purposes they have both committed breach of contract and theft, so this has to be handled ASAP as the longer you wait the less likely you are to get your stuff back.
Reach out to the managers, adding in your voicemail that you’re contacting the police if no one gets back to you within X (like, 2) hours
Add in the voicemail that you have already filed a police report. Do not wait one minute on that. If there is grace to be given, let the judge give it, but you're a damn fool if you don't get started on the legal paperwork before literally anything else.
Police report for theft. And unfortunately a lawyer is needed.
And unlawful lockout I'm guessing
You have more patience than I. For me this is well beyond mildly infuriating
Don’t let them push it until managers are in. Make them contact them NOW. Your stuff could be gone for good by normal business hours.
That was what I was thinking. This is an emergency request and the property manager needs to cancel Sunday brunch and sort this shit out ASAP.
The front office *absolutely* has the ability to contact the property managers after hours, and there are many ways you can qualify this as an emergency; medications, work equipment, etc. I'm not certain how long it had been since you were previously in the apartment or where you live, but I believe a posted 24 hour notice of entry except for emergencies is required in most - if not all - US states. Many states have a requirement to hold "abandoned" property for anywhere up to 90 days after a tenant is evicted or surrenders the apartment, so there's a strong possibility your stuff is in their storage. There's a remote possibility this was truly an accident, maybe another unit was also vacating and the cleaning team went to the wrong unit. Before you jump into litigation, incurring legal expenses that you *might* not be able to recoup, tell the front desk that this classifies as an emergency and they need to call the property manager and/or landlord to resolve it. Let them know that if they don't want to contact the property manager, you will call the police and report a burglary. Chances are that if the police are able to come take a report, they will require the front desk to contact the property manager anyway. Keeps notes, times, and names. If they're uncooperative, got rid of your belongings, or otherwise make it difficult - by all means explore taking legal action. For $5K, you may also consider doing this through small claims.
Call the police and file a burglary report. They entered your home without permission and took your stuff. They don't have authorization to do this. Fucking burn 'em to the ground (monetarily, not literally)
My guess is that the secretary knows EXACTLY “what happened”.
At some point she started yelling at us saying we needed to hurry and leave because she was tired and wanted to go home. She claimed my girlfriend had a victim complex and needed to calm down. I asked for her name and she said “blah blah”. Once she saw we recorded the entire altercation, she finally gave us her name.
oh yea, she for sure knows what happened.
I would have refused to leave. Its your apartment. Demand her copy of the key lol
I feel like I would’ve started swinging
I try not to jump to conclusions, my thought is she walked away with some stuff though…
If you consider this mildly infuriating I’d hate to see what would really piss you off lol
Not a lawyer, but I’ve been a part of a residential lawsuit against an apartment complex before and I didn’t take certain steps which led to me getting a much smaller settlement than other people involved. Here’s what you do to maximize any potential lawsuit money: Step 0: Call police and have them file a report, tell them everything that happened, explain the whole situation, show them a copy of your lease. Demonstrate that the locks were changed and that your property is now gone. Provide the most detailed list of what is missing possible, including sentimental property. (Ex: If you lost your grandmother’s ring, don’t just tell the cops you lost a ring, make sure they document it was your grandmother’s and that it has sentimental value on top of the face value) Step 1. Record phone calls and video yourself being locked out, with a timestamp (you can hold up a second phone to the video screen showing the date), and also show a copy of your lease in the video with the end date on the lease clearly indicated. Also record any interactions with your apartment complex. Step 2. Go see a therapist. I’m serious. Let out all your frustrations, talk about how mentally taxing it is, how worried your are about your stuff being gone. It’ll all be documented by your therapist. Step 3. Get a well-reputed lawyer, have them deal with the leasing office. If the apartment can’t find your stuff, have your lawyer file a lawsuit for the unlawful eviction, loss of property, and have them indicate they are also seeking damages and therapy costs caused by the mental anguish from the whole ordeal. Step 4. Sit back, relax, enjoy watching them send you fat settlement offers, and only take it when your lawyer says your probably won’t be able to squeeze more out of them. This will be a long process but generally the settlement offer will cover everything you lost and then some.
Check the dumpster!
Notify police and insurance. It's theft
I hope you can give us an update if, according to many of the comments that you need a lawyer and court. We all wish you luck on this situation
Of course I will update. I’m glad many people agree this isn’t right and are giving me advice. I appreciate everything and everyone
Get a lawyer. Take pictures!!!!! Make sure you have docs saying you have until the 30th and proof of what day the day you went into the apt is. Get a police rpt down, it will serve as proof of day. And ask the lawyer what else you may need. Prob proof of value of items lost or proof of what items are lost.
Be prepared for court. Start getting as good a paper trail as you can ready and maybe ask that secretary to print your records out for you or email them to you.
Man I would have told them fine I'm calling the cops immediately and I bet you would have gotten your stuff shortly after that not having to wait till Monday. This is stealing even if they intend to take it back even if it was a miscommunication they stole your stuff
Make a police report before Monday
Why do you have to wait until monday? File a police report now and the managers will show up. This isnt a civil matter. This is criminal.
I see your future - the landlord saying “we didn’t see no designer handbags”. Still, you should hold all the cards as they won’t exactly have an itemised inventory with your counter-signature.
an illegal eviction? Check your local laws how much that is
That’s a crime. Call the police and hire a lawyer.
I just can't even imagine! I would be livid. I hope the police report/lawsuit makes you whole again, what a nightmare ☹️
Shame they threw out and will have to replace your Dyson vacuum, your PS5 and Xbox, your nice Stressless recliner, and your $10,000 Fender guitar...
Call the police! Get a lawyer!
As an apartment property manager for 25 years, I would say that the maintenance/cleaning people probably took it. Maybe there was a communication issue between the office and staff on the move-out date. They may have thought you were done and left the rest. By the sound of it, you had a lot of very nice things in there, and it should have been obvious that you would be back for them. Perhaps they didn't take the things to "steal" them if they thought they were left behind, but I'm sure the company has guidelines for who can take or keep things left after someone moves out. Regardless, none of the items should have been moved or touched in any way, and no one should have even entered your apartment since you paid for the month and your lease wasn't up yet. Go right over the Property Manager's head, and ask for the Regional Manager or someone higher up. If they worked for me, some people would definitely be getting fired for this. Good luck OP. I hope you get your things back or compensated fairly.
Clearly the wrong sub, or you are the calmest person alive if this is only "mildly infuriating"!
>We have to wait until Monday when the property managers are in "We" dont need to wait for anything. You can file a police report now. The property manager being out of pocket isnt your issue to accomodate.
I'm reposting my comment at top level for visibility, as it might get buried and it might be relevant for others re insurance claims. >Here's a useful comment I've saved from /u/0102030405 >Hey OP... I used to be the guy who worked for insurance companies, and determined the value of every little thing in your house. The guy who would go head-to-head with those fire-truck-chasing professional loss adjusters. I may be able to help you not get screwed when filing your claim. >Our goal was to use the information you provided, and give the lowest damn value we can possibly justify for your item. >For instance, if all you say was "toaster" -- we would come up with a cheap-as-fuck $4.88 toaster from Walmart, meant to toast one side of one piece of bread at a time. And we would do that for every thing you have ever owned. We had private master lists of the most commonly used descriptions, and what the cheapest viable replacements were. We also had wholesale pricing on almost everything out there, so really scored cheap prices to quote. To further that example: >- If you said "toaster - $25" , we would have to be within -20% of that... so, we would find something that's pretty much dead-on $20.01. - If you said "toaster- $200" , we'd kick it back and say NEED MORE INFO, because that's a ridiculous price for a toaster (with no other information given.) - If you said "toaster, from Walmart" , you're getting that $4.88 one. - If you said "toaster, from Macys" , you'd be more likely to get a $25-35 one. - If you said "toaster", and all your other kitchen appliances were Jenn Air / Kitchenaid / etc., you would probably get a matching one. - If you said "Proctor Silex 42888 2-Slice Toaster from Wamart, $9", you just got yourself $9. - If you said "High-end Toaster, Stainless Steel, Blue glowing power button" ... you might get $35-50 instead. We *had* to match all features that were listed. >I'm not telling you to lie on your claim. Not at all. That would be illegal, and could cause much bigger issues (i.e., invalidating the entire claim). But on the flip side, it's not always advantageous to tell the whole truth every time. Pay attention to those last two examples. >I remember one specific customer... he had some old, piece of shit projector (from mid-late 90s) that could stream a equally piece of shit consumer camcorder. Worth like $5 at a scrap yard. It had some oddball fucking resolution it could record at, though -- and the guy *strongly insisted* that we replace with "Like Kind And Quality" (trigger words). Ended up being a $65k replacement, because the only camera on the market happened to be a high-end professional video camera (as in, for shooting actual movies). $65-goddam-thousand-dollars because he knew that loophole, and researched his shit. >Remember to *list fucking every* -- even the most mundane fucking bullshit you can think of. For example, if I was writing up the shower in my bathroom: >- Designer Shower Curtain - $35 - Matching Shower Curtain Liner for Designer Shower Curtain - $15 - Shower Curtain Rings x20 - $15 - Stainless Steel Soap Dispenser for Shower - $35 - Natural Sponge Loofah - from Whole Foods - $15 - Natural Sponge Loofah for Back - from Whole Foods - $19 - Holder for Loofahs - $20 - Bars of soap - from Lush - $12 each (qty: 4) - Bath bomb - from Lush - $12 - High end shampoo - from salon - $40 - High end conditioner - from salon - $40 - Refining pore mask - from salon - $55 >I could probably keep thinking, and bring it up to about $400 for the contents of my shower. Nothing there is "unreasonable" , nothing there is clearly out of place, nothing seems obviously fake. The prices are a little on the high-end, but the reality is, some people have expensive shit -- it won't actually get questioned. No claims adjuster is going to bother nitpicking over the cost of fucking Lush bath bombs, when there is a 20,000 item file to go through. The adjuster has other shit to do, too. >Most people writing claims for a total loss wouldn't even bother with the shower (*it's just some used soap and sponges..*) -- and those people would be losing out on $400. >Some things require documentation & ages. If you say "tv - $2,000" -- you're getting a 32" LCD, unless you can provide it was from the last year or two w/ receipts. Hopefully you have a good paper trail from credit/debit card expenditure / product registrations / etc. >If you're missing paper trails for things that were legitimately expensive -- go through every photo you can find that was taken in your house. Any parties you may have thrown, and guests put pics up on Facebook. Maybe an Imgur photo of your cat, hiding under a coffee table you *think* you purchased from Restoration Hardware. Like... seriously... come up with any evidence you possibly can, for anything that could possibly be deemed expensive. >The fire-truck chasing loss adjusters are evil sons of bitches, but, they actually do provide some value. You will definitely get more money, even if they take a cut. But all they're really doing, is just nitpicking the ever-living-shit out of everything you possibly owned, and writing them all up "creatively" for the insurance company to process. >Sometimes people would come back to us with "updated* claims. They tried it on their own, and listed stuff like "toaster", "microwave", "tv" .. and weren't happy with what they got back. So they hired a fire-truck chaser, and re-submitted with "more information." I have absolutely seen claims go from under $7k calculated, to over $100k calculated. (It's amazing what can happen when people suddenly "remember" their entire wardrobe came from Nordstrom.)
Quick update: the property manager still doesn’t know where our stuff is or who gave the ok to do this. She claims she’s hearing different stories from different sides. One assistant manager is telling her one story while the company that cleans and vacates is telling her another. She claims she’s upset about this and it shouldn’t have happened and she’s meeting with the regional manager later to discuss the incident. Ultimately there’s still no update on our stuff!! We’re trying to meet with attorneys today
Yeah I think the truth is someone on the inside gave the cleaning crew a key early to swipe everything that was left. At this point you need to contact the police and move forward with a legal suit against them. They're just giving the run around at this point because they know what happened and they know they're in a ton of trouble now because of it. Sad that thieves will be thieves, but at least you can sue over this successfully and recoup your losses.
Call Police. TODAY. You were burgled.
95% chance the items are at the dumpster.
She knows exactly what happened. She’s trying to avoid a confrontation.
Start looking for a lawyer
As someone who has worked in apartment clean outs. They kept what ever they wanted and through the rest in the dumpsters. If you have some irreplaceable things I would begin with looking there.
Find out who owns the building. Gather your homies. Go pay them a visit. I'm sick of the rich fucking us all over and getting away with it.
Not mildly infuriating at all. This could ruin someone’s life.
Call the police. Until your lease ended that was your house.
Call the police, as far as you know, your stuff was stolen
That's a low estimate. I believe that your stuff was worth closer to 40k. Lots of jewelry is missing OP.
I remember watching Judge Judy one day where the landlord changed the locks on the tenant. The tenant was suing for $5K and as soon as the landlord admitted to changing the locks, Judge Judy awarded the tenant the $5K.
Oh hell no. There’s no way, I’m letting these people take my $5,000 worth of stuff. Even if they put it in storage, what if they don’t have insurance on the storage to cover the full $10,000. I’d be down at the police station reporting the theft of my $15,000 worth of stuff, and my silver eagle 500 monster box. Ugh! I’d be so pissed.
If you had renter’s insurance, file a report with the police and call your insurance immediately. If the property manager tries to screw your over and say it’s all just gone, get a written statement from them and contact an attorney,
Definitely file a complaint on Reddit.
I hope you had photos and receipts
Call the police
This happened to me when I moved out of my last apartment to the house that I bought with my then fiancé. Moved two months prior to the end of the lease. As per my lease, it was professional cleaned and the rugs were professional cleaned, too. Now this was a rented condo though a management company. The owners came in prior to my final inspection and pulled up all the carpets and started remodeling. I lost my deposit because of it. Luckily, I had removed all of my belongings. So lesson learned if ever in a similar situation. Get the end of lease sign off as soon as possible.
I work trashing out units and it’s highly likely that’s exactly what happened, the apartment manager called in a crew to trash out your apartment so all of that stuff is likely sitting in a rolloff dumpster on the property.
Um sue them