When you're a tenant, the future is shrouded by mystery. Will the owner of the property fix that leaking pipe? Or will they decide to sell it and force you to move out with little notice?
To help each other prepare for what's to come, members of the subreddit r/Renters are regularly sharing their experiences of living under another person's roof. And while some of them are positive, a fair number aren't.
So, to show you what landlords are capable of, we put together a list of the most infuriating ones.
#1 Owner Is Tearing Out Our Gardens And Putting In Grass And River Gravel
We chose this building because we were allowed to garden there. Have been here for 10 years. I am chronically ill and unable to work so we are low income. I have $25/month to spend on myself and for the past 8 years have spent most of it on plants.
4 days ago we got a notice on our doors that the owner has decided he wants a more uniform look, and will be replacing everything with grass and gravel. I just wanted to share my garden with someone before it is gone.
Image credits: Gem_Snack
#2 Is This Legal? (CA)
My landlord posted this in the hallway that connects all of our units. He can’t deny us A/C?!?!! And our lease said nothing about that. Where can I report him? He’s usually never here and we have long time tenants. But he’s being very unreasonable.
Image credits: Agitated-Cucumber356
#3 How About You?
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#4 Landlord Taped All Building Fire Alarm Pull Stations Closed
My building has been undergoing preparations for painting over the past week. Day 1 involved meticulously taping all the fire alarm pull stations.
This is against some sort of code… right?
Image credits: X4e7o2o
#5 Our Landlord Keeps Saying There's Nothing Wrong With Our Shower
Image credits: Cheddar18
#6 My Landlord Entered My Apartment Without Notice (Illegal) To Tell Me To Clean My Lint Trap
Image credits: reddit.com
#7 Landlord Kicked In My Door When I Was Out Of Town
Moved my stuff into my sublease and then had to go out of town and came back to find out that the landlord had kicked in my front door, not notified me about it and left it completely unlocked with all my stuff in the room. I’m at a loss.
Image credits: sammagz
#8 Landlord Keeps Entering My Apartment Without Notice
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#9 Landlord Suggests We Move Instead Of Repairing Leaky Ceilings
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#10 Ceiling Caved In After A Year Of Telling Our Landlord That The Ceiling Has Been Sagging
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#11 How Much Do You Tip Your Landlord?
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#12 Minneapolis MN, Landlord Painted Over Window In Kitchen, Is This A Safety Violation?
My landlord painted white over a ton of my apartment right before I moved in, and as a result I can’t open like half of the cabinet space nor can I open a window in the kitchen that I’m almost certain is supposed to be there for ventilation, especially since smoke/heat tends to build up in there very quickly because it’s small/congested. I’m wondering if anyone knows if this could be considered a safety violation or where I could look to find out - I’m pretty new to renting
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#13 Update: No Hot Water In Kitchen
So I guess I’m going to contact a lawyer or something to see if there is anything I can do about this? The deposit includes the last months rent and I’ve paid for the first month. Only here 4 months total because it’s so close to school. I guess I’m going to pay for this next month and see what I can do legally. Will be doing my dishes in the shower from now on 😄 Thank you for everyone who validated me thinking this is not okay. Also yes it is pre furnished and this was not the first surprise I’ve had in the month since moving in. Issue is that the landlord lives in the room across from me (has its own kitchen and stuff) so it complicates things. Also really don’t time to focus this as a student who just moved down for this semester.
Image credits: BowlerOk4295
#14 This Is Wild
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#15 LOL My Landking Told Me “I Just Had Bought A Brand New Dryer For Your Unit The Week Before You Moved In” I Beg To Differ Sir 😭
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#16 My Landlord Installed A Second Doorknob. You Can’t Open The Door Without Turning Both Of Them
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#17 I Came Back From Thanksgiving To Find That My Landlord Had Revarnished/Painted The Stairs Up To My Apartment. They Are Still Wet, I Was Given No Notice, And There Is Only One Staircase
Image credits: KingOfTheKains
#18 Inflation Is Tough! $2800 To $4500 For A 750sqft Apartment In The North End Of Boston (MA)
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#19 $280 For Snaking Hair Out If Drain, Reasonable?
Image credits: True-Construction377
#20 Absolutely Floored At The Income Requirement (Ca)
Received this after viewing a unit. Absolutely sickening.
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#21 Being Told It’s A $100 Fee To Apply, And When I Say I’d Be Happy To Pay That After Touring, She Says The Fee Is Required To Even See The Place
Image credits: un_gaslightable
#22 Landlord Hired A Guy To Power Wash The Stairs
Image credits: PigenMann
#23 I Found A Camera, That A Landlord Tried Hiding In The Laundry Room Of A Rental, That Faces A Mirror In My Entryway That I Sometimes Change Clothes In Front Of
Image credits: reddit.com
#24 My Rent Has Gone From $1500-$2000-$2500 In The Last 3 Years
Image credits: reddit.com
#25 Apartment A/C Went Out During Recent Texas Heat Wave And Management Doesn’t Want To Fix It
About 3 days ago our apartments air conditioning stopped working and we put in a maintenance request for it to be fixed. For the past days every day we have put in a request to fix it but they say our air conditioning system is working. We have tried to let them know that the apartment feels really hot and the system will work for 30 after they work on it and then will completely stop working.
Yesterday our property manager let us know that they will not be coming out unless our thermostat shows that the temperature is at 90 degrees inside despite us telling them that the thermostat is not accurate. I have a pregnant wife and 2 other kids and the apartment has become inhospitable to the point where we needed to go stay elsewhere with family so that my wife and kids don’t have to deal with these conditions. The manager says air conditioning is not something that it’s important or an emergency to fix in Texas. I have a thermal imaging thermometer and it shows that the apartment is at 95 degrees indoors with our kids room being the hottest at 97 degrees.
Image credits: emirrdz06
#26 As A Former Landlord These Types Are The Problem In The Renter World
The greediness. Rest of his post says he still making money too, not losing any. People ask for this then regret the decision once they allow someone to live and not pay rent on time or even have the amount they’re asking. Some people don’t realize how easy they got it till it gone.
Image credits: Calm-Step-3083
#27 My Landlord Refuses To Get Over Here And Turn Down My Water Heater
Image credits: Crustacean2B
#28 My Landlord Didn’t Pay The City Water Bill, Now My Complex Doesn’t Have Water
Image credits: KingOfTheKains
#29 My Landlord Is Keeping All Of My Deposit Over One Broken Tile That His Maintenance Guy Broke Moving A Dishwasher
Image credits: LegalThrowAway8656
#30 Landlord’s Outrageous Requests
My landlord sent this last night at 8 pm. Is this even allowed? I am getting back into town Thursday after being gone for months and I am essentially moving back in with how much I have. Not to mention there’s no time specified and I have a virtual interview that day. I am fuming, especially since they didn’t even clean it well before we moved in & now expect us to clean for them ??
Image credits: Bitterbaby-11
#31 Landlord Wants To Increase My Rent 1 Month After I Just Moved In If I Stay Home During The Weekends
Image credits: potatosalad-_-
#32 As I Near Day Eight Without Water This Email Arrived After The Apartment Office Had Closed For The Day
Image credits: Mister_Pianister
#33 Did I Rust This Pipe? My Landlord Claims I Did
My landlord is claiming this pipe rusting though is “user error” and trying to charge me for the repair. I cant see how me living at a house for about 2 years and a pipe rusting, without it not being maintained prior to my moving in. I do not use any chemicals in the drain besides soap. Could i possibly be responsible for the damage?
Image credits: Adventurous-Web-8438
#34 Outrageous Fees Just To Apply (GA)
I'm trying to downsize from a rental house to an apartment. I can't afford to stay but it looks like I can't afford to leave, either. If I get an apartment, I can eliminate my gas and water bills, and what I pay for yard maintenance (My lawn mower died 2 weeks ago while my son was cutting the grass). I had NO idea it was like this out here. And the scams are RIDICULOUS. Do people in other states have to pay these non-refundable "administration fees" as well? These greedy property management companies are robbing people.
Image credits: Traditional-Dog-4938
#35 Can My Landlord Do This?
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#36 Told Our Landlord To Replace Our Gas Fireplace Because It Was Leaking Co, Came Back To This Monstrosity In Our Living Room
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#37 My Landlord Took Away The Bed And Mattress That Were Provided In The "Furnished" Rental And Replaced It With This Thing Which Is Really Hard To Sleep On
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#38 Asked My Landlord To Fix My Utility Lines. She Cut Them All Off Now I Don’t Have WiFi Or Phones
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#39 I Am Getting My Own Internet Set Up Today And My Landlord Texted This To Me
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#40 My Landlord Finally Decided To Pour The Concrete Yesterday... Without Notice Right Before I Go To Work
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#41 Freezer Apparently Caught On Fire Last Night And Landlord Said It's Not An Emergency And Nothing Can Be Done Until Wednesday
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#42 The Landlord Special
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#43 I'm The Guarantor On My Relative's Lease And Have Been Hounded Over A $20 "Damages" Charge. Demanded Proof Over And Over, And Finally Got This
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#44 Can They Legally Do This?
Landlord is threatening to raise my rent because I use fans at night while sleeping. In my defense it’s extremely hot in the room i’m renting and they refuse to turn the AC up….
Image credits: reddit.com
#45 Maintenance Drilled A S***w Through The Side Of The Microwave Installing It???
Image credits: Evening-Grocery-2817
#46 (Nv) Is This Normal?
So, my air conditioner went out last week and apparently needs to be replaced. I got this email from my landlord’s property management company asking if I can front a few months worth of rent to replace the unit. Is this normal or expected?
I’ve never had a major repair like this done anywhere I’ve rented before but it seems kinda weird to me and also I don’t really want to do that.
Image credits: PinguAndLSD
#47 Is This Legal? Ca
We've been at this apartment since April, our rent is $1670. Just today we were given this posting that our rent is being increased by 28%. We live in an affordable housing community in Santa Barbara county. We're being told that this increase is due to our utility allowance being decreased, something to do with the solar panels being built? The leasing office doesn't even know what to make of it.
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#48 Old Toilet Seat Broke From Wear & Tear, So Landlord Replaced It With This…
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#49 Our Landlord Changed Our Fridge While I Was At Work
She sent me a message asking to take my food out while I was at work, when I got home everything was left like this 🤡
Image credits: AstronautNatural49
#50 Oh- My GF Just Moved Out Of Her Place And Into Mine. She Was Renting A Pretty Run Down Property And Two Months After Moving Out We Got This
Is this absurd?? The property itself was extremely run down already and had items that were left from the previous owners. I understand the precaution for her dog possibly having fleas (which it didn’t), but it all seems insanely overpriced.
Image credits: Electronic-Writing97
#51 I Feel Deceived On Day 1 Of Move-In
Location: Florida, USA
I'm absolutely floored that this landlord and property management company are trying to pull one over me on day 1 of our move in.
Per our signed lease, trash and sewer are included as part of the rent. When I called to turn on utilities 2 days ago (our lease was provided Monday evening, move in today Thursday), the water company said that they cannot leave sewer in the home owners name and had to put the whole meter under my name. I said yes because this was after being on hold forever and I just needed to get it in my name to get the keys in time for my military move. The rental property management rep assured me that the landlord would pay us back after seeing the first month's bill. I'm literally moving in right now and I was emailed this steaming t**d (see attached).
What rights do I have?
I'm on terminal leave from the Navy with only 2 weeks left on active duty. This is B.S.
Thanks in advance for any advice!
Image credits: IHateCoconuts47
#52 Landlord Using His Friend's Company To Inflate Repair Costs In Order To Avoid Giving Back Our Deposit
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#53 What Should I Expect? South Fl 2 Months Left On Lease
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#54 Is This Legal?
Received this email from landlord today. The property is in Burlington, VT and the lease is due to start in July (so more than 30 days from the date of notice). The property is a 3 bedroom, but the landlord was going to convert to 4, and the lease is for 4 people. My two questions are: can a landlord terminate a lease before tenancy for no cause? And second, shouldn’t they be accountable in some way for misrepresenting the property? Appreciate any advice.
Image credits: Waldorf244
#55 Live-In Landlord Concerned For Me After I Came Home Late?
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#56 Sure Seems That Way
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#57 Plumbing Apparently Can't Handle Toilet Paper Without Needing “Costly Repairs”
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#58 Locked Out Of Apartment - Landlord’s Responsibility Or Mine??
Hi all, my deadbolt seized, I was locked out of my apartment. Called the landlord and they sent over a locksmith guy. He unjammed the lock and I was able to get back in. But landlord is now billing me $125 for the service. They claimed “it could’ve been avoided”. When I asked how on earth this could’ve been avoided, they refuse to answer. I don’t see how it’s my responsibility. I really do think they should be paying the locksmith.
Nothing in my lease about this kind of stuff. What can I realistically do? Thanks.
Image credits: Impossible_Item_9401
#59 $200 Charge By Landlord For Minor Flooring Damage, Is This Reasonable?
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#60 Is This A Thing? Rental Commission?
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#61 Being A Renter F**king Sucks
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#62 Here At My Tx Apartments
Current Edgewater Apartment Residents in Lake Jackson, Texas Received The Following Message From the City of Lake Jackson:
TENANT NOTIFICATION PENDING UTILITY DISCONNECTION
Dear Sir or Madam. The City filed a lien on the Edgewater Apartments for non-payment of water, sewer and garbage service ou August 1, 2024. The current past due amount is $77,202.02. Your water and Wastewater services will be disconnected on Jantary 2, 2025, unless immediate action is taken by your property owner. We have made multiple attempts to work with the owner of the property, but they have failed to pay its city utility bills for several months. Please prepare accordingly.
Image credits: Vxxpx
#63 My Landlords Sent A Handyman Who Did This. Would’ve K****d Us If My Father In Law Hadn’t Checked It
It was leaking everywhere, and a carbon monoxide leak is a possibility too. I’m in Oklahoma, and it was a handyman and his son who came to install this. I asked my father in law (a licensed plumber) to come by because I wasn’t confident in their work. I have a one year old son. This could have k****d us. Any help??? Please??? I don’t know what to do.
Image credits: CretinCrowley
#64 Apartments Made My Disabled Dad's Kitchen Unusable For Him, Won't Do Anything To Help They Told Him To Use The Microwave (He Doesn't Have One)
Their building a new porch cause the wall was rotten inside, the bulders came and had us empty our cupboards and put supports in the way of our kitchen, now my dad can't use the kitchen to make food we called the apartment complex (low income) managed by Cambridge and they couldn't care less he's freaking out a bit could use some advice.
Image credits: Dickless_Dave
#65 Landlord Expects Me To Pay Plumber Bill
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#66 What Do I Do? Los Angeles Ca
So it’s been 23 days since move out and I hadn’t heard anything from my landlords. I reached out and they responded quickly and sent me a partial deposit. I told them about the 21 day law and that I am entitled to a full deposit refund and this is the response (or lack there of). I know they only took $425 but that is alot of money to me.
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#67 Is This Legal?
So I live in an apartment complex with no washer and dryer hookup. There's a separate building that's a laundry mat and we pay 1.50 per wash and per dry and sometimes you got to do multiple drys cause they're c**p. I knotice multiple of these posted all over tonight. Is it legal to openly threat renters with rent increases like this? This is NC BTW
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#68 Got A Three-Day Notice For “Clutter” On The Patio
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#69 Landlord Says My Lawn Doesn't Pass Inspection
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#70 Landlord Charging Me For Replacement Of 9-Year Old Dishwasher And Garbage Disposal (Los Angeles)
Garbage disposal broke 5 months into the lease. Repair guy came a couple times prior to it breaking, told me it was older, and said when it stops working to take a wrench and twist back and forth. Soon after using that method, it croaked and landlord had to replace it.
Dishwasher broke 1 year into the lease. Stopped draining because the pump stopped working. Landlord took 3 months to replace it, and when they replaced it, they emailed me to say they were deducting the cost of this and the garbage disposal from my deposit. I asked if this was checked prior to moving in, and they said they “ran it and it worked fine.” I checked the serial number (took pictures for the repair) and it was a 9 year old dishwasher, used by 3 other tenants prior to me.
A few months after the repair, I got a letter in the mail from an appliance insurance company processing center, addressed to them. It looks like a check. Anyways, I gave it to them. I work in insurance, so I felt weird. I asked them if they plan to collect insurance on this as well as my deposit. They responded saying that because I questioned their integrity, they are tacking on the cost to replace a key that I lost (at the time that I lost it, I apologized and asked them to tell me the cost so I could add it to the rent payment that month. They said they wouldn’t charge for it because I’m a good tenant). They’re now walking it back because they’re pissed at me. God knows what else they’re going to try to charge for now.
Lease is up at the end of February, rent due in the 1st. Though their email sounds like they’re applying the deposit to it. I’m unsure because it makes no sense.
Trying to figure out the best way to navigate this. I’ve been a good tenant. I’ve paid them rent on time every month for my entire stay. I even painted the entire apartment because the paint job was so bad when I moved in. They thanked me and told me it looked amazing. I’m clean, quiet, considerate. I lost a mail key once, but like I said earlier, I apologized profusely and offered to pay for it. It doesn’t feel right letting this person use my deposit to get brand new appliances when they were old and not broken due to my negligence.
Thanks all for your thoughts on this
(Note: stain on carpet referenced in the email was there before I moved in. They never got it cleaned)
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#71 How Real Is This?
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#72 Can My Landlord Do This? [mn]
So I live in Minnesota with my partner (22 & 20). My landlord, despite saying he would, never got a proper lease so we've been going by the Minnesota State Lease for renters. We have been living here for a few months and have always paid in the middle of the month (15th typically) since that's when we moved in. He texted me at the beginning of this month saying that if I don't pay by the "Fourth" F̶o̶r̶d̶ that I need to pay a $50 late fee. I just paid rent for last month just two weeks ago. I can't afford to lose my current place or to move to another place right now. And I'm trying to make sure that I'm not doing anything wrong but is it legal for him to do this to us?
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#73 Told Landlord Multiple Times Plugs Keep Sparking And Then This Happened
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#74 Maintenance Cut Holes In My Wall And Now Won’t Answer My Calls
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#75 How Can I Reduce My Gas/Energy Bill?
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#76 Why Would They Do This?
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#77 Landlord Handed Me House Rules That Casually Mention Fees Today
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#78 This Text Message From My Daughter’s Landlord While We’re Attending Her College Graduation
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#79 Just Moved Into A New Home And Found Where The Landlord Patched The Carpet
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#80 Asked My Landlord To Fix My Sink Sprayer And She Had Someone Remove It Instead
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#81 I Kind Of Agree With This
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#82 My Landlord Offered Me A “Proposal” After I Asked If The Hotel Employees Would Stop Trashing The Yard. (CA)
I’ve been renting a studio apartment on a hotel property for five years. My landlord has raised my rent five times, twice in one year, and the other times has been more than 10% of the previous year’s rent. The last time he tried to raise my rent, I told him I wanted a bunch of stuff fixed, like a place to throw away my garbage, smoke detectors, central heat and air, and a full fridge. Some of these things are deemed “unlivable in California. After I asked him to ask the people at the hotel to stop trashing the courtyard, he sent this proposal, which sounds like an soft eviction notice to me. I live with my girlfriend, and have most of the receipts for staying here. We have two kittens and I don’t know what to do. Apartments are super expensive here and I don’t know if they would let us bring both kittens.
Image credits: HandofDOOM708
#83 Is This Legal?
I have no lease violations and have paid rent on time for 3 years. Manager doesn't like me because I've called her out on not fixing things.
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#84 Short On Rent That Was Due On The First. I Thought It Took At Least 30 Days For An Eviction Notice
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#85 My Landlord Is Selling And Is Asking A Lot Of Us
My landlord is selling all of their properties and is moving very fast. I was uncomfortable with pictures but now they want to do walk through showing while we still fully occupy the house, is this normal? What can I do to protect my privacy? I don’t want to block the sale, but I don’t want strangers walking through my home either.
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#86 Does This Invoice For Security Deposit Make Sense To You?
Keep in mind there were little holes in the walls from hanging up pictures. This apartment was small, 950 sq feet.. so confused.
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#87 Ma -Fridge Door Handle Broke. Landlord Says Misuse And My Responsibility
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#88 Landlord Requires Us To Pay Security Deposit Interests???
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#89 Throttling My AC, Legal?
Image credits: wdwalker14
