I lived at Pinnacle Pointe for 3 years and recently moved out. All in all, I found the location to be excellent, the staff friendly, and the accomodations above average.

While I was aware the property was sold to new owners recently, the only difference I noticed was that the lawncare was several notches below what it had been in the past. I learned this was due to the fact that the contract with the former lawncare provider was not renewed and the owners opted to take the task in-house.

However, my more recent experience provides some substance behind past posters' claims of new management being "cheap" and in general, exhibiting poor business practices.

During the past week, I received my security deposit refund check. Expecting the full $300 refund as the apartment was left in good/excellent condition (given we had lived there 3 years), I was dissapointed to find charges for "general cleaning" for $149 dollars was deducted from our deposit. Upon calling, personnel at the apartment complex indicated they were charging me for "preparing the unit for the next resident." Not budging on my objection to this charge, they indicated that if I wanted to take it any further, I should go contact my lawyer.

My quick review of rules related to security deposit refunds indicated that landlords in most states are not allowed to charge for normal wear & tear, including carpet cleaning, painting, etc. as this is a normal cost of doing business for them. Additionally, I do not recall this being standard language in the lease contract that the resident would be expected to pay for cleaning services at the end of the contract term. I contacted another property manager in town that I was a resident of in 2001-2002 and they indicated that it appeared to them that management was in the wrong.

While the portion that was withheld ($150) for these charges is a relatively nominal amount of money to one individual and management would not expect someone to take action to recoup, it could potentially be a more significant amount for new management (estimate 40 units vacate each year times $150/unit = $6,000 per year).

Secondly, I am spending the time to write this b/c it exhibits poor business practice. I was a resident for three years, never caused a problem, had 3 maintenance calls, left the unit in good shape, etc. and for those three years they did not have to worry about re-carpeting, painting, and having the apartment set vacate while they tried to re-lease it. As their way of saying thanks, they gouge me $150.

I am simply looking for others who have had a similiar bad experience with regards the security deposit over the past several months. If there are a number of us in the same boat, I have a lawyer who can represent us (no fee to you) and we can recoup our lost deposit funds and also put a stop to what I consider a practice that appears to be questionable on legal grounds and represents bad business ethics.

It appears that if part of your deposit was wrongfully withheld, you can reclaim double the amount withheld in small claims court.

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