I signed a 9 month lease with Pinnacle Sonata and was moved into an apartment during a large wind storm that knocked out power to the Pinnacle Sonata neighborhood. We delayed our move in until we had power in our new apartment and upon moving in we found out that our main source of heat (the fire place) did not work. It also did not help that they only provided small 2ft baseboard heaters that could hardly heat a small bathroom let alone the large room with vaulted ceilings. We were told it would take several weeks to get a repair company out during the middle of a cold winter month. The maintenance manager at the time brought us an extremely small space heater that barely heated a foot in front of it and did no help. We also had issues with several stains in the carpet ect...

Our problem was resolved after a week with the property manager moving us into a new apartment with a working fireplace, brand new carpet, and in an all together good condition. Not only did they transfer us into this apartment but they also adjusted the rent on it so that we would pay the price we had signed to in the prior apartment and also paid to have movers move us from unit to unit.

Though upon moving into the new unit we found that the garage was stained with pet urine. The stairwell leading from the garage into the apartment had not been properly sealed by the carpet company and the smell of pet urine remained. These items were reported to the manager and nothing was ever done. We were sure to mark everything on the move in inspection though don't think that helped!

The remainder of the time we lived there things went well. The staff was cordial and maintenance was average. Though if you wanted things done correctly you had to have Katie come to your apartment and fix the items. The other guys were idiots.

Upon moving out we were sure to clean the unit. Have the carpets professionally cleaned including pet treatment (yes our dogs had accidents). We left the unit in pretty decent condition. Though if you think for a second we'd get our deposit back you'd be greatly mistaken.

You see BRE wants their residents to completely paint the unit. They don't provide you paint or information of how to obtain the paint upon move out. If you miss one cleaning item they (in my case the fridge) they charge you for a full clean. Now I know my dogs urinated in the carpet and I should be responsible for replacing most of the carpet that was new when moving in. But should not be responsible for that which was damaged when moving in. We received a bill for $2500 and that was after our $250 deposit was subtracted.

I was in contact with Liz from the office and disputed some of the charges. I figured that I'd be responsible for at least the pet damage. She stated that she would look into it and get back to me. I waited and waited with no call back. I called once a week for a month and kept being told the same thing. Waiting on the invoices!

Needless to say Liz never accomplished a damn thing for me and I finally got a call from Cindy Wood from the in house collection department. I told her my situation and she told me that I should have never been in contact with Liz and should have been talking to her. Why didn't Liz tell me that' She then told me should would be doing some investigating and would get back to me. A few days later I got a packet in the mail with all the invoices and a note stating I needed to pay the $2500. I called back and Cindy told me that the property manager was refusing any reversal of charges. I attempted to argue my case but Cindy told me to "SHUT UP and LISTEN TO HER". This lady is a -----! I do not recommend anyone doing business with her. I told her that I'd be seeking a lawyer and would have them get in contact with her.

A couple days later after contacting my lawyer he advised me to call back and speak with someone else. This I did and spoke with Christine Gannon. Christine was very helpful and actually reversed the charges I was disputing after I plead my case. I ended up paying $2100. Christine was very patient with me while I collected the funds and worked with me dilligently until the item was resolved.

So long story in short. I would not recommend anyone to live at Pinnacle Sonata unless your looking to get raped when you move. There are plenty of other management companies out there that are fair and personable.

User Responses
From: lizbethc	Date: 12/14/2007
Well Mr. Anonymous, Let me respond to your posting about your move out statement. All of the charges were fair. The carpet was new upon move in. We did not just replace it for the heck of it. We had our carpet cleaning company come out and give us a bid. The recommendation was to have the carpet replaced due to urine damage. It was well more that the occasional "accident." You were actually charged less than the replacement cost that we paid. That floor plan is 1575 sq ft, it would take a whole heck of a lot of accidents to have to replace the carpet in the whole apartment. There was mention of pet staining/smell in the garage and entry way (not the whole apt) on the move in inspection report. Our error if we didn't get it followed up on promptly. It was never followed up on by you either. As for the paint charges. It is stated on page 2 of the lease under the security deposit section and also on a separate addendum "Estimated Move Out Charge List. Each floor plan is listed with the estimated prices for cleaning, carpet cleaning and painting. There is also information on the prorated paint costs. Lease paperwork is reviewed upon move in. There was not anything that was not disclosed to you up front. As for not responding to you. I was waiting on final invoices. Your apartment was one of the last ones turned for the month so therefore we still had not received final invoices. I forwarded the copies to you as well as our In House Collections Department as soon as I had received them. We hadn't had the chance to discuss any sort of a compromise on the charges as we were all still waiting on those invoices. I would rather speak with residents first and try to resolve issues here amicably before referring them to IHC. I am glad to hear that you reached a compromise with IHC. I think that 90% of our residents would disagree with you about your opinion of Pinnacle Sonata. In this business (as you should know) it is impossible to make all residents happy all the time. We sincerely try our best to do so. I love my job, my property and the company that I work for. I will stand by the statement and charges that you were charged. A majority of the statements that I do either get a refund or have to pay a small balance. I am very fair. A majority of them do not have major damage in the apartment that they have left.
From: Anonymous	Date: 04/27/2008
I lived in pinnacle sonata and when I moved out i had a small stain on the carpet and a ding in one of the walls that wasnt there upon move in as well as i lost the pool key that i was given. I wasnt charged anything for this and got a full refund of my deposit. I happen to know how fair pinnacle sonata is. and knowing that i would have to think that your apartment was beyond just pet urine. So quit complaining and take responsibilitie for what you and your dogs did to the apartment while you lived there.

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