I kindly urge any potential renters to proceed with EXTREME CAUTION. If you do not have the time,…read moremoney, or resources to deal with a potentially lengthy and costly dispute, I strongly encourage prospective renters to think carefully before renting through Stevens Realty. Our $3,000 traditional refundable security deposit ultimately took seven months and the involvement of our attorney to recover, despite Stevens Realty providing us with a signed document confirming that the deposit would be refunded in full, for a home we never lived in and never signed a lease agreement for.
We toured a rental property in March and decided to submit rental applications. After we were approved, we were instructed to pay a $3,000 "traditional refundable security deposit," as stated in our application approval instructions, in order to receive the lease. Before paying, we specifically asked whether the deposit would be refundable if we reviewed the lease and decided not to move forward. We were told that it would be. This was confirmed by an employee named Charm.
After receiving and reviewing the lease, we had significant concerns about several of the terms and ultimately decided that we were not comfortable signing it. We notified Stevens Realty that we would not be moving forward and requested the return of our $3,000 traditional refundable security deposit.
At that point, we were told by Stevens Realty that they would not be returning our $3,000 traditional refundable security deposit. Approximately a month later, however, Stevens Realty sent us a signed document confirming that the $3,000 would be refunded to us in full. Despite receiving that written confirmation, we still did not receive the refund.
At that point, we ultimately had to have our attorney communicate directly with Stevens Realty on our behalf. Stevens Realty ultimately returned the full $3,000.
We did eventually receive our full $3,000 back, which we are grateful for. However, having to spend seven months and involve an attorney to recover money we had been told was refundable, and that Stevens Realty later confirmed in writing would be returned, was an extremely stressful and frustrating experience.
Our advice to prospective tenants is to avoid sending any money until you have been given the opportunity to review the lease, get any representations about deposits or fees in writing, carefully review the lease before committing to anything, and make sure you understand exactly what happens to your money if you decide not to move forward.
We are sharing our experience so that other prospective tenants can make an informed decision and hopefully avoid finding themselves in the same situation.