Question : Put $ $ down to hold apt. , did’t sign lease & decided not to move in & now they won’t give us our money?
Ok my roomate and I were looking fror a new apt. because our lease is up atthe end of March. We found a guy who was trying to rent a town home for someone. He works for a leaseing agency here in Richmond. We really like the townhome so he said we could put down $ 200 to hold it so he could take it off the market while we were waitng to hear if we were approved.

Well we were denied do to our income not being 3 times the rent. Well he then showed us a different apartment he had in a bad area… So we told him we would think about it and get back to him by monday. This was Friday. Well he was kinda creepy.. right after we left meeting with him he got my number off the app. started texting me… personally not about the apt. I just figured he was being friendly. He kept texting me everyday until we met again. just simple stuff like “have a wonderful day doll” as if we were friends. I didn’t think too much of it cause he seemed like he didn’t have too many friends and I just figured he was just being friendly. Well Monday we told him we would comesign the lease Tuesday.

He then started asking weird questions and becoming more creepy… So my roomate and I became unsure of him and the apt. so we went and looked at a few more places with other realaties. We found something so much better and in a safe area, bigger and way more professional and clen… just a better place. So we called him this moring prior to when we were suposed to meet him and told him we were not going to take the place and we wanted our $ 200 back.

The $ 200 was to hold the town home we DIDN’T get .. then when we said we would go to the other place he used it to hold that place when we didn’t even tell him to. Well today he said thats fine that we don’t want it but it makes him look bad so he isn’t giving us our money back. He has to give it back right? This was a refundable hold dep. & we never signed a lease or anything. He said that someone else wasnted the apt. this morning and he turned them down cause we were suposed to take it, so we caused him a sale…WE DIDN’T EVEN CHOOSE A SPECIFIC APT. WE JUST SAID THAT COMPLEX CAUSE HE SAID THERE WERE PLENTY AVAILABLE!! SO HOW COULD THEY WANT “THE ONE WE HAD” WHEN WE NEVER CHOSE ONE… BUT it would be the same as when you put the money down to hold it while your waiting to be approved and it’s taken off the market and if your not approved you get it back… So my question is are we entitled to the money back ?? I belive we are but now he is refusing to give it backsaying that will make him look bad and he already deposited it into his bank account… any suggestions would be greatly appricated.
richmond homes for sale

Best answer:

Answer by Othniel
Did you write a check to the leasing company or did you give cash to this guy? If you wrote the check to the leasing company and you were denied because of your income level then they should release the deposit back to you. If you gave the “creep” cash and he did not give you a receipt from the company then you just committed a fatal error. Complain to the management and they may fire the bum or get you your money.