HI GUYS!
It's been about a month, according to Reddit, since I've last posted but it feels way the hell longer. I linked the original and updates down below, so check those out if you need a refresher. For those of you still reaching out til this day about it, my husband and I appreciate it and have either read or responded to all of it.
Basically, I waited 8 additional days for the landlord to reimburse us the electric bills. It never happened so I called up that lawyer and hired her within minutes. She emailed them, let them know we no longer agreed to settle and that they had to cease all direct contact with my husband and myself. They tried to hurry up and credit the money to our account after she sent the email (although they had JUST claimed hours before that the accountant was out of town and would be back 'later'), but we didn't touch them and endured on a 6 week legal battle instead. They hired their own lawyer and the two of them went back and forth. We decided the most important thing to us was getting out of that building. In order to do so, we had to talk them into agreeing to release us from the 13 months still on our lease - 1 month of the original, 12 of the new year we had just signed for. Ideally, we'd finish out the 1 month on the original lease and the legal battle would come to an end perfectly at the end of our lease. Then we would go.
If we wanted this granted to us, they wanted us to drop the accusation that we were never told of the lack of permits. This accusation would potentially cost them $3000. We talked about it and agreed moving outweighed the check. So, fine, we let it go. Our lawyer explained that our case was very strong and going to litigation would most likely work in our favor.. but there was always the slim chance in practicing law where things don't go your way in court and the judge doesn't rule in your favor though the stars all seem aligned. She said it was a risk we could take, but if we didn't win, we would get nothing. No check, no lease termination. We played it safe and asked to just move ASAP. We were reimbursed our electric bills, our legal fees and an additional amount for "suffering" along with immediate lease termination and no bad mouthing to future landlords or tenants when it came to each others' names.
We packed in 5 days. We packed so quickly that I felt like I had done a triathlon with how sore I was waking up everyday. We scouted a new building and told them our story - they were so amazing that they waived our move in fees, approved us in 4 hours and let us pick whichever unit we wanted in the building. They're gems. Our final contract stated that on 7/31, we were to meet in the landlord's office and exchange keys for the check at noon on the dot. My husband went alone. I texted him before he walked in and said, "I don't know if this is legal.. but maybe you should keep your phone on record in your pocket. Just in case they try to pull something, right?" He agreed. He walked in, put the keys on the receptionist's desk and asked for the check. I kid you not, the lady said she had no clue what he was talking about in terms of a check and took the keys. My husband reached across, took them back and said to call him when they find the check. In the mean time, we called our lawyer back and she was pissed. After some back and forth, they called us to please come back to the office, an hour later, where they had it waiting for us. The landlord never showed, the property manger never showed and there sat the little receptionist with a check for $2600 on her desk. Granted, it wasn't the $7900 we originally were going for at first, but it's something and we no longer live in that god forsaken "condo building".
Instead, we now live on the top floor corner unit in a high rise overlooking Lake Michigan and Chicago, so, I'd say we came out on top. (That was cheesy, sorry. Thanks guys!)
Link button won't work, sorry ---
3rd: https://www.reddit.com/r/Frugal/comments/8sivhz/last_update_230_electric_bill_when_i_havent_used/
August 02, 2018 at 06:02PM
