Aelous Property Management ripped me off by not returning my deposit because of damage she said that I caused, when in fact it was faulty work within the home that I leased from her for 18 months. Springfield, Missouri

I am a current renter of Aelous Property Management. I rented a duplex from them that got forclosed and Julie was very  helpful in finding us a better and larger rental. We have been renting from her for 1 1/2 years now and I think she is good at what she does. She is always improving and always willing to communicate and resolve any problems. She is very easy to work with and communicate with in my opinion. I have read the complaints online and am shocked at people who had issues and just didn't communicate the issue with her. I find if you go to her in a calm manner and say, "Look I have a little problem financially, or something is not working correct, or anything." She is always willing to help and find the appropriate solution we both like and agree on. Communication and doing it respectfully is the key. I am not you or in your situation, but I like Aelous Property and I like Julie.

This person has not clearly stated the facts in this case, like so many do.

The damage that was caused to the home was the tenant used the propane fireplace and due to improper operation by the tenant, it caused sooting the the fireplace mantel, the walls and ceilings requiring the home to have to be repainted. It was completely repainted prior to her occupany in December 06 and was not occupied until this person moved in June 07 and we expected the home to be returned to us in original condition, normal wear and tear excepted. Soot damage is not normal wear and tear. The tenant should have contacted management as soon as she became aware that there was sooting to the walls, etc so we could have sent a service professional out to see what the problem was. She operated the fireplace for two winters without notification to us. She even admits she had not experience with fireplaces so why was she using it????? We were not aware of any problem with the fireplace and she was negligent in not asking or inquiring as to whether or not there was a manual for it's operation. We were not in possession of such, but had she asked we would have provided her with such, she did not even indicate at any time her desire to use the fireplace, she just did it without even knowing what she was doing. That is considered negligent conduct. We are not saying that she moved the logs, just that it was evident upon inspection after she vacated that the logs were not in proper position on the grate and the flames "licked" the logs and caused the sooting to take place. She claimed to not have even noticed the darkness on the walls. How could you not? It was so evident to me as soon as I walked through the front door.

She moved in June 1st and the water situation was a problem with the owner, not me. The POA which governs the water in this village had neglected to replace the water meter once they had been notified of a new tenant and the past due water bill paid. She was given a $100 credit for rent off her first month as a result of the water situation. She was clearly compensated for this and we also had the lawn taken care of and it did not cost her anything for us to do this for her. We even had numbers put on the house so as to be sure the property was clearly marked. Her remarks that I hadn't even driven to the property was correct. You see, I was not the manager at that time. The property was up for sale from January 07 to May 08 and it was the listing agent's job to take care of the lawn not mine. There was no reason for me to drive there, it wasn't mine to manage until the end of May when the owner contacted me stating his desire to rent the property out and take it off the sale market. The listing agent said the property was mowed but the lawncare service was mowing across the street since the mailbox was across the street and they thought that was the house. It was the listing agent who never checked the lawn. So I had numbers put up to correctly identify the home's address. Then I had my lawncare service take care of what the other lawncare service messed up. I did drive to the property after this person notified me of the lawn and I checked the lawn and the condition of the house and had it scheduled to be wiped down and dead bugs swept up prior to her occupancy. But she started moving in 2 days early and sent the cleaning lady away the day she showed up asking her to come back at another time. Unfortunately due to others on the schedule she did not make it back and the tenant ended up doing that herself. She should have just let the cleaning lady do her job while she was there.

This person needs to realize that she was negligent in her actions and her deposit was used to repaint the damage caused by her negligence. It is always ironic to me how other people are so ready to blame others for their mistakes and not assume responsibility for their actions. She was never abused or mistreated and her requests for repairs were always performed in a timely manner and I even have a letter from her expressing her thankfulness to our company for our prompt response. She turned nasty when informed she would not receive her deposit back due to the damage from the fireplace usage. And this was the decision of the owner, not me, I am not the one who decides whether a tenant gets their deposit back or not, the owners do. They are informed of the damages that are existing prior to a tenant taking possession and then again when the tenants vacate. Tenats are charged with any differences between move in and move out. Pure and simple. All tenants are told to very carefully inspect the property and write their finding down on the move in sheet, turn it in to management, get it signed and receive a copy for themselves. We did that, she failed in her obligation and that was the reason why she did not get her deposit back.

This person has not clearly stated the facts in this case, like so many so.

The damage that was caused to the home was the tenant used the propane fireplace and due to improper operation by the tenant, it caused sooting the the fireplace mantel, the walls and ceilings requiring the home to have to be repainted. It was completely repainted prior to her occupany in December 06 and was not occupied until this person moved in June 07 and we expected the home to be returned to us in original condition, normal wear and tear excepted. Soot damage is not normal wear and tear. The tenant should have contacted management as soon as she became aware that there was sooting to the walls, etc so we could have sent a service professional out to see what the problem was. She operated the fireplace for two winters without notification to us. She even admits she had not experience with fireplaces so why was she using it????? We were not aware of any problem with the fireplace and she was negligent in not asking or inquiring as to whether or not there was a manual for it's operation. We were not in possession of such, but had she asked we would have provided her with such, she did not even indicate at any time her desire to use the fireplace, she just did it without even knowing what she was doing. That is considered negligent conduct. We are not saying that she moved the logs, just that it was evident upon inspection after she vacated that the logs were not in proper position on the grate and the flames "licked" the logs and caused the sooting to take place. She claimed to not have even noticed the darkness on the walls. How could you not? It was so evident to me as soon as I walked through the front door.

She moved in June 1st and the water situation was a problem with the owner, not me. The POA which governs the water in this village had neglected to replace the water meter once they had been notified of a new tenant and the past due water bill paid. She was given a $100 credit for rent off her first month as a result of the water situation. She was clearly compensated for this and we also had the lawn taken care of and it did not cost her anything for us to do this for her. We even had numbers put on the house so as to be sure the property was clearly marked. Her remarks that I hadn't even driven to the property was correct. You see, I was not the manager at that time. The property was up for sale from January 07 to May 08 and it was the listing agent's job to take care of the lawn not mine. There was no reason for me to drive there, it wasn't mine to manage until the end of May when the owner contacted me stating his desire to rent the property out and take it off the sale market. The listing agent said the property was mowed but the lawncare service was mowing across the street since the mailbox was across the street and they thought that was the house. It was the listing agent who never checked the lawn. So I had numbers put up to correctly identify the home's address. Then I had my lawncare service take care of what the other lawncare service messed up. I did drive to the property after this person notified me of the lawn and I checked the lawn and the condition of the house and had it scheduled to be wiped down and dead bugs swept up prior to her occupancy. But she started moving in 2 days early and sent the cleaning lady away the day she showed up asking her to come back at another time. Unfortunately due to others on the schedule she did not make it back and the tenant ended up doing that herself. She should have just let the cleaning lady do her job while she was there.

This person needs to realize that she was negligent in her actions and her deposit was used to repaint the damage caused by her negligence. It is always ironic to me how other people are so ready to blame others for their mistakes and not assume responsibility for their actions. She was never abused or mistreated and her requests for repairs were always performed in a timely manner and I even have a letter from her expressing her thankfulness to our company for our prompt response. She turned nasty when informed she would not receive her deposit back due to the damage from the fireplace usage. And this was the decision of the owner, not me, I am not the one who decides whether a tenant gets their deposit back or not, the owners do. They are informed of the damages that are existing prior to a tenant taking possession and then again when the tenants vacate. Tenats are charged with any differences between move in and move out. Pure and simple. All tenants are told to very carefully inspect the property and write their finding down on the move in sheet, turn it in to management, get it signed and receive a copy for themselves. We did that, she failed in her obligation and that was the reason why she did not get her deposit back.