i recently moved out of an apartment in atlanta, i had cleaned everything down and left it in pretty good condition (as good as it could be since it is pretty old). when i left, the landlord did a walk-thru by herself (i was not present) and she phoned me later that week saying everything looked fine and that i would be receiving my deposit back. a few days ago, i received a letter from them thinking it was my deposit check, but instead found a bill for $277 to chemical clean the carpet. i'm not expert, but this sounds to me like they are just trying to charge me to clean the carpets for the next tenant. i have never spilled anything besides water on the carpet, and the fact that the landlord looked over everything and told me it was good confuses me. it has been at least 2 years since this carpet was replaced (i took over the lease from a friend who had lived there for 3 years prior). can somebody clarify this situation? i'm pretty sure that tenants are not responsible for paying to clean the carpets, as that should be part of the normal wear.

also, my roomate has said that the law requires apartments to replace the carpet in georgia every time somebody moves in/out. i don't know how true that statement is, but i would definitely like to hear somebody's opinion on whether or not this charge is justified. thank you in advance!

I'm going through a similar situation. I don't know how long ago this post was (I'm kinda new here), but I was wondering if you could tell me what the name of the apartment complex is?

Do they have a copy of the bill from the carpet cleaner or did they just tell you that's what it cost? Chances are they're making it up. Also, did you clean the carpet before you left? I don't know about Georgia, but in California it's pretty standard to have the carpet cleaned upon moving, even if it looks good to you.

Also, how much was your security deposit, and did you get any back? Or are they keeping it all AND billing you for more?

I found that when I move into an apartment, I take pics. Then when moving out, I take pics again. Last time I moved I did that and let the landlord know if he wanted copies of the pics (which were digital, BTW, and burned on disk). Two weeks later I got the entire deposit back.

Food fer yer thinkin' power....