Echelon Apartments

Dear Revdex.com and [redacted] , A $cleaning fee was charged to [redacted] because the apartment was found to not have been adequately cleaned and $is what the cleaner is chargingAs [redacted] pointed out, our lease states “If you don’t clean adequately, you’ll be liable for reasonable cleaning charges”I have provided a copy of the cleaning evaluation form from the professional cleaning vendor that we useI have also provided a copy of the inspection form that shows at move-out “needs cleaning” was noted throughout the apartment on the inspection form In the "Desired Settlement" portion, [redacted] also mentions that she would like the $ cleaning charge refunded because her kitchen was dirty when she moved inOur records show that the cleaning issue at mowas rectifiedIn a notarized document from [redacted] she stated that on “Someone came again to clean the kitchen while I was at workIt appeared to be cleaned appropriately.” Also, per [redacted] ’s request she was issued a credit of days of rent for the time of moto the date that she noted the kitchen was appropriately cleanedI have also included a copy of a screen shot of our accounting program that shows the invoice for the professional cleaning that was done to [redacted] ’s apartment prior to her move-inIf a copy of her ledger or the notarized letter is needed to confirm the above information please let me know Thank you, Echelon Property Manager

Dear Revdex.com and [redacted] , Rosemaire, thank you for expressing your concernsI wanted to take this time to address as many of them as possibleEchelon apartments contracts a cleaning company to evaluate the apartments after move-out, bid the amount of cleaning needed to be done(if any) to bring the apartment to moready condition, and perform the actual cleaning (if any is needed)The list of itemized items that were provided to you was provided to us by the cleaning companyWe received a few pictures from you as you mentioned in your complaintWe emailed you, as you stated in the complaint, that the photos were blurryYou replied that the photos were clear and that it must be an issue with our computerWe pulled the photos up on multiple computers and the clarity remained blurry on every computerThe photos were also room shots or semi-room shots which didn’t show close up detailI understand that you are upset about the verbiage of “standard” used on the cleaning evaluation and as you mentioned in the complaint you feel that this implies that this is a “regular practice” for Echelon to charge this amount for cleaningPlease note that this verbiage is the cleaning company’s verbiage, not Echelon’sWe do dictate the cleaning charge amountsEchelon simply charges for what we are charged by the vendorThe “standard” cleaning on the cleaning evaluation refers to the amount of hours that the cleaning company dictated it will take them to clean a unitThe cleaning company stated that it took cleaners hours to clean the unitThe cleaning company has provided a statement with a detailed account of the cleaning done in the unit and an explanation of their verbiageI have included this in the attachment You also mentioned that you were frustrated that the cleaning person could not be there for your final inspectionThe cleaning company is a separate company and Echelon does not dictate their scheduleAt the end of every month we have many move-outs over a period of a few daysUnfortunately the cleaning company and carpet cleaning company (who evaluates the carpet) do not have the time to hang around all day waiting for people to move-out for several days in a rowYou also mentioned that the maintenance team marked “ok “on the roomsThe maintenance team is inspecting for damage beyond wear and tearThey marked down the painting needed, as you mentionedHowever, in the move-out notes they also marked that a cleaning evaluation and carpet evaluation were also neededI have included the inspection in the attachment In your complaint you noted that we had to do an adjustment for your electric bill because you had paid a portion of itThis is correctWhen you turn in keys we send your final electric meter reading over to the electric companyThe electric company then sent us back your final billThe amount that the electric company sent to us as your final bill was the amount that we put on your move-out statementOnce you notified us that you had paid the electric company we confirmed the amount that you had paid with them, updated the amount and sent that to youWe do apologize for any inconvenience and understand that this could be frustratingPlease understand that once we receive the final bill amount from the electric company we have no way to know that the amount has changed due to payment unless we receive a notification from the resident or the electric companyOnce you notified us that you had paid a portion of the bill, we confirmed that with the electric company and updated the amount You stated in your complaint that Echelon is taking advantage of people through the move-out chargesYou also stated that we need to learn to be more transparentWe only charge residents for the charges that we are charged to get the apartment back to moready conditionWe do not make money on move-out charges; we simply try to recoup our costs, if applicableWe mail out a copy of the final move-out inspection, a summary of move-out charges, and a move-out statement of your final ledgerThis is all done to be transparent and to show that we charged you what we are being charged Another concern that you mentioned was that Echelon “bugs their tenants ridiculously too much conducting audits while you live there”We conduct a routine yearly inspection of every apartmentThis is a standard practice in the industryWe make sure to give advanced notice that this will be conducted and try to make it as briefly as possibleWe do apologize that you felt frustrated and inconvenienced by this but this is something that we are required to do annually Attached you will find an attachment that contains the inspection form, the cleaning evaluation, the statement from the cleaners, and the original final bill that we received from the electric companyIf you would need any other additional information please let me know Thank you for your time, Echelon Apartments Manager

Dear Revdex.com and [redacted],
A $175 cleaning fee was charged to [redacted] because the apartment was found to not have been adequately cleaned and $175 is what the cleaner is charging. As [redacted] pointed out, our lease states “If you don’t clean adequately, you’ll be liable for...

reasonable cleaning charges”. I have provided a copy of the cleaning evaluation form from the professional cleaning vendor that we use. I have also provided a copy of the inspection form that shows at move-out “needs cleaning” was noted throughout the apartment on the inspection form.  In the "Desired Settlement" portion, [redacted] also mentions that she would like the $175  cleaning charge refunded because her kitchen was dirty when she moved in. Our records show that the cleaning issue at move-in was rectified. In a notarized document from [redacted] she stated that on 10.14.14 “Someone came again to clean the kitchen while I was at work. It appeared to be cleaned appropriately.” Also, per [redacted]’s request she was issued a credit of 4 days of rent for the time of move-in to the date that she noted the kitchen was appropriately cleaned. I have also included a copy of a screen shot of our accounting program that shows the invoice for the professional cleaning that was done to [redacted]’s apartment prior to her move-in. If a copy of her ledger or the notarized letter is needed to confirm the above information please let me know.
Thank you,
Echelon Property Manager

Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:
The cost of the “standard” cleaning charged to me by Echelon Apartments is stated as a “reasonable” charge. The move-in evaluation, the move-out evaluation, and the lease (page 38) list each item/area of the apartment and what would need cleaning and the estimated charges for cleaning. When we conducted the move-out inspection, not all of the items/areas of the apartment were listed as needing cleaning, and some areas were noted as only needing touch-up cleaning. What is listed on the move-out evaluation as needing cleaning and touch-ups and what we were charged does not seem reasonable to me. Also, “standard” cleaning denotes that the entire apartment was cleaned when not everything in the apartment needed to be cleaned.
 
With each item/area listed on these forms created by Echelon I expected the cleaning bill to be done in the same manner. That way there would be no disputes. When I asked the property manager to see the charges, since I am the person being charged for the cleaning, I was told it was one charge with no other information. As the consumer paying for the cleaning, I want to know exactly what I am being charged for, and that is a reasonable request given the inspections conducted and the wording in the lease. Given that Echelon Apartments cannot produce the services for which I paid, I am requesting a refund. Further, when I spoke to the property manager and disputed the charge initially, I was not given time to discuss the matter adequately because Echelon Apartments stated, “Please be aware that we are required to send any delinquent accounts over to collection within 30-days of your move-out.” Being threatened with collection is not a light matter and 30 days is a short timeline to send someone to collection, which can have a large impact on one’s credit.
Also, the property manager stated I am seeking a $175 refund because the kitchen was dirty when I moved in. I used that as an illustration of the poor cleaning standards of the cleaning service used at Echelon Apartments, which I am being charged for now. In my complaint I stated that issue was settled when I spoke to Phyllis D[redacted] of the property management company that owns Echelon Apartments. I am not seeking any refund in that previous matter.Sincerely,[redacted]

Dear Revdex.com and [redacted],
Rosemaire, thank you for expressing your concerns. I wanted to take this time to address as many of them as possible. Echelon apartments contracts a cleaning company to evaluate the apartments after move-out, bid the amount of cleaning needed to be done(if any) to...

bring the apartment to move-in ready condition, and perform the actual cleaning (if any is needed). The list of itemized items that were provided to you was provided to us by the cleaning company. We received a few pictures from you as you mentioned in your complaint. We emailed you, as you stated in the complaint, that the photos were blurry. You replied that the photos were clear and that it must be an issue with our computer. We pulled the photos up on multiple computers and the clarity remained blurry on every computer. The photos were also room shots or semi-room shots which didn’t show close up detail. I understand that you are upset about the verbiage of “standard” used on the cleaning evaluation and as you mentioned in the complaint you feel that this implies that this is a “regular practice” for Echelon to charge this amount for cleaning. Please note that this verbiage is the cleaning company’s verbiage, not Echelon’s. We do dictate the cleaning charge amounts. Echelon simply charges for what we are charged by the vendor. The “standard” cleaning on the cleaning evaluation refers to the amount of hours that the cleaning company dictated it will take them to clean a unit. The cleaning company stated that it took 2 cleaners 6 hours to clean the unit. The cleaning company has provided a statement with a detailed account of the cleaning done in the unit and an explanation of their verbiage. I have included this in the attachment.
You also mentioned that you were frustrated that the cleaning person could not be there for your final inspection. The cleaning company is a separate company and Echelon does not dictate their schedule. At the end of every month we have many move-outs over a period of a few days. Unfortunately the cleaning company and carpet cleaning company (who evaluates the carpet) do not have the time to hang around all day waiting for people to move-out for several days in a row. You also mentioned that the maintenance team marked “ok “on the rooms. The maintenance team is inspecting for damage beyond normal wear and tear. They marked down the painting needed, as you mentioned. However, in the move-out notes they also marked that a cleaning evaluation and carpet evaluation were also needed. I have included the inspection in the attachment.
In your complaint you noted that we had to do an adjustment for your electric bill because you had paid a portion of it. This is correct. When you turn in keys we send your final electric meter reading over to the electric company. The electric company then sent us back your final bill. The amount that the electric company sent to us as your final bill was the amount that we put on your move-out statement. Once you notified us that you had paid the electric company we confirmed the amount that you had paid with them, updated the amount and sent that to you. We do apologize for any inconvenience and understand that this could be frustrating. Please understand that once we receive the final bill amount from the electric company we have no way to know that the amount has changed due to payment unless we receive a notification from the resident or the electric company. Once you notified us that you had paid a portion of the bill, we confirmed that with the electric company and updated the amount.
You stated in your complaint that Echelon is taking advantage of people through the move-out charges. You also stated that we need to learn to be more transparent. We only charge residents for the charges that we are charged to get the apartment back to move-in ready condition. We do not make money on move-out charges; we simply try to recoup our costs, if applicable. We mail out a copy of the final move-out inspection, a summary of move-out charges, and a move-out statement of your final ledger. This is all done to be transparent and to show that we charged you what we are being charged.
Another concern that you mentioned was that Echelon “bugs their tenants ridiculously too much conducting audits while you live there”. We conduct a routine yearly inspection of every apartment. This is a standard practice in the industry. We make sure to give advanced notice that this will be conducted and try to make it as briefly as possible. We do apologize that you felt frustrated and inconvenienced by this but this is something that we are required to do annually.
Attached you will find an attachment that contains the inspection form, the cleaning evaluation, the statement from the cleaners, and the original final bill that we received from the electric company. If you would need any other additional information please let me know.
Thank you for your time,
Echelon Apartments Manager