It wasn’t long before I noticed my rent which includes (a private garage and pet fee charges that never changes.) and fluctuating utility charges which includes Admin Fee, Gas, Pest Control, Water, Sewer, Trash Removal, Internet service/routers (although I never used this service, because I have my own mobile services.) Resulting in constant monthly rent fluctuations shown from my own monthly rent payment records: April 2023 move-in cost, $1,444.76: May 01, $990.34: Jun 01, $1,040.34: Jul 01, $1,240.30: Aug 01, $1,101.39: Sept 01, $1,094.66: Oct 01, $111.43: Nov 01, $1,160.42: Dec 01, $1,162.33. In 2024, Jan 01, $1,169.10: Feb 01, $1,183.84: Mar 01, $1,188.52: Apr 01, $1,008.12 was my last monthly payment for this apartment. My letter of intent to vacate was mailed to Penbrooke Place Apartment Office via certified mail with return receipt on February 14, 2024. Beyond the required 30-day intent to vacate housing law notification to property managers.
The six month I lived in my apartment I discovered the management company and property managers are bad actors, and under the title “utilities” tenants are unfairly charged expenses which should be paid as out-of-pocket expenses by property owners. Further, since there are no individual unit meters; each floor has one utility bill which is divided amongst tenants on each floor and these charges are added to each residents monthly rent which is unfairly created because the person, we as residents are paying Admin Fees to monthly to create these bills has no way of knowing; (1) How many people lives in each unit, (2) How many times toilets flush, (3) How long showers run, how much water is used in bathtubs, (4) Further, since I never used my dishwasher; application of usage fees for none-use tenants like me is unfair and extortion. (5) How do you fairly create utility bills for a: 2-bedroom apartment unit with one tenant like me, versus apartments occupied by a family of two or more Although? For the record: I physically lived in my apartment from April 24 to October 4, 2023. Annually, I leave Sioux Falls on the 4th of October prior to the arrival of winter. During my absence, I still pay my rent using the same resident Portal I used when I was presence in my apartment; still on the first of the month, never late or ever missing a payment. Which is easily confirmed by computer generated rent payment receipts. As well as, one-year rent payment confirmation showing Penbrooke/Hubbell Property Management received these payments.
As a formal Nationwide Federal Property Inspector, I delete with dishonest managers and property-owners during my entire federal career and found those like Penbrooke and Hubbell to be pathological liars; implementing fraudulent unpaid charges scams and presenting fake pictures claiming to be of tenant apartments to justify extortions of some, or all of vacating tenants’ security deposits. How do these types of companies get away with these practices you as? The answer is: They get away with these tactics because (1) Tenants are afraid property-owners or management companies will ruin his/her credit. (2) Tenants don’t have money to pay lawyers, (3) Tenants are not aware they can sue property-owners or management companies for not returning security deposits within two-weeks of vacating his/he apartments, unless there is legitimate proof that vacating tenants has an outstanding unpaid debt. (4) How-to instructions are easily found on the internet, which makes suing both management companies and property managers easy and is done by tenants without the use of lawyers.
Because I know what is at stake if consumers do not file complaints and/or write reviews to share his/her experiences and dealings with shady, bad faith business owners which goes beyond these owners just getting richer; while others struggle financially and suffer in silence to survive. Nope, I am not one of those. I fill complaints and write reviews to call attention to every dishonest business owner I encounter; in hopes that other females/males won’t have the same encounters or be ripped off by scammer. As a result, I have written and filed complaints regarding bad business practices used against tenants by Penbrooke Place Apartment and Hubbell Management Company with Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission, Goggle; as well as wrote letters to, Members of my state’s Legislation and Senators, detailing my experience as a tenant. Because there are no housing laws in South Dakota clarifying how owners and managers should charge rents and what utilities are chargeable to tenants and what are out-of-pocket expenses and required to be paid by property-owners as the cost of during business in the housing industrial (rather than by tenants as if they are owners of the property).
Housing laws and clarifications will hold rent and utility scammers accountable, and lawyers won’t fear being attacked by big money owners; losing his/her license to practice or their business, because he/she dared to help tenants sue for recourse and hold property-owners and management companies accountable for causing harm to tenants. These types of business owners are known as Bad Actors. Until laws are written regarding these tactics, tenants are on their own to sue these bad actors in small claim court which has a set claim action limit of $12,000 or less. Penbrooke and Hubbell decided to scam me as they did my neighbor’s by refunding $124.98 of my $650.00 security deposit; both of them let Penbrooke and Hubbell keep their money by walking away, like many other tenants before them; just happy to put this apartment complex behind them. When Hubbell attempt to do the same to me, I sent them a certified letter of demand for the return of the kept $525.02 balance of my security deposit. Requesting payment within five-business days of receipt of my letter. If refund is not received promptly, I will file a lawsuit to recover the balance of my security deposit plus interest.
Sincerely,
/S/