CHARLOTTE — A family says it’s been dealing with one problem after another in their northwest Charlotte apartment over the past year, and now the landlord wants them out.
Torie Vance says it all started when her apartment in The Atlantic Mountain Island flooded late last year.
“I have now a chronic mold issue that’s causing ailments to my smaller baby more than anybody else, but also my other children,” she said.
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Then she told police she had not one but two break-ins.
She also says, “Sewage started backing up in my guest bathroom into my toilet and into my bathtub ... physically debilitating. That’s how bad it had gotten.”
She says more than three weeks went by and her complex wouldn’t fix it, so she paid more than $800 to hire someone herself.
“They had informed her they were going to offset her total rent by the amount she had to pay out of pocket to repair the apartment. They never did this,” her lawyer, Cameron DeBrun, said.
He says Vance waited and didn’t pay rent, then the landlord started the eviction process.
“Oh my God, it’s so frustrating,” she said.
DeBrun filed a counterclaim, saying the company is trying to evict her in retaliation for her complaints. “It’s been a nightmare for this family,” he said.
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Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke tried to get in touch with both the landlord, Atlantic Pacific Management, and its lawyer several times through multiple ways, but no one responded in time for this report.
A lot of renters tell Stoogenke they’re facing eviction. Here are some general reminders:
- Keep good records — save emails, letters, and texts between you and your landlord. Also, save your receipts.
- Your landlord can’t evict you without a court order. In other words, if they haven’t gone to court but try to kick you out anyway, call the police.
- Don’t withhold rent out of protest (unless your lawyer tells you to).
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