Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Missouri
Charged for cooking spicy food !
I have lived in an apartment for 1yr 9mon. After vacating I received a letter from the apartment office charging me for $783. Two main reasons were
1. Extreme smell of curry powder, apartment had to be sealed $575
2. Apartment had to be fogged twice $150
The other charges I find reasonable hence not mentioning. I am a clean person and I cleaned the apartment to the best of my ability while vacating. This is the first time I have been charged for my cooking and that too such a huge amount. When I called the apartment manager she accused me equivalent to a smoker who damages the apartment with smoking habits. Is she right? Do I have to pay?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Charged for cooking spicy food !
It depends on what your deposit was meant to cover, and I can't answer that without looking at your lease. Generally, a tenant cannot commit "waste" which is damage to a piece of real property. Since I love curry, it would be hard for me to beleive that the smell of curry would be offensive, but then, I am a reasonable guy.
Of course, it could just be a mask for national origin discrimination if you come from an area of the world where people tend to eat curry, and thus, the apartment people could simply be picking on you because of your race or national origin.
If the smell was not so overpowering that people could not reasonably be expected to live there, then you should not be expected to pay the cost. If I were you, I'd tell her that you left the apartment clean and you won't pay a dime. But if you choose to pay her, make sure you get a receipt and a release from her.
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