Deer Park landlords, residents clash

Thomas Rosenbaum walked into court March 10 carrying the charred remains of a log holder in a garbage bag.

Rosenbaum said the log holder in his fireplace melted or broke, causing a burning log to roll out and scorch a hole in the carpet. It could have burned down the apartment, he said, so he put it out.

“I should be seen as a hero,” he said.

His landlord said he had a history of building fires that were too large, as evidenced by the black marks on the wall.

Rosenbaum’s was one of hundreds of small claims court cases or evictions filed by Deer Park Management against its residents since 2000.

He’s one of several students, who have been sued, sent to collections or made to pay for damages to their apartment, who say Deer Park’s tactics are unfair and too aggressive.

And Rosenbaum, a junior who transferred to IU-Purdue University Indianapolis, said he thinks Deer Park sees a lot of its residents as easy targets.

“Here’s a dumb college student, and we can sue them,” Rosenbaum said.

A representative from Deer Park said it’s a for-profit business. She said students should take care of their apartments and that the company has to keep the apartments well-maintained for future residents. She also said the company doesn’t sue people any more than other companies and most residents get their deposits back.

Most of the suits, said the representative, were for evictions when people didn’t pay their rent.

Deer Park Management, which manages The Boulders, College Mall Apartments, Bart Villa, The Uptown Apartments and Villa Genoa Penthouse, wanted Rosenbaum to pay for a new carpet.

Other charges that ate up his $500 deposit included $175 for drywall damage, $30 for cleaning, $45 for a garage door opener and $20 for toilet seats, among other things.

The new carpet for his Boulders apartment cost almost $1,500, but Deer Park took into account depreciation and took down what it wanted him to pay, after his deposit, to $679.13.

The other damage, Rosenbaum said, was Deer Park’s fault or normal wear and tear. Deer Park disagreed. Rosenbaum wouldn’t pay. The case went to court.

It’s a familiar story for some current and former residents. It’s the subject of Facebook group “Tenants against Deer Park Management Co.” Residents of some apartments last year found mysterious flyers floating around about how to protect themselves moving in and moving out, pointing to Deer Park’s legal cases online.

While Rosenbaum managed to win his deposit back in a counter-claim with a little help from his uncle, a lawyer, and a booklet on small claims he found in the Monroe County Justice Building lobby, many who are sued settle or lose in court. Some are sent to collections instead. 

One resident of College Mall Apartments and former IU graduate student Dmitriy Melkumov said Deer Park asked him for about $1,500, on top of his deposit, before they sold his debt to a collections company. He was charged for a new carpet, new blinds and several other little things, according to his tenant ledger.

His girlfriend, who also lived in College Mall Apartments, had a similar experience.

Melkumov said Deer Park didn’t even change the carpet. The company changed its story and said the $1,500 was just an estimate, he said. His roommate went to the old apartment and took a video of it, claiming the carpet and blinds hadn’t changed since they moved out. He put it on YouTube.

Melkumov and his girlfriend both said it upset them that Deer Park charged them more than a month after they re-signed their leases. The two moved in together in another apartment at College Mall Apartments.

He said Deer Park’s leasing agent Bess Courtney said they had “traffic stains” on the carpet.

There were a few spots on the carpet, he said, and it didn’t seem like Deer Park had tried to clean them before replacing the carpet.

Right now, he said, the two have everything covered by blankets and are going to film when they move out, just to be sure.

Deer Park Operations Manager Michael Latham said things have changed from when he was a college student in Utah. Then, the landlord would not make any attempt to clean the apartment, and students would almost always get their deposit back.

Now, in the competitive Bloomington market, residents expect a basically new apartment when they move in, he said.

It costs about $2,000 to install new carpet and make other changes, Latham said. He said the lease is very clear about charging residents for damages outside of normal wear and tear, and the carpet should last 10 to 12 years.

And, he said, most people aren’t charged.

“The vast majority of the residents get their deposit back,” Latham said.

When the company finds the carpet has to be replaced, they don’t make any money on the apartment unless they charge the resident, he said. He said it’s a business, and they expect to be paid.

“There’s a perception that landlords are making money hand over fist,” Latham said. “It’s not true.”

Courtney, who often goes to court as a Deer Park representative, said she disagreed that the company sues anyone any more than most other landlord companies, especially in the past year or two. 

She said most of the suits are for evictions when people don’t pay their rent.
She also said recently the quality of the residents has gone up. They’re more price conscious and take better care of their apartments, she said.

Courtney, who has worked for Deer Park since 2004, said she has worked with people repeatedly to get settlements. Especially, she said, when the conversation is civilized.
Randall Frykberg, who has been director of IU Student Legal Services for a year, said Deer Park has been on the radar as a landlord that will aggressively assert its position when dealing with students.

He said he had his share of Deer Park residents in his office, but it’s largely a case-by-case call on whether it’s a case worth fighting.

“I don’t think every student who comes in here is in the right,” he said.

He said the big thing is deciding whether the damage to the carpet or the rest of the apartment is wear and tear or not. The law isn’t clear, he said.

“I would see damage as cutting the carpet, spilling Four Loko on the carpet,” he said.