To any future and current tenants who rent a Mills...

To any future and current tenants who rent a Mills Properties apartment complex. If you current rent an apartment, please read the following. For those who are considering one, do not rent from them. In reading the review from Kristen Koch, it is clearly evident that Mills Properties are still illegally using the security deposit for paying any outstanding "utilities" (ie..Water, Sewer, Trash). There is a Missouri Statute, 535.300, that strictly defines what the Landlord can use the security deposit for, and they are as follows:

1)To remedy a tenant's default in the payment of rent due to the landlord, pursuant to the rental agreement;

(2) To restore the dwelling unit to its condition at the commencement of the tenancy, ordinary wear and tear excepted; or

(3) To compensate the landlord for actual damages sustained as a result of the tenant's failure to give adequate notice to terminate the tenancy pursuant to law or the rental agreement; provided that the landlord makes reasonable efforts to mitigate damages.

There is no clause for any Landlord or Property Mgmt company to use the security deposit for "Utilities". Other conditions of the statute that the Landlord must be in compliance are detailed that must be followed. I was a tenant of an apartment complex owned/managed by Mills three years ago. Of my security deposit, there was a portion that was used to pay for the utilites. And the email that I received regarding the damages was not detailed regarding the damages to be in compliance with the statute. The tenant has the right, if the Landlord is not in compliance with one or any part of the statute, to collect damages not more than twice the security deposit. I was able to petition for this after several months of you can call "litigation" with Mills.

It is clear that since my incident happened, the practice ot taking the utilites out of the security deposit is still being done. Grounds for a class action lawsuit? Quite possible. But it is clear that the senior management team, along with Kirk Mills (the current CEO), that Mills still has not trained it's staff on the existence of 535.300, and that they must follow it.