Pennsylvania wins motion against State College property management group

The Office of Attorney General recently won a motion against Associated Realty Property Management (ARPM), a student-housing company in State College.

The state has been engaged in an ongoing lawsuit against ARPM. The state claims the company added illegal administrative fees that served as a surcharge at the end of lease terms and deductions for cleaning fees and fines taken from security deposits unrelated to actual damages to the apartments. The state also claims that the addition of these surcharges violates the Landlord and Tenant Act and the Pennsylvania Consumer Protection Law.

ARPM filed a motion requesting the court issue judgment on two issues in the case. If the court ruled in the company’s favor, the Office of Attorney General would have been prevented from moving forward with civil penalties against the company. Either the surcharges would have been declared legal, or the Landlord and Tenant Act declared unconstitutional and vague.

“The last thing students and their families need to worry about during the school year is an unexplained, illegal deduction from a security deposit at the end of a lease,” Attorney General Josh Shapiro said. “We’re putting landlords on notice: if you charge these illegal fees, you’ll have to face us in court.”