Landlord sent his real estate agent to vacuum roaches from my refrigerator’s drip tray, then said “everyone lives with roaches".
I moved into a Texas condo on October 1, 2026. Rent is $1,475/month, and I paid October rent and a $1,475 security deposit.
My girlfriend and I spent about 10 hours cleaning the day of move in. The refrigerator had mildew, mold, and food residue inside. My girlfriend cut her finger on a broken light bulb inside the fridge. Beneath it, the mechanical compartment near the compressor and drip tray contained substantial debris, dead roaches, pest waste, and corrosion. I think there was a severe previous German cockroach infestation. I have timestamped photos of the drip tray, underneath the fridge and oven, and the landlord acknowledged the mildew in writing, however I have no other photos.
I notified the landlord in writing on October 3 about the fridge and sent photos. He hired a professional cleaner who did not clean the mechanical compartment. After I requested professional cleaning, he sent his real estate agent, who is also the HOA president. She used a household vacuum and disinfectant wipe, but I still see caked on pest waste, dirt, and still some cockroach carcasses even after her "cleaning".
I killed a live roach shortly after moving in, and baby roaches scattered, but I have not seen any since. I have two witnesses to that but no pictures. The landlord claims a pest-control company refused to investigate because there were no live roaches, which he never asked if I saw any, but I have no report confirming this.
In a 5 minute voice message, the landlord said “everyone lives with roaches,” questioned whether the condition was hazardous, and blamed my cats even though I moved in only a few days earlier. He also claimed everyone involved agreed my concerns were unreasonable, including the professional cleaning lady, HOA/agent, maintenance man, and pest control. However, the cleaner who visited told me the debris appeared to be significant pest waste and encouraged me to advocate for myself. I am not sure how much of his claims about that are true. He said I was unreasonable and using "out of world logic", and hoped that after the cleaner said she would not clean the drip tray (due to liability concerns), it would "trigger something in me to stop".
The landlord gave me two choice, let me leave with 30 days’ notice but deduct “necessary charges” from my deposit. Alternatively, he said I could hire pest control myself and pay them when they found nothing.
I have saved my messages, photos, videos, and the voice message. I am uncomfortable staying because the refrigerator is still not cleaned and I do not think he is going to send any more help, and I no longer feel comfortable dealing with the landlord.
I am lost on what to do. I am so frustrated with myself for not taking any photos before I got to the drip tray of the fridge, but I was not expecting a future dispute and I was trying not to be difficult. I just want to leave now and get my full security deposit back but I am only 23 and do not have funds for a lawyer, and I am scared he is going to try everything he can to keep every last cent from me. Any advice is appreciated :(.