A San Diego woman received a $150 refund after disputing a cleaning fee deducted from her late mother’s apartment deposit and turning to NBC 7 Responds for help. Patsy Kuczkowski said she and her sister went above and beyond to clean the apartment near Mission Bay where their mother, Celia Alva rez, had lived since 2013. They also stayed in regular contact with the property managers to make sure the apartment met expectations, Kuczkowski said. Alvarez died about a year ago at age 95. Kuczkowski described her mother as one of a kind with a flair to live life to the fullest. Missing mom “Very glamorous, loved to dance, loved to sing. She should have been a movie star,” Kuczkowski said. “I would call her Zsa Zsa Gabor.” Patsy Kuczkowski from San Diego describes her mom, Celia Alvarez, as glamorous with a flair for living life to the fullest. Kuczkowski said she and her sister were close to their mother, regularly taking her out or spending time with her at the apartment watching some of her favorite classic comedy television shows. “She would laugh all the time. We would watch, you know, programs she loved, like, you know, I Love Lucy and The Golden Girls,” Kuczkowski said. In Alvarez’s final years, Kuczkowski said her mother grew older and eventually developed a serious illness. “We were trying to feed her and she just said, ‘No more, no more,’” Kuczkowski said. “I knew what that meant. So you have to honor, you honor your parents and your loved ones.” One last thing for mom After her mother’s death, Kuczkowski said clearing out and cleaning the apartment became one final thing she could do for her. She and her sister gave away most of Alvarez’s belongings to charity and thoroughly cleaned the apartment. “Thinking about my mom and her saying, ‘Do it right. Do it right so that you get your money back, so that you get my deposit back,’ hahaha, you know,” Kuczkowski said. Patsy shared several pictures to show how clean she left her mom’s apartment. Kuczkowski said she was in regular contact with the property managers to make sure the apartment met their expectations. That is why she said she was shocked to learn, shortly after returning the key, that $150 of her mother’s $400 deposit had been withheld for cleaning fees. Hit with cleaning fees “I was upset and I thought it was a slap in the face,” Kuczkowski said. Patsy says this is the only explanation she received regarding the cleaning done to her mom’s apartment. Kuczkowski said she asked the property managers for an explanation several times but never received one. She then contacted NBC 7 Responds for help. NBC 7 Responds reached out to the apartment complex. In a statement, the company offered condolences and described Alvarez as a valued and gracious resident who was deeply missed by its team. The company said, “Sunrise Management extends its sincere condolences to [Patsy] Kuczkowski and her family on the loss of her mother, Celia Alvarez, who was a valued and gracious resident of The Orchard for many years and is deeply missed by our team. We appreciate the considerable care and effort Ms. Kuczkowski devoted to her mother’s apartment during what was clearly a difficult and emotional time. We also regret that the communication surrounding the move-out process did not feel clear or seamless from her perspective.  While a member of our staff informally reviewed the apartment and offered assistance during the move-out process, official turnover assessments are conducted according to established management procedures and completed by designated maintenance personnel. We understand and respect Ms. Kuczkowski’s frustration and are sorry she feels she was treated unfairly. In the interest of resolving the matter and bringing closure to an unfortunate situation, The Orchard has voluntarily refunded the $150 cleaning fee. We value the trust residents and their families place in us and remain committed to treating every resident and family member with care, compassion and respect.” Kuczkowski said she appreciated the sentiment but was not satisfied with the explanation. “Had they said to me, ‘We’re going to charge you the $150 regardless if you clean it or not. So just don’t clean it. You’ve got plenty to do right now. You are mourning your mom. You do not need to do this,’ then I would have said, ‘You know what? You’re right.’” Still, Kuczkowski was glad to cash the $150 check — money that had come from her mother’s deposit. “You know, you helping with this has given me closure. What more, what more can I ask? So thank you.” California law allows a landlord to charge for cleaning only if a tenant did not leave the unit as clean as it was when the tenant first moved in. The law also requires landlords to provide an itemized statement and receipts for cleaning or repairs. This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC San Diego. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC San Diego journalist edited the article for publication. ...read more read less