Q: can the apartment management force me to use their internet/ISP instead of the one i've been using for the past 2 years?
i live in an apartment community in Greensboro, NC. Recently, i was asked to vacate my current unit, and was given the option to transfer to another unit, which i accepted.
The 'welcome letter' for the new unit stated that i will be charged $65/month for cable, (i assume) provided by Spectrum. (i have not received the proper lease yet). i do not watch cable TV; and i have been using T-Mobile's 5G internet (which only requires an electrical outlet, nothing else) for the past almost 2 years, paying only $50/month; and it has given me much better service than Spectrum, which i had in the same apt. unit previously. When i asked the front office, they said (words to the effect of) "we cannot take this charge off; you have to pay us for cable whether you use it or not, or use your own".
so my question is, can the owners/landlord/management coerce me into using their (possibly worse) internet provider or make me pay double if i want to use my own?
A: You mentioned that you had spectrum cable in the other unit and I presume you paid for it in the other unit. If that lease required all residents to pay for internet and they offered a transfer on the same terms then yes they can make you continue to "pay double". It is not illegal for an apartment complex to require that all residents pay for the internet serrice they contract with even if you do not use the service.
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