“Why Don’t You Want Us Here” Email (July 17, 2025) | McNeil & Poyer v. SAC 181

"Why Don't You Want Us Here" email of July 17, 2025

Charleston County Court of Common Pleas Case number: 2025-CP-10-05095
Filing Date: October 24, 2025
Document: July 17 "Why don't you want us here" email from Plaintiff McNeil to Meridian Residential Group, LLC
Part of: Motion for Leave to File Second Amended Complaint - Exhibit K of Second Amended Complaint which is Exhibit A of the Motion

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Executive Summary

Email Plaintiff McNeil sent Meridian on July 17, 2025 asking "My wife and I wonder why either the owners and/or your property management company do not want us here anymore. We thought we were negotiating in good faith, asked for a few very reasonable things, and felt we had the rug pulled out from under us."

Timeline Context

The email followed:

May 29, 2025: The Notice to Vacate email- with an unsigned NTV pdf attachment, no sender attribution, and no body content in email;
June 4, 2025: The Second Notice to Vacate email, signed by Dana DeVoe-Riddick of Meridian Residential Group, LLC, and which stated "the owner wants to do renovations";
July 14, 2025: Meridian employee Stephanie Phillips again misrepresents SC landlord-tenant law regarding "reasonable times" for entry, claiming landlord can dictate timing without tenant coordination. Chris McNeil provides detailed legal correction citing SC Code § 27-40-530. Tara Bayles subsequently acknowledges tenant's legal position is correct, contradicting her employee's misrepresentation.
July 15, 2025 Immediate showing of the property to prospective tenants, which made us wonder "what renovations?"

The email preceded:

July 19, 2025: Rent increased to $5,276/month (2 days after motive questioning email) - 73% increase from $3,050/month, as per listing on ShowMojo.;
July 26, 2025: Rental listing removed from market (per Redfin sales/tax history) - just 7 days after dramatic rent increase and 9 days after plaintiffs directly questioned defendants' decision-making and motives.
August 1: Plaintiffs vacate property; Blind dog Rocket soon after gets trapped under a couch due to loss of familiar navigation aids and routines

Short Notice Inspection or a Fine

April 3, 2025 Short-Notice Inspection Email – Meridian Threatens Fee and Lease Violation

Lease Validity Email Thread

Correcting “We Can’t Uphold This Contract” Claims

Safety Requests in Lease Renewal Proposal Email

This email from Plaintiffs to Stephanie Phillips of Meridian Residential Group, LLC asked for 3 Health & Safety Considerations, 2 Deferred or Previously Discussed Improvements, some Lease Term Flexibility, and Pet Fee Fairness.

“Ghost” Notice to Vacate and “Renovations” Pretext Email

Exhibit: Received from Meridian: May 29, 2025 attachment-only “ghost” Notice to Vacate email and June 4, 2025 Dana DeVoe‑Riddick email claiming owner renovations as the reason for non-renewal at 181 Gordon St, Charleston.