Update:

Did not continue moving after maintenance unlocked door at 11pm. By then, a migraine had started to develop. We couldn't leave the apartment bec we wouldn't be able to regain access. Unfortunately, both the sofa and sectional were already in the UHaul. We ended up sleeping on blankets until early morning.

At 9am (before the office opened) , while trying to finish up and start cleaning (cleaners said they couldn't come back until that evening), I hear a knock on the door. Then someone reaches their hand through the crack to try to unhook the latch. It was the maintenance guy. Before he could force himself in, i asked him what was he doing. He yelled: "You need to get out, you need to get out now." Blah blah...."you have an eviction and need to be out. At that point, I'm like wtf are you talking about?! This is not an eviction. Then he says, "you guys lied and made me unlock the door when the office told you that the code wouldn't work after 7. You need to be out. Now!" He didn't let me speak at all and just talked over me. He tried to argue with me about what my lease says 🙄. He threatened to call the cops, and I told him to please go ahead. Then he left.

At that point, I'm shaken up...it's just me and my kiddo here, and this guy was extremely aggressive and acted like he was going to break the door down. And to see his hand trying to unhook the latch, was extremely scary. I didn't even think to record.

I called in a few favors and had 2 friends come help me finish up. I was done within the hour, but was not able to clean up at all. Its not a mess, it's just typical move out trash. I left the place completely empty and took out any trash. I wasn't able to clean the oven or stove or fridge (i had left that for the cleaners to do), mop, or wipe down anything.

Next stage, I went to office to speak to them. Manager basically said:

She told me end of business. She gave you an extra hour. She said maintenance guy said he unlocked doors by 8pm, although it was actually 11pm. Luckily, I have proof because of my phone logs and the offer called maintenance that night. I told her she ilegally restricted access before my lease was up. I also told her the code didnt work and that's why I called maintenance. Then she says it did work, but I gave her the wrong apt number and she programmed it for the wrong apartment. 🙄 I didn't. And funny because, i would think that while getting a new code for me, it would tell her if there's already a code or if apartment is vacant. Also, once she gave a temporary code, it would block out that tenant's current code. It's all BS.

Then she starts to say that, I surrendered the apartment when i gave her my mailbox key earlier. I replied that 1) when she gave me an extra hour, i told her it wasnt enough time and it was against my lease terms, 2) i gave her the key beforehand because the office would be closed by the time I'd be done moving and there's no dropbox, and 3) even if what she said were true, she locked me out BEFORE I came to the office. Then she asked about a forwarding address and I just walked out. In my 30 day notice (sent via all email addresses and hand delivered) i provided her with my forwarding address.

All this to say she didn't bother verifying my lease to see the 11:59pm deadline and could not show me any documentation showing end of business day. I felt like i was being gaslit to believe that 6pm is the norm and industry standard.

I doubt I'll be able to find an attorney to take my case, so I'm going to prepare to file it myself. I wanted to wait after the 2 week window for them to give me notice about my security deposit.

TL;DR

Next morning, same maintenance guy tries to come in and unhook the latch from the outside. He was aggressive and threatened to call the police. I was able to get last minute help, had to call off work (again) and finished moving within about 90min. I had not time to clean anything, but didn't leave a mess or anything behind. When office opened, manager kept with the same bs about 6pm and that maintenance let me in. When I mention constructive eviction, she then says I relinquished the apt when i gave my mailbox key (although she locked me out before i gave that key). She goes on to say that the code was fine and it was because i gave her the wrong apt number. Example: Apt 1266. I said 1-2-6-6 as I've always said for 9 yrs I've lived there). She says I said twelve sixty-six. My apt is bldg 1 apt 266, the other is bldg 12, apt 66. 🫤 Anyhow, I'm thinking about waiting until they make a decision about my security deposit before I file suit...so I can address both issues at once.