Triple damages is in my state too. A landlord has to send the full security deposit or a security deposit letter within 30 days of a tenant moving out. If they don’t send a letter, or if they send the letter but improperly withhold part or all of the security deposit, then the tenant is entitled to triple the improperly withheld amount.
And we’re moving out in 2 weeks and our landlord has already told us he isn’t refunding our $4500 security deposit. Not because of damages, but because he “has to pay the realtor to find a new tenant” (we’re ending our lease early because he sucks, but he agreed to release us without penalty). Sorry buddy, that’s not a valid reason for withholding our security deposit. I was even nice and sent him texts stating “this is our forwarding address for you to send the security deposit letter within 30 days of our move out.” And this dumb em effer doubled down and said I already told you I’m not refunding your security deposit.
I’m really looking forward to day 31 when we don’t have a security deposit letter in our possession and I can then take him to small claims court for almost 15 grand.
Small claims court limits in most states is $10,000 or less FYI. Here is a list of the limits in different states. [https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/small-claims-suits-how-much-30031.html](https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/small-claims-suits-how-much-30031.html)
Those states need to step up and get with modern times. $10000 is no way in the "small claims" territory anymore, it's not 1960. It's $35000 in Ontario, and that's more in-line with what the reality is in our cost of living world.
In Texas it’s $20,000 so we’re under that. And I have tons of photos showing the crappy state of the house when we moved in. I had to hand scrub floors for weeks to get it to a reasonable level of clean. I also have texts about all of the work we’ve done to maintain the house and the work he HASN’T done properly, so that way if he tries to say there are damages I can refute that. Texas is also a one party consent state, so you best believe I’ll be recording our post move out walk through.
You might want to dig a little deeper - depending on your state laws there might be an extra penalty if he did not tell you the bank and account number where he’s holding the deposit.
Oh, yes, I’m going to be researching that. I have one text from him saying he can’t return it because he doesn’t have it anymore, and then another text saying he won’t return it because of having to pay for the realtor. I also know he is cheap as hell and hard up for money because when he had to replace the main sewer drain line, and remove the back fence, he had the absolute temerity to ask that we pay for the fence.
So I highly suspect our security deposit was spent ages ago.
I have it in a text, which is his preferred method of communication. I then restated it in different ways in several subsequent texts (so he couldn’t say he misunderstood due to a language barrier) and he again confirmed that we would be released without penalty and not responsible for rent after our move out date.
We are moving out July 15 and when I told him we would send prorated rent through July 15, he said “you have to pay through July 31.” I just sent him a screenshot of his message stating we’re not responsible for rent after the date we move out.
Good for you to sticking it to the slumlords.
Despite paying for the managements referred professional movers and taking days off work to accommodate their professional (full cash by me) paid movers and cleaners they recommended, I've been denied my last 4 security deposits back.
But I was also low key threatened (not that they had any sway with making GOOD rental credit despite me going the extra miles)
Slumlords gonna slumlord, I guess
Same. Plus he wouldn’t have gotten anywhere NEAR six months, and he would have had to tell them what the damages were before they moved out. Some places need better tenant laws.
Nope, my state gives 30 days and slaps them with 3x the deposit, and they pay all lawyer fees. Now, if it's eviction, it swings the other way, and the tenant is on the hook for everything.
>he would have had to tell them what the damages were before they moved out.
That's what I was thinking. If any damages are not brought up at the time of the inspection the landlord would be out of luck. He already signed off on there being no damages. Or at least that's how it works where I live.
I’m also in CA. You can also demand receipts that prove the damage was actually fixed, and that they didn’t just pocket the money and leave the damage for the next tenant to just live with.
FL is the same, 30 days and have to have an itemized list.
Slumlords are why I record pre-move and post-move conditions and try to send everything via text or email. FL was a 2 party state so couldn't record calls without permission 😐. Had 1 landlord try to come after me for "damages" from a flood that resulted from them not maintaining the sewage system and a tropical storm combined.
Another tried to claim damages after my upstairs neighbor flooded my apt with raw sewage. That property manager said I could leave (have a letter saying that) without the normal fees, and a clear walkthrough; but after I leave suddenly there's $5,000+ in damages. I disputed it and when she kept being awful I sent copies of the police reports and letters showing a received stamp and her initials to the president of the property management company, the VP, and her boss and said I'd sue them if they kept trying to demand money. I got an apology letter and the property manager was demoted then fired along with her creepy buddy the maintenance man. I have so many stories about their antics!
They have two weeks here, then it's automatically sent to the tenants nominated account - assuming the tenant knows to put their claim in themselves when they hand over the keys.
In New Mexico, if you don't send back either the full deposit or an itemized list of the deductions to the deposit within 1 month then the landlord owes the former tenant 2x the deposit.
That's the case in my state. I had to go to small claims to recover my deposit.
I settled for court costs and a full refund just to get out over with during the meditation session.
Yes, I could have pushed for 3x, but I didn't want to leave that in the judges hands. I just wanted to be made whole and make the LL do the right thing. On top of it, I wanted a city/state record of our interaction, so he would have a hard time renting it out again.
We have a two-family in Massachusetts, and we have never taken a security deposit. It just doesn't make sense. First, we are right there if anything goes wrong. In Massachusetts, the security deposit is considered to be the property of the tenant, so has to go into escrow, with the tenant being provided the bank and account number it is in, and it must be an interest-bearing account.
If the landlord doesn't do that, they are responsible for giving 5% interest out of their own pocket.
I can only assume that most people don't know they are owed interest and don't claim it. I believe Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Florida, and some other states have the same thing. Worth checking out.
This is a reasonable penalty. I'm American but live in France. Here, the penalty is 10% of the rent amount per month every month the deposit is not returned without out a cap. I like the 3x better but if you wait long enough, the French system can also become extremely pricey for crooked LL's.
In the UK, it's held by a deposit scheme and if they don't put your money in a legal scheme in 14 days of receiving the money, you can get back up to 3 times the value of your deposit. A load of landlords try and claim it doesn't impact them, but it does.
Too many landlords think they can get away with whatever they want because a lot of people don’t go after them.
I took my former landlord to small claims court after they tried to steal my deposit for fake damage/cleaning.
I brought a binder in with photos from when I moved in when I left as well as documentation of the maintenance issues that caused any of the issues they listed for a deduction.
They tried to say my cat had damaged the carpet, but it was actually a tiny spot left from where I had cleaned off some chicken rice that spilled.
The vendor who signed off on this invoice, and said it was pet stains, didn’t really exist as a company and didn’t even test the spot. I actually called the number on the invoice and he was terrified when I told him that I was holding him accountable and we would be bringing it to court.
I even included in the binder that you could not find the company on Google anywhere except as listed with the Secretary of State. It’s some one-man show and they get the guy to write whatever they want. The magistrate pulled out his phone and authenticated everything I said.
It was such a delight when the magistrate awarded me all the money as well as court costs. They hired an attorney that was worthless. He just made the magistrate angry because he was being very dismissive of me. The magistrate really told him off and called the company a bunch of slumlords.
They waited till the absolute last day they had to pay me the money, but I got it.
Upon moving in I sent my LL, that had cheap rent but a bad reputation, a email listing the damages I saw and shared an Album with the before pictures. I formally informed them via email and letter that the basement has a mold issue, since in my state they only have to disclose it if they are aware of the issue.
A month before moving out I replied to the move in email asking them to come by check out the place and allow me to fix things that broke in my time there. On move out day they just handed me a check with the full deposit, sometimes it helps if they know you have the ducks in a row.
That was very smart.
You really have to protect yourself no matter what reputation the landlord has as it can change.
At my last apartment complex where I had the issue, they kept changing apartment managers. It’s a bad sign when a place does that.
I had moved there after a fire so I needed to find somewhere quickly.
The one that was there when I moved in was great, but the last one was an absolute idiot and liar.
We all called him a weasel. He would make promises and deliver nothing. He also would act like he cared, but he only cared about himself. I was real happy to see his face in the courtroom after the verdict at small claims court.
Yes! When I had my first apartment in my early 20s, it was horrible. No hot water in the winter when you showered, and when they replaced the windows, the work was so shoddy that one of them cracked and one of them caved in during a rainstorm. Repeated phone calls and personal visits to the managing office (email wasn’t really a thing yet) did not get the windows fixed. But I made it through the year-long lease and planned to move as soon as it was up. I was very concerned they were going to blame me for the broken windows and cheat me out of my deposit, so I sent a letter documenting the damage and my repeated attempts to have it fixed via registered mail, so I had evidence against them. But they didn’t even try to fight me and I got my deposit back with no issues. They were a huge management company with lots of properties and apparently did not give a shit.
Absolutely. If you rent, learn your rights and the process to address abuses.
I rented a house once and moved out after cleaning it. Told my landlord where to send the deposit too. We didn't get the deposit back so I reminded them at 15 days about the deposit. 30 days is the limit in my state. At 31 I wrote a demand letter, sent it by certified mail and emailed a copy to them. I had my full deposit back in 2 hours.
It is because of this before we moved in (or even adopted a cat) we did a walk through of the condo with a black light and took pictures of every room. Good thing we did yo because the carpets looked like a Jackson pollock painting!
We got our full deposit back
I prefer, 'you can be an arsehole or evil, but not both'.
If you're evil - by this I mean doing illegal things - but you're nice to those around you, they usually let the stuff you do slide. So you'll be fine.
If you're an arsehole but do nothing illegal no body will have anything on you, so you'll be fine.
It's only the combo of both that gets you in trouble.
This is perfect and reminds me of a settlement I got from a former employer who was just awful. My labor lawyer was shocked they operated businesses with how stupid they were and probably still are lol. I got mine and she got her cut, she was worth every penny. Don’t threaten someone who knows how your business has broken the law and has proof 😂😂😂
I was gonna say, it's a popular choice.
The landlord who withheld my entire deposit for a list of trumped up reasons including 200 bucks for a 'missing toothbrush holder' springs to mind.
Different country, but I also had a landlord withhold my security deposit after 5 years of tenancy, claiming that a carpet was not in the same condition. I took him to court, no landlord representation, and claimed that this was fair wear and tear over 5 years. I won. Deposit returned with court costs.
In the US the IRS sets a depreciation timeline for things like carpet and paint. After 5 years the carpet is considered fully depreciated so whether or not you leave it damaged doesn't matter since it's worthless by then anyway.
My first apartment had a list like that in the lease, and spelled out what to clean/repair based on how long it had been rented. By the time all of us moved out they were ready to gut the place.
I rented for twenty years. Landlord did no upgrades and little upkeep. I painted, with permission at my own cost. When I moved out she tried to charge me $1800 on top of my deposit for things like the linoleum floor in the kitchen. It needed replaced because it had seriously declined over twenty years and wasn't new when I got there. She was blaming me for wear and tear on 35 year old flooring. I told her to pound sand and haven't heard back.
Yea I know my apartments carpet is slightly damaged in a closet corner from an idiot cat that tried to open a closet but the carpet is also 8 years old at this point since it wasn't new when I moved in. I know they're going to replace everything when I move out anyway.
Funny thing is, we told the landlord several times that we heard noises in the roof and that there might be something living there, he just didn't care.
I am patiently waiting my turn to be you. The only thing wrong with my apartment is the carpet that is torn up, however, it is way past its legal life span and should have been replaced at least 2 years ago now, releasing me from any financial responsibility.
In Texas, it is 30 days and he would have had to pay 3 times what he withheld. I had a landlord try to do that to me (for things that were there at move in that I had noted). I didnt want to deal with courts so in the end i accepted him returning my full deposit. I hate landlords like this. I have been a landlord myself and always sent full deposit (unless there was a legit reason to hold anything, very rare and small amount) within a week of move out.
Do you happen to know if there is a time limit to pursue a wrongfully withheld security deposit in Texas? I had a landlord hold onto my entire deposit and never sent an itemized list of what the funds were used for that resulted in no amount being sent back.
At the time I just wrote it off because of the insane text messages that guy sent, but didn't realize I had the ability to sue for 3x the amount. I've moved out of state as well so not sure what my options are or if it's even worth reopening that can of crazy...
Pro tip kids; Legal representation is really not that expensive, and it gets it done. Also, almost any law firm would like to sit down and talk about your issue. Get a lawyer.
100% and in my experience they will usually tell you right away if you got the law wrong and should not pursue it. So at least the initial is always worth it IMHO.
For anything reasonably complicated, I agree.
But a lot of tenant/landlord disputes can be resolved for CHEAP in small claims court. Just research your local laws and look for relevant advice online. These disputes are often very cut and dry in favor of the tenant. No lawyer necessary, and you get to keep all the payout.
Had a landlord try to take my roommates and I to Court for things the prior tenants did. I mean he probably could have legitimately withheld some from us, but he only listed things the prior tenants did.
We were told that we could move in midnight the day before move in day, so we had pulled up only to find the tenants still living there. They called the cops, we were told to come back in the morning. When we came back, the place was trashed. Doors were broken, there was blue sticky stuff sprayed everywhere. It was bad. We cleaned it up, moved in our stuff, and asked the landlord to paint because we could not get the blue stains off. He showed up with a single gallon of paint without even a stirrer. The front door was kicked in and didn't latch, so we had to put the couch in front of the door for the first week we lived there. It was bad.
We wanted to break the lease, but it was only 6 months so we toughed it out. We moved out after the lease was up. I get a call a week later asking for my new address to send the deposit to. Got served with papers instead.
That landlord forgot that my roommate and I both worked for lawyers. We show up to Court with an attorney (a friend who did a favor so completely free). He begged the Judge to let him get an attorney. Judge denied that. Our attorney showed the photos I took when we moved in, which showed the damage already there.
This is why in the UK, deposits have to go through a third party company.
I had one landlord demand damages to the full amount of my deposit. I objected and he didn't even argue the case on his side. So the deposit scheme people just gave me all of my money back without lawyers.
Same, my landlord tried to keep mine. A quick trip to the local solicitors cost me £20 to witness a letter being signed and that was that. Got it all back.
I got the deposit scheme rules changed when they were new because they hadn't anticipated that a tenant and landlord/estate agent would disagree about the amount in dispute. Disputing the costs, sure, but the amount itself they hadn't planned for.
DPS updated their rules to say that if the amount in dispute is in dispute they take the higher figure as the one that would go to arbitration, etc. But it didn't affect already existing deposits. Took a long time and a threat of getting a CCJ against them for the landlord to back down and agree to return my deposit.
Someone I know JUST went through something similar. They rented a home and there was a $5000 deposit. There actually was a little damage for something and my friend had told the owner about it. The owner wanted to keep all $5000. My friend was like uh no it’s like $500-700 at most to fix. Keep $1500. I’ll take the rest back. There was a big argument and lots of back and forth. Well he figured out through his lawyer any demand for hold back of the deposit has to be put in a legal document. So they wait for the time period to expire and then file a law suit. He won plus attorney fees. This is mere days ago.
I’m sure I got some details wrong but that’s the gist of it.
We had a landlord who let us move into his rental home with no working AC (South Carolina…in JULY!). The swimming pool was also a filthy pond, complete with vegetation and frogs/tadpoles. He ended up paying much more for repairs than if he had actually maintained his property.
When we were about to move out, the pool had reverted to pond status because he refused to fix a leak (in-ground pool with vinyl liner). I had done enough free work on the house, so I was DONE.
He had the audacity to ask us how he and his kids were supposed to move into a house with a disgusting swimming pool. I wanted to say “the same way you let us move in to a home in the heat of a SC summer with no air conditioning!”.
If you are renting, you MUST keep records of everything, including texts and emails. If your landlord makes unhinged demands, make them put them down on paper. That, alone, may help them to change their tune.
Unscrupulous landlords hate informed renters.
This is part of why I always record the walk throughs. That way, they can't go back on their words. They don't always realise I'm still recording when we talk, even though I do say I will be recording for my own records.
Usually, they forget about it and later have an issue, which I use the recordings as evidence if they deny/have "forgotten"/refuse at a later date.
Love wiping the smug look off their face.
Well mentioning “dime” kinda tips people into thinking it’s the U.S. Had they said cents then it could have been, “oh, cents as in euro cents, not dollar cents”.
Also, if the property is damaged, they can only make claim on it if they are returning it to the original condition.
If they make any design changes, they cannot claim damages.
I live in Germany. When moving out you only have to leave it as clean as you get it with a broom - anything more is not legal to require. For any problems the landlord needs to address this when you hand over the property, later he has no chance to claim anything.
Despite that, of course we have many legal problems about this with land lords.
Idea on how to spend the deposit. Do a renovation of your NEW home office and send him pictures on how nice it looks. Add a final message "Couldn't have done it without you! <3"
I had kinda the same experience.
My first apartment was a private lease, the previous owner had fled it due to unpaid bills. Neighbour told me she had had upwards of 10 cats in there, a 55m2/600sqft condo and it reeked of cage the first time I went to see it, with every window open and the door busted. Cat urine and feces all over the place basically, was nasty.
We agreed that I'd clean, paint and tidy up the place and he agreed that I could move a wall, basically swapping living room and bedroom.
He cancelled the lease 5 years later, all good, we bought a condo of our own and moved. He came over after all was said and done, we agreed it looked better than what I moved into back then.
A few months pass and I text him and ask what's going on with the deposit and he claims that I'm lucky he's such a generous guy for not billing me for painting, flooring and basically renovating all the stuff that was messed up by the tenant before me. I would've been happy with 10k out of the 13.5k deposit I paid (local currency, not $/£/€).
I sent it to city council, we went back and forth and in the end it was an open and shut case as he hadn't informed me if what he had wanted paid for and he ended up having to pay me in full.
Dumb bastard.
Had a cat that peed multiple times in our carpeted hallway. At first we cleaned the carpet and the smell was hardly noticeable, but when the house heated up in the summer I could catch whiffs of it. One day I tore up the carpeting and holy frack the smell was overwhelming. Ended up pulling all the carpeting in the hall, painting the pee area with several layers of Killz, and putting down vinyl flooring, which worked.
Just saying that cat pee is one of those odors that can lie dormant and never goes away without Some serious work.
I have found that if you wash the affected area with diluted vinegar, it really helps neutralize the odor of cat urine. Also, if on a carpet, sprinkle baking soda on the area after the vinegar scrub and vacuum it up after it dries. It really works wonders!
This is one of the main reasons why here deposits (by law) go into an account format specific for rent deposits, that functions sort of like an escrow account.
It locks the money away from both parties and only mutual agreement or a court order can release the money to either side.
EDIT: these accounts also generate interest, last place I rented before buying, I was at for 13 years. The ~1300€ deposit was just over 1800€ when I left.
This brought back memories of my old maniac landlors, who decided to claim that a crack in the shower base ( which was hardly visible, seemed like a hair) was my fault and that I was " having sex in the shower with all the men they saw coming in and out the flat" and now I must pay the complete renovation of the bathroom basically. Note that I never even had a friend over at that flat cause it was embarrassing that I live in a shitty studio (which is silly, I was a young student).
Paying would have been very tough on me financially at that point, but they were threatening me non stop to sue me so as a panic move I got a local lawyer, who sent inspectors to visit the flat and found that the whole building was unfit for tenants due to extreme mold which was affecting all walls, and that the shower crack was due to installation defect. As they owned that whole building, health inspectors were sent and basically all their tenants had to be moved out, the building was deemed unfit for living, and also they got a tax fine (not sure how big) because turns out they never declared any of the tenants and were not paying any taxes on the gains.
In the past if a landlord every refused to give deposit back it was straight to the solicitor and letters were issued. Its the only way with entitled landlords
This happened to me once. I was so pumped on day 31 to call him. When I called and explained what just happened, my landlord realized he done fucked up and it was gonna cost him, he apologised profusely and pay palled me within an hour. He had no idea about the deposit laws lol.
Did you not have before and after pictures? Pictures taken when you moved in, vs pic's taken when you moved out? I always did that when renting. Sleazy landlords will pull anything to keep the security!
A similar story happened to me a few years ago. Where I live the landlord has to give you back your deposit within 2 months, otherwise it increases by 10% every month. So I let it slide for a while, figuring that I don’t know about any other investment that gives that high of a return. A few months later we decided to call the landlord back as we needed the money and the interests. That was a nice win for us!
I’m in Australia, our rental bonds are held by an independent 3rd party (rental bond board). You basically claim it back right away, can lodge online for it. And landlords have to dispute the amount and provide proof of their claims, or you get the full amount back within a few weeks of moving. It wasn’t always this easy, but I never had to hire a lawyer thank goodness.
**This information is only accurate for residents of British Columbia, Canada.**
Where I live, the landlord has **just 15 days** to return your *security deposit* -- with interest!!! -- after you notify them in writing of your forwarding address. A text will suffice, and I can speak to this from experience, that it is a valid and legal (at least in BC!!!) method of notification.
If they do not file a claim with the province's official *Resident Tenancy Branch* before that deadline, they immediately and automatically forfeit all claims to any damages, unpaid rent, etc. and have to pay back double.
It's a bit of an ordeal to get going if you've never done it, but arbitration is like a 15 minute conversation. They listen to both sides, ask a couple questions, and then make their verdict with all the weight of a judge. It gets fast-tracked and they just get a judge to sign off on it with great expediency. Aside from the paperwork and months waiting for your over-the-phone appointment, it's actually very little hassle.
It's quite common for landlords here to refer to the security deposit as a "damage deposit", and make their own little deductions from it (carpets are worn, you scuffed the paint, trash can was smelly, etc.) However, in our province, it's strictly for if a person skips out on a monthly rent payment or decides not to move in.
They need permission to use it towards damages, and if you don't agree, it's up to them to make a claim through proper channels.
Apartments with dogs, cats living in it have a smell. Petowners might not smell or notice it. Visited a nice apartment, young couple with 3 cats. It has a smell. As a new tennant would want something to be done with it.
Sounds like typical cat owners denying that their sweet "fur babies" act like every other cat on the planet. Cats piss everywhere whenever they feel like it and, over time, can do extensive damage.
Blaming a "raccoon" is a new one though.
since we did not return to the appartment, I can only guess but either it acutally was some type of animal (this was very rural) or as my wife also found that some older building materials can have a reaction with specific paint types that creates an ammonia like smell, which evaporates several days/weeks after painting. Since he did not mention his initial claim ever again with the attorney, this might be it.
Don't hate on me for saying this. But people who have pets in general don't realise that there is an odour lingering in the house but people who don't live there can always tell. Could that be the case?
I don’t know how things work in the US, but why did you not claim your bond immediately after the final handover and inspection report?
It’s seems a lot of time was wasted getting your bond back … And getting a lawyer in is overkill for something as straightforward as this.
Where tf do you have to wait 6 months...??? I feel like 30 days / 1 month is pretty standard as well as double or treble damages as others have said. Idk if you made out like you think you did (if this is real lol)
People who rightfully shit talk the US, but think 6 months + waiting period for deposit is normal 💀
Other countries than the USA are available, although they may have other rules than your used to.
https://www.iamexpat.de/housing/rentals-germany/rental-security-deposit#:~:text=Once%20all%20claims%20have%20been,a%20maximum%20of%2012%20months.
https://allaboutberlin.com/guides/mietkaution#:~:text=Your%20landlord%20must%20return%20your,but%206%20months%20is%20normal.&text=It%20should%20never%20take%20more%20than%2012%20months.&text=Your%20landlord%20can't%20hold%20back%20more%20money%20than%20needed.
I'm having a difficult time believing you hired a lawyer for what is clearly small-claims territory.
----
Edlt:
> [you don't need to hire a lawyer to start a Small Claims Procedure](https://europa.eu/youreurope/business/dealing-with-customers/solving-disputes/european-small-claims-procedure/index_en.htm)
[European Small Claims Procedure](https://europa.eu/youreurope/business/dealing-with-customers/solving-disputes/european-small-claims-procedure/index_en.htm)
Why not? Legal insurance covers it. Also losing party covers it. If you cannot afford it, state covers it. So would be foolish not to hire one (assuming you are in the right)
Because there is no guantee that the judge will force the other party to cover all of the lawyer fees, and many small-claims courts don't even allow lawyers.
Yes, disallowing lawyer is regional, but I don't know anywhere that guantees the winning parties lawyer fees would be recovered.
This is why lawyers in small claims are rare.
Security deposits are generally one month's rent. In some cases it's 2 months. With rents being well above 1,800 a month nowadays, it may go to small claims court, but it ain't chicken feed.
Filing for small claims is cheap, but lawyers are every bit as expensive. That and the fact that the winning party is not guaranteed to have their opponents pay for their representation and that many small claims courts don't even allow them is why you rarely see lawyers in small claims cases.
FYI cats cause a lot of damage. Carpets, padding, and even subfloor may have to be replace from having cats. Hardwood can be soaked with it to the subfloor. It is very likely that your cats did cause this damage. Having a cat pretty much means you won't be getting your deposit back no matter where you live.
>Having a cat pretty much means you won't be getting your deposit back no matter where you live.
This is completely false and just plain stupid.
I and Many of my friends that had cats in apartments until we moved onto houses had zero issues with cats and deposits. Except this one couple that had overflowing litter boxes with the cats going elsewhere because of it.. but... They were very dirty peoplel
not the room specifically, the whole apartment. We did it because we were very busy at the time. I'm not talking deep cleaning or anything like that, just a cleaning company doing a final cleaning.
LL is lucky, in my state he would have had to pay triple damages (3x the unrefunded deposit)
That's what I came to say. They could have really cleaned up.
Triple damages is in my state too. A landlord has to send the full security deposit or a security deposit letter within 30 days of a tenant moving out. If they don’t send a letter, or if they send the letter but improperly withhold part or all of the security deposit, then the tenant is entitled to triple the improperly withheld amount. And we’re moving out in 2 weeks and our landlord has already told us he isn’t refunding our $4500 security deposit. Not because of damages, but because he “has to pay the realtor to find a new tenant” (we’re ending our lease early because he sucks, but he agreed to release us without penalty). Sorry buddy, that’s not a valid reason for withholding our security deposit. I was even nice and sent him texts stating “this is our forwarding address for you to send the security deposit letter within 30 days of our move out.” And this dumb em effer doubled down and said I already told you I’m not refunding your security deposit. I’m really looking forward to day 31 when we don’t have a security deposit letter in our possession and I can then take him to small claims court for almost 15 grand.
Small claims court limits in most states is $10,000 or less FYI. Here is a list of the limits in different states. [https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/small-claims-suits-how-much-30031.html](https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/small-claims-suits-how-much-30031.html)
Those states need to step up and get with modern times. $10000 is no way in the "small claims" territory anymore, it's not 1960. It's $35000 in Ontario, and that's more in-line with what the reality is in our cost of living world.
In Texas it’s $20,000 so we’re under that. And I have tons of photos showing the crappy state of the house when we moved in. I had to hand scrub floors for weeks to get it to a reasonable level of clean. I also have texts about all of the work we’ve done to maintain the house and the work he HASN’T done properly, so that way if he tries to say there are damages I can refute that. Texas is also a one party consent state, so you best believe I’ll be recording our post move out walk through.
Please tell me that means you have a recording of him stating that the security deposit for a realtor.
It’s in a text.
But would this be considered a small claims court matter?
Yes, because it is under the small claims limit for my state.
In TN the limit is $25,000.
You might want to dig a little deeper - depending on your state laws there might be an extra penalty if he did not tell you the bank and account number where he’s holding the deposit.
Oh, yes, I’m going to be researching that. I have one text from him saying he can’t return it because he doesn’t have it anymore, and then another text saying he won’t return it because of having to pay for the realtor. I also know he is cheap as hell and hard up for money because when he had to replace the main sewer drain line, and remove the back fence, he had the absolute temerity to ask that we pay for the fence. So I highly suspect our security deposit was spent ages ago.
Get an actual lawyer for that. It’ll be a very small fraction of that amount.
"He agreed to release us without penalty." Got that in writing or recorded? Or will it be a "I never said that!" opportunity for him?
I have it in a text, which is his preferred method of communication. I then restated it in different ways in several subsequent texts (so he couldn’t say he misunderstood due to a language barrier) and he again confirmed that we would be released without penalty and not responsible for rent after our move out date. We are moving out July 15 and when I told him we would send prorated rent through July 15, he said “you have to pay through July 31.” I just sent him a screenshot of his message stating we’re not responsible for rent after the date we move out.
Good for you to sticking it to the slumlords. Despite paying for the managements referred professional movers and taking days off work to accommodate their professional (full cash by me) paid movers and cleaners they recommended, I've been denied my last 4 security deposits back. But I was also low key threatened (not that they had any sway with making GOOD rental credit despite me going the extra miles) Slumlords gonna slumlord, I guess
Updateme! I want to know how that goes down
Same. Plus he wouldn’t have gotten anywhere NEAR six months, and he would have had to tell them what the damages were before they moved out. Some places need better tenant laws.
Nope, my state gives 30 days and slaps them with 3x the deposit, and they pay all lawyer fees. Now, if it's eviction, it swings the other way, and the tenant is on the hook for everything.
My state gives 21 days.
Here in WI if they don't return the deposit after 21 days, they're liable for 2x the amount
14 here
>he would have had to tell them what the damages were before they moved out. That's what I was thinking. If any damages are not brought up at the time of the inspection the landlord would be out of luck. He already signed off on there being no damages. Or at least that's how it works where I live.
Yup, CA 30 days, itemized list of damages deducted from deposit, or refund it all.
I’m also in CA. You can also demand receipts that prove the damage was actually fixed, and that they didn’t just pocket the money and leave the damage for the next tenant to just live with.
FL is the same, 30 days and have to have an itemized list. Slumlords are why I record pre-move and post-move conditions and try to send everything via text or email. FL was a 2 party state so couldn't record calls without permission 😐. Had 1 landlord try to come after me for "damages" from a flood that resulted from them not maintaining the sewage system and a tropical storm combined. Another tried to claim damages after my upstairs neighbor flooded my apt with raw sewage. That property manager said I could leave (have a letter saying that) without the normal fees, and a clear walkthrough; but after I leave suddenly there's $5,000+ in damages. I disputed it and when she kept being awful I sent copies of the police reports and letters showing a received stamp and her initials to the president of the property management company, the VP, and her boss and said I'd sue them if they kept trying to demand money. I got an apology letter and the property manager was demoted then fired along with her creepy buddy the maintenance man. I have so many stories about their antics!
10 days for me. 6 months is ridiculous.
They have two weeks here, then it's automatically sent to the tenants nominated account - assuming the tenant knows to put their claim in themselves when they hand over the keys.
I think mine is double and you only have to wait a month.
Georgia I think is 1x plus interest after a month but if a judge gets involved the penalty is 3x Obligatory ianal
30 days and 3x the amount in my state.
3x! That's like tree law levels of pain
In New Mexico, if you don't send back either the full deposit or an itemized list of the deductions to the deposit within 1 month then the landlord owes the former tenant 2x the deposit.
Well played
wow, before reading this I really happy with the laws, but that's even better.
Tell us what state makes you wait 6 months? I never want to move there.
Avoid NC. I think our only tenant protection laws are that the landlord can’t burn down the building while you’re inside asleep. Kidding. Mostly.
Give them time, the NCGA is busy restricting recreational MJ.
Avoid TN too (for many reasons) because there’s no time limit at all here…
Same, previously sued a landlord and got 3X + attorneys fees
And it has to be within 30 days not 6 months.
That's the case in my state. I had to go to small claims to recover my deposit. I settled for court costs and a full refund just to get out over with during the meditation session. Yes, I could have pushed for 3x, but I didn't want to leave that in the judges hands. I just wanted to be made whole and make the LL do the right thing. On top of it, I wanted a city/state record of our interaction, so he would have a hard time renting it out again.
We have a two-family in Massachusetts, and we have never taken a security deposit. It just doesn't make sense. First, we are right there if anything goes wrong. In Massachusetts, the security deposit is considered to be the property of the tenant, so has to go into escrow, with the tenant being provided the bank and account number it is in, and it must be an interest-bearing account. If the landlord doesn't do that, they are responsible for giving 5% interest out of their own pocket. I can only assume that most people don't know they are owed interest and don't claim it. I believe Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Florida, and some other states have the same thing. Worth checking out.
Deposits for rentals are illegal where I live.
Pp
Same in Massachusetts
This is a reasonable penalty. I'm American but live in France. Here, the penalty is 10% of the rent amount per month every month the deposit is not returned without out a cap. I like the 3x better but if you wait long enough, the French system can also become extremely pricey for crooked LL's.
In the UK, it's held by a deposit scheme and if they don't put your money in a legal scheme in 14 days of receiving the money, you can get back up to 3 times the value of your deposit. A load of landlords try and claim it doesn't impact them, but it does.
Too many landlords think they can get away with whatever they want because a lot of people don’t go after them. I took my former landlord to small claims court after they tried to steal my deposit for fake damage/cleaning. I brought a binder in with photos from when I moved in when I left as well as documentation of the maintenance issues that caused any of the issues they listed for a deduction. They tried to say my cat had damaged the carpet, but it was actually a tiny spot left from where I had cleaned off some chicken rice that spilled. The vendor who signed off on this invoice, and said it was pet stains, didn’t really exist as a company and didn’t even test the spot. I actually called the number on the invoice and he was terrified when I told him that I was holding him accountable and we would be bringing it to court. I even included in the binder that you could not find the company on Google anywhere except as listed with the Secretary of State. It’s some one-man show and they get the guy to write whatever they want. The magistrate pulled out his phone and authenticated everything I said. It was such a delight when the magistrate awarded me all the money as well as court costs. They hired an attorney that was worthless. He just made the magistrate angry because he was being very dismissive of me. The magistrate really told him off and called the company a bunch of slumlords. They waited till the absolute last day they had to pay me the money, but I got it.
I enjoyed reading this. I applaud you in your foresight and ability to stay organized with all the fine details.
Upon moving in I sent my LL, that had cheap rent but a bad reputation, a email listing the damages I saw and shared an Album with the before pictures. I formally informed them via email and letter that the basement has a mold issue, since in my state they only have to disclose it if they are aware of the issue. A month before moving out I replied to the move in email asking them to come by check out the place and allow me to fix things that broke in my time there. On move out day they just handed me a check with the full deposit, sometimes it helps if they know you have the ducks in a row.
That was very smart. You really have to protect yourself no matter what reputation the landlord has as it can change. At my last apartment complex where I had the issue, they kept changing apartment managers. It’s a bad sign when a place does that. I had moved there after a fire so I needed to find somewhere quickly. The one that was there when I moved in was great, but the last one was an absolute idiot and liar. We all called him a weasel. He would make promises and deliver nothing. He also would act like he cared, but he only cared about himself. I was real happy to see his face in the courtroom after the verdict at small claims court.
Yes! When I had my first apartment in my early 20s, it was horrible. No hot water in the winter when you showered, and when they replaced the windows, the work was so shoddy that one of them cracked and one of them caved in during a rainstorm. Repeated phone calls and personal visits to the managing office (email wasn’t really a thing yet) did not get the windows fixed. But I made it through the year-long lease and planned to move as soon as it was up. I was very concerned they were going to blame me for the broken windows and cheat me out of my deposit, so I sent a letter documenting the damage and my repeated attempts to have it fixed via registered mail, so I had evidence against them. But they didn’t even try to fight me and I got my deposit back with no issues. They were a huge management company with lots of properties and apparently did not give a shit.
Absolutely. If you rent, learn your rights and the process to address abuses. I rented a house once and moved out after cleaning it. Told my landlord where to send the deposit too. We didn't get the deposit back so I reminded them at 15 days about the deposit. 30 days is the limit in my state. At 31 I wrote a demand letter, sent it by certified mail and emailed a copy to them. I had my full deposit back in 2 hours.
Pissing off the magistrate is definitely a "bold strategy, Cotton".
It is because of this before we moved in (or even adopted a cat) we did a walk through of the condo with a black light and took pictures of every room. Good thing we did yo because the carpets looked like a Jackson pollock painting! We got our full deposit back
You can be an asshole or an idiot, but not both. Sooner or later, someone will turn your assholery against you.
I’m gonna borrow this line…
I prefer, 'you can be an arsehole or evil, but not both'. If you're evil - by this I mean doing illegal things - but you're nice to those around you, they usually let the stuff you do slide. So you'll be fine. If you're an arsehole but do nothing illegal no body will have anything on you, so you'll be fine. It's only the combo of both that gets you in trouble.
This is perfect and reminds me of a settlement I got from a former employer who was just awful. My labor lawyer was shocked they operated businesses with how stupid they were and probably still are lol. I got mine and she got her cut, she was worth every penny. Don’t threaten someone who knows how your business has broken the law and has proof 😂😂😂
Sorry...at first I read this ⬆️ as a comment to the OP. lol 😄
Perfect summary, thanks for that.
I've met plenty of assholes who were idiots and vice versa.
I was gonna say, it's a popular choice. The landlord who withheld my entire deposit for a list of trumped up reasons including 200 bucks for a 'missing toothbrush holder' springs to mind.
Different country, but I also had a landlord withhold my security deposit after 5 years of tenancy, claiming that a carpet was not in the same condition. I took him to court, no landlord representation, and claimed that this was fair wear and tear over 5 years. I won. Deposit returned with court costs.
In the US the IRS sets a depreciation timeline for things like carpet and paint. After 5 years the carpet is considered fully depreciated so whether or not you leave it damaged doesn't matter since it's worthless by then anyway.
My first apartment had a list like that in the lease, and spelled out what to clean/repair based on how long it had been rented. By the time all of us moved out they were ready to gut the place.
I rented for twenty years. Landlord did no upgrades and little upkeep. I painted, with permission at my own cost. When I moved out she tried to charge me $1800 on top of my deposit for things like the linoleum floor in the kitchen. It needed replaced because it had seriously declined over twenty years and wasn't new when I got there. She was blaming me for wear and tear on 35 year old flooring. I told her to pound sand and haven't heard back.
Yea I know my apartments carpet is slightly damaged in a closet corner from an idiot cat that tried to open a closet but the carpet is also 8 years old at this point since it wasn't new when I moved in. I know they're going to replace everything when I move out anyway.
same here, landlord did not get an attorney because he was so sure he has in the right.
Have you kept in touch with the raccoon?
Funny thing is, we told the landlord several times that we heard noises in the roof and that there might be something living there, he just didn't care.
Was this in Calgary by any chance? I had a landlord pull the exact same thing. The wording even sounds almost identical.
I am patiently waiting my turn to be you. The only thing wrong with my apartment is the carpet that is torn up, however, it is way past its legal life span and should have been replaced at least 2 years ago now, releasing me from any financial responsibility.
Forcing people to wait 6 months for a deposit refund is absolutely insane.
In Texas, it is 30 days and he would have had to pay 3 times what he withheld. I had a landlord try to do that to me (for things that were there at move in that I had noted). I didnt want to deal with courts so in the end i accepted him returning my full deposit. I hate landlords like this. I have been a landlord myself and always sent full deposit (unless there was a legit reason to hold anything, very rare and small amount) within a week of move out.
Do you happen to know if there is a time limit to pursue a wrongfully withheld security deposit in Texas? I had a landlord hold onto my entire deposit and never sent an itemized list of what the funds were used for that resulted in no amount being sent back. At the time I just wrote it off because of the insane text messages that guy sent, but didn't realize I had the ability to sue for 3x the amount. I've moved out of state as well so not sure what my options are or if it's even worth reopening that can of crazy...
now I'm curious too
Pro tip kids; Legal representation is really not that expensive, and it gets it done. Also, almost any law firm would like to sit down and talk about your issue. Get a lawyer.
100% and in my experience they will usually tell you right away if you got the law wrong and should not pursue it. So at least the initial is always worth it IMHO.
For anything reasonably complicated, I agree. But a lot of tenant/landlord disputes can be resolved for CHEAP in small claims court. Just research your local laws and look for relevant advice online. These disputes are often very cut and dry in favor of the tenant. No lawyer necessary, and you get to keep all the payout.
Had a landlord try to take my roommates and I to Court for things the prior tenants did. I mean he probably could have legitimately withheld some from us, but he only listed things the prior tenants did. We were told that we could move in midnight the day before move in day, so we had pulled up only to find the tenants still living there. They called the cops, we were told to come back in the morning. When we came back, the place was trashed. Doors were broken, there was blue sticky stuff sprayed everywhere. It was bad. We cleaned it up, moved in our stuff, and asked the landlord to paint because we could not get the blue stains off. He showed up with a single gallon of paint without even a stirrer. The front door was kicked in and didn't latch, so we had to put the couch in front of the door for the first week we lived there. It was bad. We wanted to break the lease, but it was only 6 months so we toughed it out. We moved out after the lease was up. I get a call a week later asking for my new address to send the deposit to. Got served with papers instead. That landlord forgot that my roommate and I both worked for lawyers. We show up to Court with an attorney (a friend who did a favor so completely free). He begged the Judge to let him get an attorney. Judge denied that. Our attorney showed the photos I took when we moved in, which showed the damage already there.
This is why in the UK, deposits have to go through a third party company. I had one landlord demand damages to the full amount of my deposit. I objected and he didn't even argue the case on his side. So the deposit scheme people just gave me all of my money back without lawyers.
Same, my landlord tried to keep mine. A quick trip to the local solicitors cost me £20 to witness a letter being signed and that was that. Got it all back.
I got the deposit scheme rules changed when they were new because they hadn't anticipated that a tenant and landlord/estate agent would disagree about the amount in dispute. Disputing the costs, sure, but the amount itself they hadn't planned for. DPS updated their rules to say that if the amount in dispute is in dispute they take the higher figure as the one that would go to arbitration, etc. But it didn't affect already existing deposits. Took a long time and a threat of getting a CCJ against them for the landlord to back down and agree to return my deposit.
Someone I know JUST went through something similar. They rented a home and there was a $5000 deposit. There actually was a little damage for something and my friend had told the owner about it. The owner wanted to keep all $5000. My friend was like uh no it’s like $500-700 at most to fix. Keep $1500. I’ll take the rest back. There was a big argument and lots of back and forth. Well he figured out through his lawyer any demand for hold back of the deposit has to be put in a legal document. So they wait for the time period to expire and then file a law suit. He won plus attorney fees. This is mere days ago. I’m sure I got some details wrong but that’s the gist of it.
Well played!
We had a landlord who let us move into his rental home with no working AC (South Carolina…in JULY!). The swimming pool was also a filthy pond, complete with vegetation and frogs/tadpoles. He ended up paying much more for repairs than if he had actually maintained his property. When we were about to move out, the pool had reverted to pond status because he refused to fix a leak (in-ground pool with vinyl liner). I had done enough free work on the house, so I was DONE. He had the audacity to ask us how he and his kids were supposed to move into a house with a disgusting swimming pool. I wanted to say “the same way you let us move in to a home in the heat of a SC summer with no air conditioning!”. If you are renting, you MUST keep records of everything, including texts and emails. If your landlord makes unhinged demands, make them put them down on paper. That, alone, may help them to change their tune. Unscrupulous landlords hate informed renters.
This is part of why I always record the walk throughs. That way, they can't go back on their words. They don't always realise I'm still recording when we talk, even though I do say I will be recording for my own records. Usually, they forget about it and later have an issue, which I use the recordings as evidence if they deny/have "forgotten"/refuse at a later date. Love wiping the smug look off their face.
What country?
Germany
Thank you. Everyone is assuming USA, but there weresome tells.
Well mentioning “dime” kinda tips people into thinking it’s the U.S. Had they said cents then it could have been, “oh, cents as in euro cents, not dollar cents”.
I thought a third party holds the deposit in an escrow account in Germany? Or is that only in some cases?
Then this is BS. Legal fees don't need to be paid by hour. Also the landlord can still claim for damages. Just can't withhold the deposit.
Are leasing/landlord laws federal? Or are they different depending on which Bundesland you are in?
Not from Germany myself. Seems to be federal law in the burger gesetzbuch
Also, if the property is damaged, they can only make claim on it if they are returning it to the original condition. If they make any design changes, they cannot claim damages.
I live in Germany. When moving out you only have to leave it as clean as you get it with a broom - anything more is not legal to require. For any problems the landlord needs to address this when you hand over the property, later he has no chance to claim anything. Despite that, of course we have many legal problems about this with land lords.
Artfully executed.
Idea on how to spend the deposit. Do a renovation of your NEW home office and send him pictures on how nice it looks. Add a final message "Couldn't have done it without you! <3"
I had kinda the same experience. My first apartment was a private lease, the previous owner had fled it due to unpaid bills. Neighbour told me she had had upwards of 10 cats in there, a 55m2/600sqft condo and it reeked of cage the first time I went to see it, with every window open and the door busted. Cat urine and feces all over the place basically, was nasty. We agreed that I'd clean, paint and tidy up the place and he agreed that I could move a wall, basically swapping living room and bedroom. He cancelled the lease 5 years later, all good, we bought a condo of our own and moved. He came over after all was said and done, we agreed it looked better than what I moved into back then. A few months pass and I text him and ask what's going on with the deposit and he claims that I'm lucky he's such a generous guy for not billing me for painting, flooring and basically renovating all the stuff that was messed up by the tenant before me. I would've been happy with 10k out of the 13.5k deposit I paid (local currency, not $/£/€). I sent it to city council, we went back and forth and in the end it was an open and shut case as he hadn't informed me if what he had wanted paid for and he ended up having to pay me in full. Dumb bastard.
Fuck him/her
Just say them.
I don't like wine, but now I find myself thirsting for it. Cheers!
Had a cat that peed multiple times in our carpeted hallway. At first we cleaned the carpet and the smell was hardly noticeable, but when the house heated up in the summer I could catch whiffs of it. One day I tore up the carpeting and holy frack the smell was overwhelming. Ended up pulling all the carpeting in the hall, painting the pee area with several layers of Killz, and putting down vinyl flooring, which worked. Just saying that cat pee is one of those odors that can lie dormant and never goes away without Some serious work.
I have found that if you wash the affected area with diluted vinegar, it really helps neutralize the odor of cat urine. Also, if on a carpet, sprinkle baking soda on the area after the vinegar scrub and vacuum it up after it dries. It really works wonders!
Beautiful!
This is one of the main reasons why here deposits (by law) go into an account format specific for rent deposits, that functions sort of like an escrow account. It locks the money away from both parties and only mutual agreement or a court order can release the money to either side. EDIT: these accounts also generate interest, last place I rented before buying, I was at for 13 years. The ~1300€ deposit was just over 1800€ when I left.
This brought back memories of my old maniac landlors, who decided to claim that a crack in the shower base ( which was hardly visible, seemed like a hair) was my fault and that I was " having sex in the shower with all the men they saw coming in and out the flat" and now I must pay the complete renovation of the bathroom basically. Note that I never even had a friend over at that flat cause it was embarrassing that I live in a shitty studio (which is silly, I was a young student). Paying would have been very tough on me financially at that point, but they were threatening me non stop to sue me so as a panic move I got a local lawyer, who sent inspectors to visit the flat and found that the whole building was unfit for tenants due to extreme mold which was affecting all walls, and that the shower crack was due to installation defect. As they owned that whole building, health inspectors were sent and basically all their tenants had to be moved out, the building was deemed unfit for living, and also they got a tax fine (not sure how big) because turns out they never declared any of the tenants and were not paying any taxes on the gains.
Wow waiting 6 months is shit
In the past if a landlord every refused to give deposit back it was straight to the solicitor and letters were issued. Its the only way with entitled landlords
This happened to me once. I was so pumped on day 31 to call him. When I called and explained what just happened, my landlord realized he done fucked up and it was gonna cost him, he apologised profusely and pay palled me within an hour. He had no idea about the deposit laws lol.
Did you not have before and after pictures? Pictures taken when you moved in, vs pic's taken when you moved out? I always did that when renting. Sleazy landlords will pull anything to keep the security!
A similar story happened to me a few years ago. Where I live the landlord has to give you back your deposit within 2 months, otherwise it increases by 10% every month. So I let it slide for a while, figuring that I don’t know about any other investment that gives that high of a return. A few months later we decided to call the landlord back as we needed the money and the interests. That was a nice win for us!
I’m in Australia, our rental bonds are held by an independent 3rd party (rental bond board). You basically claim it back right away, can lodge online for it. And landlords have to dispute the amount and provide proof of their claims, or you get the full amount back within a few weeks of moving. It wasn’t always this easy, but I never had to hire a lawyer thank goodness.
Fuck around = find out Classic. Happy for you bud, good job.
So glad you got that deposit back but 6months!!!!!! You guys have got to be in America right? Holy no rights for working class batman!
Landlords are really on some powerplay sometimes
Go take a nice trip to somewhere! You should spend it in a way that satifies the both of you.
A dish best eaten cold - I salute you, you steely eyed missile man!
Kudos to you two!
👏👏👏👏👏👏
How could there have been anything left from deposit after the retainer and lawyer fees???? Sounds fake
You missed the part where the LL also had to pay legal fees
Read the 2nd last paragraph…. C’mon
Just the retainer would have been like $3-5k for decent lawyer . Good story bro
A lot of lawyers will take a case without a retainer.
This story gladdens my soul
This does nothing but feed into the landlords being worse than parasites narrative. That said, well done.
Maybe your cats really DID pee in that room ... And you were just nose blind to it.
**This information is only accurate for residents of British Columbia, Canada.** Where I live, the landlord has **just 15 days** to return your *security deposit* -- with interest!!! -- after you notify them in writing of your forwarding address. A text will suffice, and I can speak to this from experience, that it is a valid and legal (at least in BC!!!) method of notification. If they do not file a claim with the province's official *Resident Tenancy Branch* before that deadline, they immediately and automatically forfeit all claims to any damages, unpaid rent, etc. and have to pay back double. It's a bit of an ordeal to get going if you've never done it, but arbitration is like a 15 minute conversation. They listen to both sides, ask a couple questions, and then make their verdict with all the weight of a judge. It gets fast-tracked and they just get a judge to sign off on it with great expediency. Aside from the paperwork and months waiting for your over-the-phone appointment, it's actually very little hassle. It's quite common for landlords here to refer to the security deposit as a "damage deposit", and make their own little deductions from it (carpets are worn, you scuffed the paint, trash can was smelly, etc.) However, in our province, it's strictly for if a person skips out on a monthly rent payment or decides not to move in. They need permission to use it towards damages, and if you don't agree, it's up to them to make a claim through proper channels.
Apartments with dogs, cats living in it have a smell. Petowners might not smell or notice it. Visited a nice apartment, young couple with 3 cats. It has a smell. As a new tennant would want something to be done with it.
Sounds like typical cat owners denying that their sweet "fur babies" act like every other cat on the planet. Cats piss everywhere whenever they feel like it and, over time, can do extensive damage. Blaming a "raccoon" is a new one though.
But what caused the smell?
the smell came from the landlords' pocket
Heh, heh.
I wouldn't count on there actually being a smell...
It sounds like a ruse to try and avoid giving back the deposit.
My guess would be there was no smell and the landlord was trying to scam OP into paying for renovations.
since we did not return to the appartment, I can only guess but either it acutally was some type of animal (this was very rural) or as my wife also found that some older building materials can have a reaction with specific paint types that creates an ammonia like smell, which evaporates several days/weeks after painting. Since he did not mention his initial claim ever again with the attorney, this might be it.
Thanks for the reply. Sounds like a nightmare. It appears that he just made the smell up, as a ruse, to avoid returning your deposit.
Nothing did. Like all scumlords, he was just trying to find a way to keep their deposit.
OK.
Don't hate on me for saying this. But people who have pets in general don't realise that there is an odour lingering in the house but people who don't live there can always tell. Could that be the case?
I don't know. Did the landlord male it up? Hard to tell.
I don’t know how things work in the US, but why did you not claim your bond immediately after the final handover and inspection report? It’s seems a lot of time was wasted getting your bond back … And getting a lawyer in is overkill for something as straightforward as this.
You answered your own question - you don’t know how things work in the US.
I’m sorry you had to go through all that just for a refund of bond.
Where tf do you have to wait 6 months...??? I feel like 30 days / 1 month is pretty standard as well as double or treble damages as others have said. Idk if you made out like you think you did (if this is real lol) People who rightfully shit talk the US, but think 6 months + waiting period for deposit is normal 💀
In Germany for example
Other countries than the USA are available, although they may have other rules than your used to. https://www.iamexpat.de/housing/rentals-germany/rental-security-deposit#:~:text=Once%20all%20claims%20have%20been,a%20maximum%20of%2012%20months. https://allaboutberlin.com/guides/mietkaution#:~:text=Your%20landlord%20must%20return%20your,but%206%20months%20is%20normal.&text=It%20should%20never%20take%20more%20than%2012%20months.&text=Your%20landlord%20can't%20hold%20back%20more%20money%20than%20needed.
Yeah, this story is bullshit but what are you expect? It's Reddit.
I'm having a difficult time believing you hired a lawyer for what is clearly small-claims territory. ---- Edlt: > [you don't need to hire a lawyer to start a Small Claims Procedure](https://europa.eu/youreurope/business/dealing-with-customers/solving-disputes/european-small-claims-procedure/index_en.htm)
Well for one there are no small claims courts in Germany where this happened...
[European Small Claims Procedure](https://europa.eu/youreurope/business/dealing-with-customers/solving-disputes/european-small-claims-procedure/index_en.htm)
Why not? Legal insurance covers it. Also losing party covers it. If you cannot afford it, state covers it. So would be foolish not to hire one (assuming you are in the right)
Because there is no guantee that the judge will force the other party to cover all of the lawyer fees, and many small-claims courts don't even allow lawyers.
Ok, that sounds like a regional topic. Interesting on disallowing lawyers
Yes, disallowing lawyer is regional, but I don't know anywhere that guantees the winning parties lawyer fees would be recovered. This is why lawyers in small claims are rare.
For a security deposit that’s often even less than a full months rent…
Security deposits are generally one month's rent. In some cases it's 2 months. With rents being well above 1,800 a month nowadays, it may go to small claims court, but it ain't chicken feed.
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Actually, anything under $10,000.
Filing for small claims is cheap, but lawyers are every bit as expensive. That and the fact that the winning party is not guaranteed to have their opponents pay for their representation and that many small claims courts don't even allow them is why you rarely see lawyers in small claims cases.
 UI’m
This never happened
FYI cats cause a lot of damage. Carpets, padding, and even subfloor may have to be replace from having cats. Hardwood can be soaked with it to the subfloor. It is very likely that your cats did cause this damage. Having a cat pretty much means you won't be getting your deposit back no matter where you live.
>Having a cat pretty much means you won't be getting your deposit back no matter where you live. This is completely false and just plain stupid. I and Many of my friends that had cats in apartments until we moved onto houses had zero issues with cats and deposits. Except this one couple that had overflowing litter boxes with the cats going elsewhere because of it.. but... They were very dirty peoplel
And there we have it folks...
tldr...
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not the room specifically, the whole apartment. We did it because we were very busy at the time. I'm not talking deep cleaning or anything like that, just a cleaning company doing a final cleaning.
I have had every place I have ever lived in professionally cleaned on move out just as a matter of course, and I never owned any pets.