Can my landlord hold the security deposit ?

Question

OK I was renting a house from a couple and my lease stated nothing about carpet cleaning when I moved out and they want me to pay $180 for that. Next they said that I hit the siding with the weedeater 2 feet from the ground and there are chunks cracked ou tof it, they have no pics of it from when we moved in so they cant prove it. Next the said since the 5-6 year old carpet has wrinkles they want me to pay to get it stretched. Carpet stretching is a natural occurence and is not my fault. Has anyone ever bee in this situation? I am planning on going to court because all they are charging me adds up to $760 and they wont give my security deposit back.

Neither of us has pictures of the siding on the outside, I have pics of the carppet that was wrinkled some when I moved in ,and she has a video that only shows a little portion of the carpet but it has a wrinkle in it. As for the cleaning the carpet it wasnt clean when I moved in I actually cleaned it then and it was cleaner when I left than it was when I moved in
Also I know it doesnt matter to the court but we made countless repairs to the home and landscaped the front lawn. As for the person that said carpet doesnt stretch that is true if it is installed right but when it is pieced around a fireplace, one entire side is attached to the kitchen and it is cut right at the entrance to the door it is not installed well so it will sag or stretch! It is also cheap carpet just like the other 100 plus houses exactly like it in my subdivision

Answer 1

Think hard, do you honestly think any damage you caused falls under "normal wear and tear", and they are keeping the deposit unjustly? If so, sue them in small claims court.
What will factor in is what was stipulated in your lease/rental agreement and any move-in/out condition form you may have completed , even if no pictures were taken.

Look and act sharp when you go to court and be well prepared to proof your side of the story.

If you win a judgement and they don't pay, a lien is a good tool to get paid with interest when they sell. In many counties you have to re-file it periodically or it will expire -every five years in mine.

Answer 2

Wow, what jerks. You are suppose to leave the apartment like it was when you moved in. I think they are being a little too picky here. No, it is their cheap old carpet that they need to probably replace anyways. There is going to be a certain amount of wear and tear with living in any apartment. They will just keep your deposit and if the amount goes over that, that they think you owe, they will try and get that too. I'd go ahead to court. Remember to write down all that is wrong with any place you are renting so they cannot stick you when you move out. Give them a copy and you keep a copy. Good luck with these morons.

Answer 3

and you have no pictures to prove it WASN'T your weedwacker either----you lose on this point---tie goes to landlord..... Rug cleaning----if the rugs were DIRTY and needed to be cleaned, you SHOULD have done it before you moved.... they were clean when you moved IN RIGHT? then leave them in the condition they were in when YOU moved in---THAT's FAIR and just..... Now I've lived in a RENTED HOUSE for the last 6 YEARS... the brand new carpet has NEVER wrinkled in all that time and does NOT need to be stretched.... I have to assume that you did SOMETHING to the carpet to make it wrinkle---and so to does the LANDLORD.... and so would a court. I DID get taken to court by a landlord who tried to get ME to pay for all the WALL TO WALL carpeting to be REPLACED in the apartment I had moved OUT of.... the only rug that had ANY damage was a small patch of rug the landlord had permanently afixed under the kitchen table that my cat scratched up ---I agreed to pay for THAT rug but NOT the entire house which was all wall-to-wall carpeted--he was just looking for someone ELSE to pay for a different color carpet to be installed. HE lost on the TOTAL wall to wall except for the small rug under the kitchen table. so instead of the $2450 he sued me for, he got $200. but, I had PICTURES of what the apartment looked like when I moved out--and the judge was VERY IMPRESSED that I did that.... you have NO PROOF WHATSOEVER and 9 times out of 10, the verdict goes FOR THE LANDLORD.... so pay up cause if you lose in COURT, you will be paying not only the $760 but also any of HIS and YOUR court costs as well....sorry that's how it goes when you are a tenant.

Answer 4

Just walk away, let them keep the deposit and take pictures before you leave, Use a dated news paper or something, so they dont junk the place and blame you. If they want to go to court... Don't make any repair, cuz they still will keep your deposit regardless....

Answer 5

put a lis pendens or lien on the property, so when they go sell the house, they won't get clear title until it gets cleared and won't be able to sell the house. also going to court is useless. the judge/court may give you judgment meaning you have won the case. but the courts do not enforce the judgment, so it is really useless to go to court. even if the courts agree with you you still may never be able to collect. good luck

Answer 6

I'm willing to bet you also don't have pictures from when you moved in. That makes it your word against their's, and a difficult case for you to win.

But the carpet cleaning thing should be open and shut.

Answer 7

good luck in court. in the future document and photograph everything prior to moving into a place. you might be able to get the extra fees dropped as "unjustifyable" but I don't know if you can win your security deposit back, thats what its there for.

Answer 8

seems like a bit of a weak case, but they can do whatever they want.

My suggestion is to get an el cheapo lawyer and see if you can't just bury them in paper work

Answer 9

Happens all the time.