help getting security deposit back after the landlord lost the home to foreclosure?

Question

the home was sold on July 27th at an auction and that is the day we moved out. we returned our keys and sent a letter explaining where to send our deposit on that day. the 21 days has now passed and we did not recieve the deposit or a required deductions list. the landlord did not even give us the required inspection prior to moveout. we are going to take him to small claims and sue, i think we have a very valid bad faith claim as well, to ask for double the deposit. i have been reading about california civil code section 1950.5 which covers this, but i was wondering if anyone has any suggestions, have had similar experiences, or know of any relevant prior cases that i can use in our defense. thanks

Answer 1

You aren't getting your money back easily. It's likely you will never see it.

How miserable would you like to make it for them? If you would like to make it more difficult for them to steal your money you should take them to small claims court and win a judgement against them. Obviously if they let their house/investment go into foreclosure they are probably willing to let an unpaid judgement go against them too.

I, personally, would take them to small claims court just to make it difficult on them, realizing that I would likely never see a dime from them.

Answer 2

I get that she is not going to pay it back to me, but I intend to get a judgement and here's why. I used to work in property management during the recession. There are 2 things essentially forgiven on credit reports when renting now and those are medical bills & foreclosure. In this case Foreclosures do not carry the weight that they once did because so many people were affected by them and because the assumption is that the person was a victim of circumstance caught up in something beyond their control. As long as the rest of the credit looks good they are ok to rent. However, unpaid judgements are not tolerated. She pocketed over $16000 of my money once she stopped paying. The Condo is in her Maiden name, so it doesn't affect her & her Husband. So maybe it's a hit to her personal credit but since she is well off and can lean on her Husband she can get by. She was upside down in her Mortgage and Mage the decision that the property was more of a ball an chain then an asset and dumped it. Not because she was financially strapped but because she wanted to, and it was easier to take the hit for it.

The important thing to take from this is now Foreclosures have been clumped together with medical bills in terms of credit worthiness, it's become a forgivable offense in most cases. Trust me she could walk in to almost any leasing office and walk out with a set of keys. Judgements carry more weight and so she will have one I promise you that.

For me the worst part is she is perceived as a victim. It's one thing to be put in a financial position where you can't pay and your credit suffers for it than it is to not only decide that you don't want to keep paying, but to continue deviously collecting rent and pocketing it without saying a word. Had I known I could have used my income tax money for moving expenses. She is not a victim she is a thief! I want my deposit back, I kept my end of the legal agreement, she should keep hers. Since she is not, there will be a judgment on her credit report that can't so easily be dismissed

Answer 3

You don't need any other cases. Your basis in fact is solid. Now that being said, good luck trying to collect! Do you really think that if they let their house go to foreclosure that they care if you sue them about a deposit? They probably have a long list of creditors waiting for them to crawl out of the hole they have been hiding in.

Stand in line!

Answer 4

You have to sue him personally to get it back...that's the only way.

If you haven't got it by now, he isn't going to send it to you.

You don't need a defense...the foreclosure IS the defense....b/c you had to move.

I would actually be suing for moving expenses, etc.