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Message
Renters Security deposit question
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:07 pm
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:07 pm
So I just got out of a slight nightmare rental in Lakeview and my landlord took about $750 out of my deposit. We lived there for 15 months and had problem after problem. I was very careful and kept documentation of everything (pictures of all damaged areas before me moved in, Screen shots of text messages we sent her advising her of problems with the house, etc.) because I knew she would try to screw me. The place was only about 900 sqft and I had 5 people cleaning the place (vacuuming, wiping everything down, cleaning fans, spackling tack holes and touching up with paint, etc) The place was a lot cleaner when we left than when we moved in. Unfortuantely, I forgot to take pictures of the place when we moved out. So now she has taken all this stuff and is claiming all this nonsense so I want to take her to court. Who is responsible for providing evidence of the damaged areas? All I have are my 4 witnesses that will tell the judge how clean everything was. I now own a double and I can't imagine seeing $750 in damage and not taking pictures of everything.
I am not sure if I need a lawyer for a small claims court case. I have documentation that will cover most of the money but she took out $400 to clean the carpet (in 900 sq ft!)
I am not sure if I need a lawyer for a small claims court case. I have documentation that will cover most of the money but she took out $400 to clean the carpet (in 900 sq ft!)
11
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:09 pm to Tigerstudent08
2 sides to every story. And 
at a college kid leaving a place in BETTER condition than arriving.
at a college kid leaving a place in BETTER condition than arriving. Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:10 pm to Tigerstudent08
No you don't need a lawyer for small claims court but check out the filing fees and decide if it's worth the effort. Also think about how easy you think it'll be to collect on a judgment if you win. The sheriff doesn't put a gun to her head to make her pay a judgment.
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:12 pm to JMnola
quote:
2 sides to every story. And at a college kid leaving a place in BETTER condition than arriving.
I did at all three apartments I lived in during college. Never had anything taken out of my deposits.
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:14 pm to Tigerstudent08
If you knew you were gonna have problems you should have went ahead a trashed the place on your way out, wasted a lot of time cleaning because you'll never see that money
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:14 pm to Tigerstudent08
Slumlords encourage home ownership.
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:15 pm to JMnola
haha I graduated in PETE 4 years ago and have been working ever since. I'm just about 28 years old so you are talking to the wrong person. I don't want it to come down to one persons word against another, hence why I want the pictures.
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:17 pm to Tigerstudent08
quote:
I graduated in PETE 4 years ago
you shouldn't be worried about $750 then
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:20 pm to yellowfin
haha well it's not like it will change my life one way or the other if I have the money. It's more that I want to see this despicable woman hand me my money. It could be $20 and i would still do it. In our contract she had 21 days to return me my money and she was over 6 weeks late on that.
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:36 pm to Tigerstudent08
Renter deposits are always a crock of shite. I rented 2 places and by the second time I rented I went in not expecting the deposit back because they will always find an excuse to keep it. First place we stayed, the guy said we left it filthy. It was never dirty while we lived there and after we moved we went through and recleaned everything to make sure.
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:39 pm to biglego
quote:
Also think about how easy you think it'll be to collect on a judgment if you win. The sheriff doesn't put a gun to her head to make her pay a judgment.
These people have their main home in Covington, this rental house in Lakeview and her husband has a plumbing business on the Southshore so they should have plenty of money to be able to pay. I am sure she could get into some pretty big trouble if she didn't pay and was ordered to by the judge. However, I might be wrong, I have never sued anyone.
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:48 pm to Tigerstudent08
Go to small claims court, but make sure you are willing to lose the filing fee. Who knows, you might just win?!
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:49 pm to Tigerstudent08
quote:
So I just got out of a slight nightmare rental in Lakeview and my landlord took about $750 out of my deposit.
If it's not money you're after, and you are interested in some personal satisfaction, I can help.
Ease on over there to get that outdoor item you forgot, then accidentally damage the copper tubing (lineset) that connects to the outdoor air unit. I should take less than 20 minutes for the coolant to leak out.
That plus the service call should add up to about $750.
This post was edited on 1/18/14 at 7:52 pm
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:51 pm to Relham10
quote:
Relham10
Yea I know. I lived at Oakbrook my freshman year and they charged me like $50 to change out the drip pans on the stove. I replaced mine the other day and they were like $5! The only good thing I can say is that this experience has made me into a good landlord. I returned my first tenants rent in full 2 days after they moved out. I spent 8 hours cleaning the place after they moved out but there was no damage, just dirty. There will always be some normal wear and tear on a place when you live there, however there is a big difference between wear and tear and damage.
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:51 pm to Tigerstudent08
quote:You take so much time and effort documenting things for 15 months and you just happen to forget to take pics before leaving?... I call complete bullshite on this
Unfortuantely, I forgot to take pictures of the place when we moved out
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:51 pm to Btrtigerfan
Posted on 1/18/14 at 7:58 pm to SuperSaint
I know trust me it's really annoying. I had one set of tennants in my double move out on Friday and I had to clean the place all night Friday night.. Then I helped the other tenants move all their stuff over to the other side on Saturday because I wanted to live in the bigger side. I then started moving everything over Saturday night and finished moving everything out on Sunday around 5 pm. The whole time me and my friends were moving, my wife and her friends and my mom were cleaning and scrubbing the place and vacuuming. We were going to have the carpet cleaned also but it stated in my lease that it just needed to be vacuumed. I was exhausted after all that and had to eave the keys there Sunday night and just completely forgot.
Posted on 1/18/14 at 8:06 pm to Tigerstudent08
So how much did you hold from your tenants that moved out of the side you stayed up all night cleaning?
Posted on 1/18/14 at 8:25 pm to Tigerstudent08
Did the landlord give you an itemized statement of damages? If not, request it in writing.
Posted on 1/18/14 at 8:28 pm to tgrbaitn08
I kept $0. There wasn't any damage or debris anywhere but everything needed to be scrubbed down really well including the walls, bathrooms, refrigerator, etc. My new tenants have an automatic $100 cleaning fee taken from their deposit, this has to be included in the lease.
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