Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

Charges after moved out
The new manager said , we will owner the orginal agremment which you had when you moved in , When we moved out from this apartment on 07/15/07 ,We thought they going to charge us on what is in the agrement .My security deposit was 300. I got a letter from them saying , I have to pay them 900 US Dollars , Carpt cleaning , they put $ 35 and then scrach the price and put $ 110 ,, no recepit only a carpt cleaning flyer where they put price on the papers .Paint $ 200 .They charge us for AUT Charge Rent $ 79 dollars for 07/31/08. $ 460 for replacing counter top in the kitchen , however date of replacemnet was june for aprt # 50 , My Aprtment is # 60 and we moved out on 07/15/08.$ 15 dollars they charged for missing ligt cover , which they took from us to be replaced by them but never happened and the management changed .$ 79 dollars for heave clening. Thanks

Asked on 7/23/08, 11:22 am

2 Answers from Attorneys

David Gibbs The Gibbs Law Firm, APC

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Re: Charges after moved out

I apologize if this answer is offensive, but I really cannot understand your post. If I understand what you are trying to say, you had a security deposit of $300. When you moved out, the landlord claims you now owe $900 MORE for damage to the apartment. You list a number of charges, but again, I just can't make heads or tails of them. The simplest way to answer this is as follows:

A landlord is entitled to keep the security deposit to the extent necessary to pay for any damage to the apartment that exceeds "normal wear and tear". Different courts throughout the State use slightly different standards for what "normal wear and tear" means, but essentially, you must return the apartment in as close to the condition it was in when you moved in as is possible less wear and tear. Where I regularly practice (which is not where you are according to your zip code) most of the items you list ARE considered reasonable charges to be deducted from a security deposit depending upon how long you lived there, and the condition of the apartment when you moved out. If the apartment wasn't cleaned before you left, carpets weren't cleaned, paint was necessary, etc... then they could be legitimate charges, and you might owe them the money. This needs to be reviewed by an attorney in your area who works for tenants in evictions, and can answer the question about what local courts do in these cases.

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Answered on 7/23/08, 1:01 pm

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