Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

More info on Can landlord deduct from security deposit cost of repairing neighbors' property that was damaged by his tenants?

In this case the landlord and neighbor are in the same building. Landlord's unit is directly above neighbor's. Tenants spilled something in their unit and caused water damage in the unit below, so landlord was liable for repairs. Then tenants were lifting weights in the unit, and after they dropped them a few times, a few cracks in the walls appeared in the unit below, so the landlord was liable for the damage. Neither of the damages are contested, and landlord only needs to know whether it'd be legal to deduct the costs from the security deposit, or whether some other procedure must be followed.


Asked on 6/04/10, 5:13 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

It does not sound like the landlord was actually liable for these damages. The landlord is not liable for the tenants spilling something in the unit and damaging the unit below, any more than if the tenants were washing their car in the parking lot and sprayed water into the neighbor's convertable and damaged the interior. And the landlord is no more liable for the tenants dropping weights and causing cracks in the walls than if the tenants had been lifting weights outside and dropped it on the neighbor's bicycle. Unless there are other facts that you have not presented, the landlord was a volunteer and the tenant is not liable to the landlord. Since the landlord can only deduct from the deposit for what the tenant owes the landlord, the landlord cannot deduct the voluntarily made payments from the deposit.

Read more
Answered on 6/04/10, 10:53 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Landlord & Tenants questions and answers in California