Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

That depends upon what the money was really for. If it was to purchase an option to rent the house, then you received what you put the money down for--to have for a fixed period of time the exclusive right to rent the house--and can not get any of it back. If it was meant as part of the normal security deposit, to be supplemental by additional money, you would be entitled to get the money back as you did not obtain the rental agreement to the house. I suspect it was the first possibility so that you are not entitled to anything back.