Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Massachusetts
security deposit not returned in full
my landlord told me she wouldn't renew the lease of the four bedroom apt i rented with roommates since she wanted a "family." is this considered discrimination?
she mailed back the security deposit with two deductions- fixing a banister ($200) and a cleaning fee ($50). the banister was broken when we moved in (there was no list of current damages when we moved in which to refer to) which was twice acknowledged by the landlords husband (who identified himself as the landlord) when he came to inspect the apt and make repairs. in addition i thoroughly cleaned the apt. when i moved out and have pictures to prove this. what can i do? we wrote a letter pointing this out and asking for the remainder of our security deposit, but the landlord didn't respond.
there is one small catch- the four original tennents all moved out of state/country. i moved in in the middle of the year lease when one of the original tennents moved. can i still sue? can i get written statements from former roommates as evidence in court?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: security deposit not returned in full
Does your landlord own 3 or more units? Does she own the building you live in? Why do you think SHE is the landlord when her husband came around calling himself the landlord? If you give me the address, I'll check my legal service which lists the record owners of every address in Mass.
I'm at [email protected] if you would write directly.
If you weren't there originally, how do you know that there was no written statement of condition given at the outset when the security deposit was made? DO NOT MENTION THIS to the landlord or landlady as you will encourage them to lie later if you make it clear that's their downfall, but it's "fatal" to their case and you are by law now due back at least the $250 on that technicality. Your information that the withholdings were not legitimate is also useful. The law for security deposits withheld improperly (Mass. Gen'l Laws 186 section 15B) for more than 30 days after you leave is that they have to pay 3 times what they withheld ($750) PLUS "reasonable attorney's fees" so people like me are motivated to take the case.
What city or town are they in?
There is more to tell you about how you use the Courts to get them to pay, but tell me first where things stand now with the landlady.
The letter from the old tenants will be useful, but if you go to District Court and the landlady brings a lawyer, you probably can't use it as evidence. (You've heard of "hearsay" before, haven't you?) But there is another way to sneak it in.
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