I just moved and they sent me a check for $35 from my $400 deposit. They charged me for carpet cleaning even though we steam cleaned the carpets before we left, then they charged $140 for painting, and $95 for cleaning then the rest for my utility bill. I don't know what they could have cleaned since the place was spotless when we left but we took pictures so I am going to try and call and talk with them about it and at least get the $95 back. When I moved from Berkeley a year or two ago I had a $1400 deposit and got every penny back.
Security Deposit question..
- Thread starter TheWestBaySav
- Start date
last place i lived in we gave a $1200 deposit.....2 years later we moved out and got back a whopping $-200.....yeah we ended up OWING THEM 200 dollars! lol. granted it was 3 guys living in this place and there were people over almost daily who just wanted a place to drink or smoke... but still $1400 in damages?
they gave us the list of all the repairs and the big one was the carpet which was like $600 to put in a new one, then the rest was a bunch of $25-100 repairs that added up....shit like install new window $75, screen door $150, remove sticker from inside closet $30, bullshit like that
initially we wanted to put up a fight, but even though we were all kind of broke at the time, we still decided we'd rather each pay about $70 than go through all the bullshit of a lawyer and everything else that comes with it.
but yeah, you definitely should put a fight for those 25 bills....mom and dad might cut you off if you dont
they gave us the list of all the repairs and the big one was the carpet which was like $600 to put in a new one, then the rest was a bunch of $25-100 repairs that added up....shit like install new window $75, screen door $150, remove sticker from inside closet $30, bullshit like that
initially we wanted to put up a fight, but even though we were all kind of broke at the time, we still decided we'd rather each pay about $70 than go through all the bullshit of a lawyer and everything else that comes with it.
but yeah, you definitely should put a fight for those 25 bills....mom and dad might cut you off if you dont
the last place i lived it was a 1200 deposit too, and when i moved out the landlord tried only giving back $250, and all he sent was some bullshit checklist of supposed "damages", with no itemized list of specific costs or any receipts/proof of his expenses (which is required).
i had to send hella certified letters back and forth, threatening to take him to small claims court, etc.
after months of going back and forth, i ended up getting about $850 back in total, and i figured i'd call it a compromise at that point because i was just so sick of going back and forth with him. (even though really the only thing he should have been charging was the cost to replace the blinds which my cat broke, so i should have probably still got back a little more, but it just wasn't worth the hassle.)
but yea, i think most landlords will try to withhold as much as possible...
it was fucked up too because i even paid for a cleaning lady to come in and clean everything once i moved out, specifically so i could get my deposit back with no trouble... and he still charged me for "cleaning" because there was dust on the top of the kitchen cabinets (which i'm pretty sure was there when i moved in, and it only takes 5 minutes to clean anyway).
i had to send hella certified letters back and forth, threatening to take him to small claims court, etc.
after months of going back and forth, i ended up getting about $850 back in total, and i figured i'd call it a compromise at that point because i was just so sick of going back and forth with him. (even though really the only thing he should have been charging was the cost to replace the blinds which my cat broke, so i should have probably still got back a little more, but it just wasn't worth the hassle.)
but yea, i think most landlords will try to withhold as much as possible...
it was fucked up too because i even paid for a cleaning lady to come in and clean everything once i moved out, specifically so i could get my deposit back with no trouble... and he still charged me for "cleaning" because there was dust on the top of the kitchen cabinets (which i'm pretty sure was there when i moved in, and it only takes 5 minutes to clean anyway).
