Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

Re: landlord is charging me for damages

Follow Mr. Bennett's advice and hire a lawyer to write a letter to the owner.

Re: landlord is charging me for damages

Lets make 4 on this one. When you moved in you should have done a walk through and a form filled out that both you and the landlord signed and agreed upon indicating the condition of everything in the unit - then when you moved out the same should have been done. Was this done? It is not a legal requirement but without it the landlord will have a very hard time showing that you caused any damages at all and would only likely be able to charge you for a reasonable cleaning fee which appears to be in the realm of $125 in most areas of CA - possibly more if a larger rental unit. Without evidence of what the condition was on moving in and then out the landlord really has nothing to show to prove any damages at all. Also - I am confused as I would say everyone else is also - that you say the landlord "wont even let you contest it" What power does this person have over you or an attorney writing a letter and contesting anything? This is silly - sorry to say but you are dealing with a typical scum-lord it seems. To add on to the above - If they send you to a collection agency you need to contest it immediately with them in writing while you get the issued resolved in court or otherwise.

Do as everyone here suggests - but next time make sure you get a walk through inspection and take photos when you move in and move out. This pretty much eliminates the hassles or at least gives you some evidence.

FYI - I am a landlord and have had it cost over $15k to fix damages in rental units - doors destroyed - carpet burned - mold removal for unreported leaks under the kitchen sink - you name it - so it is not "unreasonable" that you could have incurred these types of costs or damages but it has to be proven that you did it and these are reasonable charges.

Re: landlord is charging me for damages

Landlord has the right to charge reasonably for damages, and cleaning is not part of the damages.

You should have received an itemized invoice within 21 days of moving out.

You need to contest this with the landlord, and the best way is for your attorney to write a letter to landlord demanding the return of deposit. Also, if the landlord is found by the judge to have used "bad faith" there is an extra $600 penalty that is to be paid directly to you.

I could help you more if you could e-mail, or fax, me copies of your lease, and copies of whatever bill you were sent.

After the letter to the landlord, you then need to sue the landlord in Small Claims Court.

Please feel free to e-mail, or call, my office for additional help.

Re: landlord is charging me for damages

You can not take someone to collections without having a judgment against them. Ask the landlord for detailed, itemized bills and photos if he has them, if the furniture is still there ask that you be allowed to take pictures [if he refuses, you can bring that up in Court and the judge will likely assume the photos would have been helpful to you]. Check the court files to see if he has filed suit against any other tenants and what the results were.