Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: Home lease agreement

Well, the landlord in one sense never has a right to keep the security deposit. The deposit is there to reimburse the landlord for tenant-responsibility costs, including unpaid rent and repair of damage exceeding normal wear and tear.

Given that clarification, I'd say that the purpose of a walk-through is for the landlord and tenant to jointly inspect and note the condition of the premises, and agree (or disagree) as to whether various damage, dirtiness, etc. is normal wear-and-tear or not. The purpose is not necessarily to give the tenant a shot at correcting the issues. Indeed, if the walk-through is done on the last day of the tenancy, as is common, maybe after the tenant's furniture and other belongings have been moved out, there is no opportunity or right for the soon-to-be former tenant to clean or make repairs. A tenant's right to enter and remain on the property terminates, and the landlord may, but is not required to, allow the tenant back in after the tenant has surrendered possession.

The landlord can withhold a reasonable sum to pay someone, or reimburse himself, for the actual cost (or value) of cleaning and repairs, but must account to the former tenant for the entire sum and must return any balance. The area of what constitutes normal wear-and-tear and what is a reasonable charge for cleaning and repairs is a very frequently-litigated subject in Small Claims Court and there don't seem to be any consistently applied guidelines. It's whatever seems fair to the particular judge on that particular day.