Security Deposit Help ! What to do with so many lease breaches ?

[learningstill]

Pls do not tell me deduct from the Security Deposit, the Security deposit is not enough… which of these damages you feel are worth pursuing in Small Claims Court ?

Do you know of an Attorney who would take this case in MD, PG County on a contingency basis. ??

Tenant Damages
-
- Painted walls in dark colors, without permission,
- Missing TV (2)
- Missing Deck Railing
- Missing Shrubberies near the deck (flowery)
- 2 cats in the house with the Tenant and on the property since at least January 18, 2011 when sub tenant Moved in the basement apartment lease does not permit sub-renting and Lease does not permit pets and has a $25 per day penalty clause (would have the burden of proof first and second would have the burden or reinforcement of this clause by the courts)
- Tenant claims to be pet sitting (this has been going on for months)
- + 1 Cat of sub-tenant (illegal Tenant's sub-tenant) in the basement
- As a result of the cats breach of contract, I should be able to get some damages but I should be able to get at least the carpets professionally cleaned or replaced !
- Rented out the basement apartment without asking for written permission
- "Friend" that Tenant calls "House Sitter" when Tenant is away is ACTUALLY living in the property 7 days a week (burden of proof issue and not sure what I would get out of the courts even if I proved it)
- Exaggeration of Basement leak and skylight leak making me catch a plane from overseas in December to come and see the situation – it was barely a small drop a few times a day and just some dampness (the contractor that I brought in to the property could not even do a repair and directed the tenant to purchase a $ 1.75 clip to hold the drain hose of the HVAC system in place.
- Can I charge the tenant and hold the tenant responsible for my travel expenses for her exaggeration of the Basement Flooding and the skylight pouring down water in her bedroom while in fact, there was barely a couple of water drops per day in the basement and in the skylight?
- Tenant had had the HVAC serviced and had deducted from rents $800 wihtout ever providing the receipt (so apparently her HVAC Contractor had done a less then perfect job)
- Tenant changed the locks and did not provide copies of the keys and is not giving proper access to the house to show it for prospective tenants
- Did not do the repairs and improvements that she had promised to do when she moved in (it was an enticement to get a good discounted rental rate) but she mostly only did (for the most part 70% of what she did) cosmetic, redocating of walls to suit her taste and lifestyle no real improvements. And in fact the dark paint colors schemes are an issue. The prospective tenants are asking for the walls to be repainted in Shell White Neutral colors.
- Did not pay the rent in full and Did not provide the receipts for the repairs she deducted from her rent
- Unilaterally Gave my mail to someone I know who had gone to he house to visit and inspect the leaks and without my authorization and without my request– could this be a Federal Offense? Do I have something to pursue here?

 

[Proserpina]

PLEASE don't make a new post for every single tenant complaint!

Keep your posts succinct and brief please - just the facts, no editorializing. Help us help you

 

[bluemann33]

Some of this stuff you actually have a chance with and some of the stuff you dont. Travel expenses for a flooded basement wont fly but the deck being damaged may. You have to ask yourself after the security deposit is kept, then is it worth the money and troubels to go to court and try to win money that you will probabley never see. Good luck.

 

[mightymoose]

Pls do not tell me deduct from the Security Deposit, the Security deposit is not enough…

Perhaps you should consider a larger deposit in the future? At any rate, if the deposit is not enough then your option is to go to civil court if the tenant won't pay.... which you already knew.

- Painted walls in dark colors, without permission,

Was this addressed in the lease?

- Missing TV (2)

Did the tenant sign anything at the time of moving in which acknowledges that the tv's were present and belong to you?

- Missing Deck Railing

This is a decent claim, though you may have to show photos to prove the railing was there. The tenant will likely say it never existed.

- Missing Shrubberies near the deck (flowery)

Does the lease address this?

- 2 cats in the house with the Tenant and on the property since at least January 18, 2011 when sub tenant Moved in the basement apartment lease does not permit sub-renting and Lease does not permit pets and has a $25 per day penalty clause (would have the burden of proof first and second would have the burden or reinforcement of this clause by the courts)

If you knew about the subtenant since Jan. 18 then you don't have much of an argument to make now. You need to take action on that as soon as you discover it. You likely could not prove how long the cats were present, but if you could prove there is damage from pets then you might be able to get compensation for that. Enforcing the $25/day penalty is unlikely.

- Tenant claims to be pet sitting (this has been going on for months)

So you have known about the pets for months and not enforced the no pets clause of the lease. Again, the $25/day penalty is pretty much out the window, but you can claim any damage caused by pets.

- + 1 Cat of sub-tenant (illegal Tenant's sub-tenant) in the basement

Same as above, though pet damage in a basement area is unlikely. The argument of an illegal subtenant isn't going to get you far since you had knowledge of the tenant and apparently did not take any action to evict.

- As a result of the cats breach of contract, I should be able to get some damages but I should be able to get at least the carpets professionally cleaned or replaced !

Yes, if you can show that there is in fact damage caused by the pets, and if the carpet is not already old and funky and needing replacement. If the carpet is several years old and worn from regular wear and tear then you may lose that argument.

- Rented out the basement apartment without asking for written permission

Your window to take any action on this has likely passed. If you allowed the subtenant to remain for any length of time after discovering the subtenant was there then you essentially did consent to the subtenant.

- "Friend" that Tenant calls "House Sitter" when Tenant is away is ACTUALLY living in the property 7 days a week (burden of proof issue and not sure what I would get out of the courts even if I proved it)

Same as above.

- Exaggeration of Basement leak and skylight leak making me catch a plane from overseas in December to come and see the situation – it was barely a small drop a few times a day and just some dampness (the contractor that I brought in to the property could not even do a repair and directed the tenant to purchase a $ 1.75 clip to hold the drain hose of the HVAC system in place.

This is a lost cause. Perhaps you should hire a local maintenance person to investigate these matters so that you do not have to catch a plane? You won't recover travel costs.

-Can I charge the tenant and hold the tenant responsible for my travel expenses for her exaggeration of the Basement Flooding and the skylight pouring down water in her bedroom while in fact, there was barely a couple of water drops per day in the basement and in the skylight?

Nope.

-Tenant had had the HVAC serviced and had deducted from rents $800 wihtout ever providing the receipt (so apparently her HVAC Contractor had done a less then perfect job)

What does the lease say about the tenant initiating such services? Did you authorize it on the condition that you get a receipt? If so, this is probably another lost cause. YOU should hire the maintenance person of your choice. Your tenants only responsibility should be to report the problem to you in writing.

-Tenant changed the locks and did not provide copies of the keys and is not giving proper access to the house to show it for prospective tenants

Depending on the circumstances you might be able to argue the tenant has not yet vacated. If you know for certain the tenant is gone and has no property left inside and no intent to return then replace the locks again. You could ask for reimbursement for this in court.

-Did not do the repairs and improvements that she had promised to do when she moved in (it was an enticement to get a good discounted rental rate) but she mostly only did (for the most part 70% of what she did) cosmetic, redocating of walls to suit her taste and lifestyle no real improvements. And in fact the dark paint colors schemes are an issue. The prospective tenants are asking for the walls to be repainted in Shell White Neutral colors.

Did you have any written contract regarding the promised repairs? If not, then there was no promise made. Repairs of the property are your responsibility. Also, if you did authorize the repairs then you may have also given up your argument about the painted walls, deck rail, bushes, etc.

- Did not pay the rent in full and Did not provide the receipts for the repairs she deducted from her rent

You can raise this in court, but have likely missed your window of opportunity. If rent wasn't being paid then you could have evicted. If the wrong amount was being paid then that will be subject to interpretation of whatever verbal agreement the two of you had about the deductions and repairs. It is likely a lost cause.

-Unilaterally Gave my mail to someone I know who had gone to he house to visit and inspect the leaks and without my authorization and without my request– could this be a Federal Offense? Do I have something to pursue here?

Not a federal offense or any other kind. She apparently gave the mail to someone you know with the intent that it be delivered to you. You should not be getting mail at the tenant's residence anyway.