Tenant Breaks Lease...
my tenants moved out 6 weeks before their lease ended.(may 15th) They had paid for the second to last month( maY), but not the final month. I kept their deposit to cover their final month (june). i ended up finding a new tenant that moved in right away(june 1st) Am i obligated to therefor returns…
my tenants moved out 6 weeks before their lease ended.(may 15th) They had paid for the second to last month( maY), but not the final month. I kept their deposit to cover their final month (june).
i ended up finding a new tenant that moved in right away(june 1st)
Am i obligated to therefor returns the original tenants deposit, or not.
They have recently sent me a letter saying they want their deposit.
If anyone can point me to the appropriate law, it would be great.
thanks.
At least you were nice and let the deposit ride as the last month’s rent. I had a landlord once who wouldn’t let me do that even though I was being forced out due to her 10% rent increase. I did it anyway though…..
I would keep money for any vacant time (surely you had to paint, etc.) and any damage and give the rest back.
As a landlord, I think the thing I would do is refund them the security deposit minus: any damages beyond reasonable wear & tear, minus the 15 days they were gone, and minus the difference in rent between the old tenant and them.
But who knows in a particular situation? Maybe they were terrible tenants. Maybe they were great ones. Maybe they were shmoes who tried hard but who messed things up because they were kind of screwups. Maybe they were really great and understanding the 3 weeks you didn’t have hot water. Who knows?
I think the thing to do is to try and put yourself in their shoes and think if a landlord did this to me, would I be OK with it? Not happy, but like “ok, this is reasonable, I respect this.”
setancre is correct. “You are required to return the deposit minus any damages and costs incurred for lost rent. If you received rent for June that was less than you would have received under the lease that they broke, you can deduct that amount from their deposit.”
That’s what the law says. Do anything else and you will lose in small claims court.
eh. a deal is a deal. i say you should keep it.
You have a duty to mitigate damages if they breach the lease by terminating early. If you have mitigated damages by finding another tenant, you cannot keep the deposit except to compensate for damages, including those from the early termination.
Never wanted to see or hear from them again, not before…
I’d be fair about it and refund all but the $$ you’re out of pocket to make repairs and for lost rent. You had no period of lost rent but as noted above you did anticipate at least the final month’s rent at the former higher rate.
I recently let a commercial tenant out of their lease almost 2 years early. I tried immediately to find another tenant but was unable to do so for about 4 months, so I kept the former tenant’s 2 month security and applied it to my mortgage. Residential tenants I’ve had have left early and found a replacement tenant. I’ve fully refunded their deposits if the apartment wasn’t damaged.
At least one former residential tenant left before the end of their term without making arrangements. I fully refunded their deposit because I never wanted to see or hear from them before. In fact, after I encouraged them to move by saying life is too short to be unhappy, I presented the refund as a gift to make them comfortable in their new home.
I’m sorry Pete – what Loophole? As a Landlord you should know that a tenant is responsible for the entire duration of a lease. They verbally agreed that the security will go towards the last month – period. It’s up to you dog if you want to be nice to return a portion of the security as you’ve found a new tenant.
You’re being a real dick and looking for loophole in not returning money (minus any loss incurred).
p.s. I am a landlord.