Q: Am I required to pay a security deposit at the home I’ve been residing in for almost two years without a lease?
Long story short, we live at house month to month without a written lease. There were previous tenants who occupied the space before we moved in. Before moving in, there was no official inspection or written lease. Now, our land lord is giving us 60 days to pay for a security deposit.
A:
The landlord can't force you to pay a security deposit, but he can terminate your tenancy by sufferance. How that happens and whether you can negotiate with him based on the awful position he is in having a tenant with no lease is a more complex issue. In some jurisdictions, getting rid of you would be an expensive project, and it might be cheaper to collect the rent and smile. But, the landlord could eventually get rid of you unless you pay the deposit and, I presume, sign a lease.
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