Q: Is it legal for a landlord to withhold deposit money for work they did not perform?
Landlord won't refund a non refundable $400 carpet cleaning/cleaning fee, but allowed one of the original parties on my lease to sign a new lease without having to move out, and never cleaned the carpets or cleaned the property.
A:
The ONLY deposits which are NOT refundable in Idaho are those Security Deposits. A Security Deposit is one sum of money deposited to guarantee the payment of rent. All other deposits are refundable, if say, the cleaning bill was for $180.00 and the LL charged you a $300 deposit, you are due a refund for cleaning of $120 AND proof that the carpet, walls, bathrooms etc. needed cleaning. Many landlords will charge this and re-rent to the next tenant without doing any cleaning, because the previous tenant did a good job cleaning. Now, here's the trick: you will need to sue for your deposit to get it. Landlords are "land owners," and hire people to harang, and intimidate the tenant. So, get your small claims form ready for filing. If you succeed, you will receive not only the balance or entirety of your deposit back, but you will also get your filing fee and service charges back.
Good Luck!
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
