Q: Can a landlord bill me for cleaning 44 days after our lease ended and we received our nearly full security deposit?
Bill was for cleaning and partial, move-out, professional carpet cleaning, no damage or stains.
A: Generally, a landlord is required to provide an itemized statement of deductions from a security deposit and/or return the security deposit within 21 days. That said, if you caused more than normal 'wear and tear,' (ie caused stains on carpet, which you state you did not), it's possible to receive a bill after 21 days (for example, you received your security deposit, or at least some of it, back, albeit the landlord wasn't able to obtain a service within the 21 days, so they billed you after the fact), however, you should have still received an itemization of the deduction with potentially an unknown amount. That said, tenants are allowed to cause normal 'wear and tear' (that's what you're paying rent for), and landlords are not allowed to charge 'extra' beyond rent for such use. Depending on what communication you received within the required 21 day time after vacating would indicate what the next course of action should be, including ignoring, or responding.
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