Can a landlord add damages to the security deposit after the final walk around?

Question

I recently moved out of an Apartment in Oakland CA, we have documentaion of what was said durring the walk around me and my room mate did together, but when we got our deposit back they charged us for things not in our documtation. When I called the Rental office they said they did a final walk around when we were not there and found more damages. the Rental office stated that they took a black light to our carpets and they were too dirty for some one else to live in. Can a landlord add damages to the security deposit after the final walk around?

Answer 1

yes, they can, unless you and them signed an agreement on that final walk around stating those are the only damages found

Answer 2

NO... That is why it's called a FINAL walk around. I am a notary and a photographer and have worked with this problem. Here is what you did wrong, and why you MIGHT have problems. 1) when you moved in you should have taken pictures of the apartment. This would have been proof of the condition when you moved in. Now that you have moved out you should have taken pictures of the condition, and if a agent was with you, you should have had them initial and date the photos. Had you done those two things, there would have been no way the agent could have added things. BUT now that you have documentation, that is just as good. When THEY do the final walk through they are freeing you from further damage. (say someone came in and trashed the place, you would not be held liable.) I would check legal aid, or housing department rules reguarding rules for security deposit holds. They may not be legal to do AFTER the final walk through.LAST WORD....DON'T LOOSE THOSE PAPERS, I hope they are signed. Then you will win. We have a Renters Court in IL. I don't know about CA., But I am sure they do, or you can go to Small Claims. Don't get a lawyer for this, you will pay more than you will get, and you don't need one for landlord court. As I said, After the walk through, they can only get what they list as damage. They can't go back and find new charges, that is why you get those papers, this is a legal form of a release of reliability. BUT this is like the case where a man went to prision for shooting a woman, for about 17yrs, He got out, then the lady died from complications from the shooting, and the legal system put out a warrant because she died. So with legal cases, you can never tell what the courts can do. So it depends on how much money they kept if you want to file a complaint. (or) it could be just for the principal. Either way, I feel you should win, too late after the walk through to add charges....unless noted on documentation you have.



One other thing, you need to have them (by documentation) state the installation date of the carpet. Carpet has a Life and if the carpet is old enough, then they can't get the value of it. Would also have a lot to do with how long you lived their. for instance, carpet is 5 yrs old and 3 renters before you lived their. And you only lived their 18mos. (and) you might want to check the Value of the carpet. This would help if you have to argue the amounts held aginst the value of the carpet. Good luck.



AND to all those YES' people, you CAN charge for things after the walk through, BUT you DON'T GIVE DOCUMENTATION to the renter until you are FINISHED ! In the statement was the note they got docmentation) then they got deposit back. BEFORE they got their deposit, they should have recieved a letter addressing the carpet issue, and a chance to answer it. Holding of deposit (or parts of it) is a standard of many rental/landlords. Most tenants don't go to court. and those that do usually don't have proof. Like this, how can you PROVE the condition of the carpets if you didn't take pics before or after.

Answer 3

Sorry, but yes. A landlord can claim additional damage even after a final walk through.



Taking a black light is a little extreme, however. I would file a small claims case in that case if I were you. If the rug "looks" clean that should be good enough. You are not responsible for anything that is not considered "normal ware and tear."



I would think that anything that is seen under a black light would be probably come up with a good shampooing.

Answer 4

Unfortunately, yes. I'm not sure how California law works, but in Virginia, the landlord must provide, in writing, an itemization of what is deducted from the security deposit. Most leases require tenants to have the carpets cleaned upon moving out and unless you have proof you had the carpets cleaned professionally, the landlord has the right to have the carpets cleaned. Sorry I didn't have any better news for you. Best wishes,

Answer 5

Yes, they can do so. If they determined, after the fact, that the carpets could not be cleaned well enough for new tenants, then you get stuck paying for replacement carpets. That they learned after the inspection that the carpets were too dirty does not change the fact that you made them too dirty to clean. You created the damage and you are responsible for it.

Answer 6

of course. Not all damages are visible at first. You don't notice everything especially with the resident breathing down you neck. You are responsible for any damages found regardless of when they were found