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December 2005 |
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Rules Govern the Amount and Use of Security Deposit - Part 2 |
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California law sets forth a rather elaborate procedure for determining the disposition of a tenant’s security deposit. These are found in the Civil Code at sections 1950.5(e) – 1950.5(g)(5).
The tenant has a right to request an inspection of the property before he vacates. “Within a reasonable time after notification of either party’s intention to terminate the tenancy, or before the end of the lease term, the landlord shall notify the tenant in writing of his or her option to request an initial inspection and of his or her right to be present at the inspection.” The purpose of the inspection “shall be to allow the tenant an opportunity to remedy identified deficiencies in a manner consistent with the rights and obligations of the parties under the rental agreement.” If the tenant does not wish such an inspection, he may waive that opportunity.
The inspection is to take place no earlier than two weeks before the termination of the tenancy. The landlord is to give 48-hour notice of the time of the inspection, but the tenant and landlord may agree to forgo that notice. “Based on the inspection, the landlord shall give the tenant an itemized statement specifying repairs or cleaning that are proposed to be the basis of any deductions from the security…” The standards, we recall, are that the tenant is responsible for any damage beyond “ordinary wear and tear”, and the unit is to be returned “to the same level of cleanliness it was in at the inception of the tenancy. If the tenant is present at the inspection, the statement is to be given to him at that time. If he is not present, the statement is to be left inside the premises.
Suppose the tenant does not correct all or some of the deficiencies noted in the inspection statement. Then the landlord may do the work, or have the work done for him. But, if he makes deductions from the security deposit for the work done, he must provide the tenant with appropriate documentation. “No later than 21 calendar days after the tenant has vacated the premises…the landlord shall furnish the tenant, by personal delivery or by first-class mail, postage prepaid, a copy of an itemized statement indicating the basis for, and the amount of, any security received and the disposition of the security and shall return any remaining portion of the security to the tenant.” “Along with the itemized statement, the landlord shall also include copies of documents showing charges incurred and deducted by the landlord to repair or clean the premises…”
If the landlord or the landlord’s employees did the work, the itemized statement must show the work performed, the time spent, and the hourly rate charged. If someone else did the work, the tenant must be provided with a copy of the bill or invoice supplied by the person or entity that did it. Moreover, either the invoice or a separate statement must show the name, address, and telephone number of that person.
If a deduction is made for materials or supplies, a copy of the bill or invoice must be provided. If the material is something purchased by the landlord on an ongoing basis, the landlord may document the cost of the item(s) by showing some vendor document that indicates what the landlord pays.
In the event that a repair cannot reasonably be completed within twenty-one days after the tenant has vacated, the landlord may deduct an amount based on a good faith estimate of the costs. Within fourteen days of completion of the repair(s), the landlord must comply with the bill’s requirements.
There are two situations where a landlord does not have to comply with these requirements: (a) If the deductions for repairs and cleaning amount to less than $125. (b) If the tenant has, in writing, waived his or her rights to receive such an accounting.
Despite all of these procedures, of course, there is still plenty of room for disagreements as to whether repairs have been done adequately, cleaning has met the standards, or the landlord has charged too much for his own time. That’s inevitable; and that’s what small claims courts were made for.
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