Tenant signed lease and now not moving in or paying rent

[Nathan Ku]

Hi - I recently rented a SFH to a tenant. She for some reason doesnt want to move in now. i had to turn other applicants away as I was waiting her to move in and she kept promising I will set up the rent online and when the move-in date came along, she said I have to cancel the deal and you give my deposit back.

what are my options now ? Please can someone advice ?

Thanks !

[Account Closed]

Originally posted by @Nathan Ku:

Hi - I recently rented a SFH to a tenant. She for some reason doesnt want to move in now. i had to turn other applicants away as I was waiting her to move in and she kept promising I will set up the rent online and when the move-in date came along, she said I have to cancel the deal and you give my deposit back.

what are my options now ? Please can someone advice ?

Thanks !

 Hi Nathan,  Is the property in CA?  If so, you can charge her for any actual out-of-pocket losses you encountered due to her breach of contract - assuming she actually signed a rental agreement or lease.

This would include any advertising costs or lost rent.

I never had to sue a tenant over this, but  my understanding is that the CA courts assume it will take up to 30 days to find a new tenant, as soon as possible, using reasonable means (which is the law).

In CA, you have 21 days to return a deposit and/or an itemization of any deductions from the deposit.

So, what I'd do, is keep that 21 days in mind.  The 21 days would begin on the day you got notice from the tenant they will not be moving in.

I'd notify the tenant that under CA law, you have 21 days to return her deposit, if there is any money left to return, and you are allowed to deduct rent until you find a new tenant.  The term is "landlord's duty to mitigate damages."  As a landlord in CA, you are under a duty to mitigate damages, by finding a new tenant as soon as possible using reasonable means, and can only charge a tenant rent until you do so.  You can let the tenant know this.  

You can also let the tenant know that if it's not possible to prove loss within those 21 days, CA law allows you to estimate your costs, etc.  You can print this CA Dept of Consumer Affairs webpage to send to them, too, regarding the security deposit law:

http://www.dca.ca.gov/publications/landlordbook/se...

Along with this article about breaking leases:

http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/free-books/...

Then, advertise it again, keep proof of advertising - even if it's Craigslist, you can print out the ad in a way that shows the date you printed it out.  

Then, on day 20, if you haven't rented it out yet, I'd send an itemization to the tenant that says you've kept their deposit to pay for unpaid rent, and include a copy of the Craigslist ad showing it was advertised, or any receipts regarding advertising costs, and copies of the web pages above, and explaining that you haven't been able to rent it yet, - explaining why you kept their deposit, in a way that was allowed by law.

If you were able to rent it before their deposit was used up, then you reimburse what's due to them.

Depending on the market where your property is, and with the place move-in ready, since they never moved in, you probably won't need to keep much of their deposit.  Just be sure and only deduct what you can legally justify.  In CA, if you keep any of the deposit in bad faith, you can end up having to reimburse the entire amount, plus up to three times the deposit in punitive damages, if I remember correctly - twice the deposit for sure, maybe three times.  So, don't try to get greedy.  The courts in CA are tenant-friendly - because the laws require it.

Sorry for your hassles.  Better to not have them move in, than have other problems, I guess.