Security Deposit Aftermath

[Naji Boutros]

I've had a great relationship with every one of my tenants, except for one. We'll call her Sally. Despite my best efforts, Sally was just not happy with me as her landlord. If I'm being 100% honest, I didn't like her either. From the get go, my gut wasn't sitting well with her application. I let myself get talked into accepting her application from a family member. 

We signed a 3 year lease, and, long story short, it was not good times for anyone involved. I was happy to see her leave, and she was happy to leave.

There are certain damages to my property that I did not charge her for, and in hindsight I see that it was a pathetic attempt to win her friendship. Instead of thanking me for giving 90% of her security deposit back, she bit my head off over the last 10%. In reality, she did a lot of damage and not only could I have taken her entire deposit, I could have invoiced her for more.

It's been months, but I'm wondering if I can take her to small claims court and sue for the damages I didn't charge her for.