Keys not returned and cleaning not done

[Sada Rafi]

Hi all, I have 3 tenants living in a house. One has moved out as of Friday, 5 days ago and has taken her key with her. The agreement is to leave the key in the house and let the landlord know. I have emailed her asking for it to be returned ASAP and have been told will be mailed. On the other hand, having lock smith changing locks. This tenant was trouble for most of her one year term (keeping a cat in the house without my knowledge/approval), however no issue paying rent on time. If she does mail the key, I should be getting it today which is after 5 days. Question: With the key not been returned on same day of moving out, do I have the right to use part of her deposit to get new locks? Normally, that’s landlord’s expense. Also, she didn’t clean her room/bathroom and claims she did. Sent pictures of it and sent her to show the condition. Question is the other two roommates have suggested that they will clean her room ( mainly because she wants the room). Can part of the deposit be used to pay her for cleaning? Or it can only be used for professional cleaners? Thanks all!

[Nathan Gesner]

At a minimum, you should charge for the necessary lock change. 

You need to really sit down and think through this process, then develop a written policy. With a written policy, you will never have to think about this issue again and can provide the same answer to every tenant.