Tenants Fighting Deductions

[Elizabeth Jackson]

Hey BP community,

I’m trying not to lose my mind here. We had tenants for 3 years move out recently in Virginia. The place was really gross- mouse droppings, damaged and moldy drywall, a broken window, termite damage (we had termites we knew and they’re common in the area which is why we kept treatment on retainer so the tenants could get service anytime they saw signs of termites without having to go through us). Anyway, the laundry list of disgusting things goes on. I wrote the tenants the following the 45th day after their lease ended with deductions and pictures.

They are now disputing a bunch and clearly trying to gang up for a small claims case. (To clarify, tenant “A” took over the lease for another roommate and never paid a deposit so we held onto the original roommates). Clearly we are learning and could have done some things better, but what would you guys do here? I’m really just irritated that they’re arguing with us when we clearly tried to do right/be fair by not pursuing them for additional damage.

Thank you in advance BP community!

Original email to tenants :

Good afternoon K***,

Thank you for writing us and I apologize that we haven’t kept you more updated.

The house was in rough shape. Our new tenants weren’t able to move in on time in part because of the condition of the house. Below you will find the deductions to your security deposit and we have attached several photos showing some of these deductions.

Your original deposit was $1,200, and a non refundable pet deposit of $150. Here are deductions to the deposit:

Late Fees

A******

April 4th 2019: $65

March 8th, 2019: $65

June 4th, 2018 (forgiven)

Bre****

June 10th, 2019: $65

May 10th, 2019 (forgiven)

Late fee totals: 3x65= $190

Repairs

Drywall repair and mold removal in downstairs bathroom: $200

Trash removal in backyard: $150

Emergent Termite Treatment due to delay: $200

Broken upstairs window: $200 (pending)

Back door repair and lock mechanism: $50

Total: $800

Extensive cleaning: $475-150 (pet deposit)= $325

Total: $1,295

K****, We know you took the time to help show the house to a couple of potential tenants and, as we said, we wanted to compensate you for your time. So we will be waiving the balance of $95 and sending you a check for $100.

Please let us know if you have any questions

This is the response we received:

Dear Josh and Elizabeth,

I am including A**** on this email as he is named on the lease and you neglected to copy him in the email outlining the charges. I am responding via email for the sake of expediency but will provide a certified letter for your records.

On June 27, 2019, we vacated (address). On August 15, 2019, I received the below itemized list of deductions that you are withholding from our security deposit, 46 days from the end of our lease. We tried to reach you regarding this matter before the end of the period in which you were required to notify us and received no response. (Note: Their lease ended June 30th, we were at the 45 day mark).

“Repairs

Drywall repair and mold removal in downstairs bathroom: $200

Trash removal in backyard: $150

Emergent Termite Treatment due to delay: $200

Broken upstairs window: $200 (pending)

Back door repair and lock mechanism: $50

Total: $800

Extensive cleaning: $475-150 (pet deposit)= $325”

We dispute several of these charges as described below:

Regarding the matter of “drywall repair and mold removal in downstairs bathroom,” we are not responsible for the full $200 charge. There was not sufficient ventilation in the laundry room or back bathroom to keep moisture from accumulating (note: there is a window and a door). This situation is inherent to design of the house and the lack of insulation in the back bathroom and laundry room. While we were in residence, we took care of the mold that grew in the washing machine with cleaning packets but could not treat for mold after we vacated the house in late June. In addition to this, as I understand it, you made no provisions to keep utilities on at the house from June 30 - July 12 during a humid time of year (note: new tenants were supposed to have these turned on, which I learned is not a good plan because it delayed the cleaning). We require the return of the $200 deducted from our deposit.

We also dispute the $150 “backyard trash removal” charge. The garbage in the backyard photo (the white shelving units, the scrap wood, the plastic tote full of paint cans and miscellaneous items, the metal shelving unit, and a vacuum cleaner or Bissel) was left there by you prior to our moving in. We did not throw these things out or remove them from the property as they were not ours to get rid of. There were similar items in the pantry, including shelving units, tools, cleaning supplies, and a mop that we also did not remove as they were not ours to get rid of. As the items cleaned from the backyard were yours, the $150 charge should be removed and that part of our deposit be returned (Note: she may be right on some of this, which I don’t remember but I’d let this go even though there are patio chairs and such that were not ours).

We dispute the “emergent termite treatment” deduction of $200. We informed you as soon as a swarm appeared both last year and this year. I personally had to arrange for All Pest to come out for the second year in a row, despite your telling us after last year’s infestation that we should not have to worry about it again, and that you would pay for ongoing preventative treatment (note: we did pay for it). I then had to give All Pest your contact information after they were unable to reach you to set up a new contract, which could have caused a delay in treatment (note: the tenant told me she wasn’t able to call for several days and the earliest appt they had was a week out). Nothing we did while living in the house caused the termite infestation. In fact, we had to do a tremendous amount of cleaning both years because of the infestation and remained in the house through both swarming events; these were very difficult weeks as we had to confine ourselves to our bedrooms and then deal with the swarms in every other part of the house, including the bathrooms and kitchen. Even after treatment, we had to clean the house several times a day to remove dead and dying termites for two weeks. We require the return of the $200 improperly deducted from our deposit.

We dispute the “Extensive cleaning: $475.” You did not provide us with an itemized invoice for the total $475 “extensive cleaning” charge that included a detailed accounting of why the house cost so much to clean and what precisely was done. We moved into your property in July 2016 and occupied the property for 3 years. During this time, neither you nor any agent repainted or inspected the property at the end of each lease period, and wear and tear is expected. We will pay cleaning charges we are responsible for less reasonable wear and tear but would like an itemized list of exactly what cleaning was performed. Otherwise, we require the return of the $325 “extensive cleaning” deduction. (Note: this was way expensive I know. I can send them the invoice. But it was filthy enough to warrant commercial cleaning).

On multiple occasions I acted as your agent, without asking for compensation, to arrange and be available for repairs, treatments, and nuisance pest removal. I undertook DIY fixes at your request to improve the condition of the house as best I could. I did this in the interest of good will and cooperation. It was truly disheartening to receive the above list when we have worked in good faith to help you when there were issues with the house for the three years that we lived there. At no point did you or any agent walk through the property with us prior to the end of our lease to prepare a list of existing damages, or request repairs, or provide a checklist for move out procedures. I will be depositing the $100 check you have sent for the purposes of showing the house. I hope for your timely cooperation and return of the sums discussed above.

I have discussed the contents of this letter with B**** and A*** and am writing on behalf of all three tenants.

Sincerely,

K*****

[Kyle J.]

A few thoughts in no particular order.  Not sure why you would forgive some late fees for some tenants and some months and not others, but that's not a good practice.  You should be consistent.

I also find it odd to charge tenants for anything related to termites, but then again none of us have read your lease so perhaps there's some really unusual clause in there that allows you to do that.

The best evidence in cases like this is usually before and after photos.  Hopefully you have a TON of them.  However, it sounds like you may not since you say you can't remember if it was your trash or theirs in the backyard that you charged them for.  If you had a ton of photos, you could simply refer to the before photos and see how the backyard looked before they moved in, and then compare it to how it looked when they moved out and know for sure whose trash it was. 

You can't take too many photos.  I probably take at least a 100 or more of every nook and cranny of the house before a tenant moves in, and then again after they move out.  It doesn't cost anything and really helps in cases like this.