How much of a deposit can I keep? Section 8 catastrophe!

[Steve S.]

I have a friend that for some reason went section 8 with their first tenant experience. 

When the tenant (shockingly) moved out, they left the following:

- random miscolored paint on the wall

- hundreds of roaches crawling everywhere

- damage to all doors (appears they taped something on all doors and pulled it off removing the paint on the door)

- deep scratches on the hardwood floors that will require replacement 

- gum and wax all over the floor and on several walls

- something sticky all over the carpet when you walk anywhere the carpet sticks to your feet 

- also very oddly it appears the tenant changed the locks for some reason  landlord’s key doesn’t work

- tenant removed all smoke detectors 

I could go on and on. Probably $10,000-$15,000 of damage. Many estimates already received totaling in that range and maybe costing even more  

Tenant has threatened the landlord if they don’t get their full deposit back ($1800) they will sue (ruh roh). This house is probably a $300,000 house and almost paid for and this landlord felt she would be helping someone down on their luck with 2 kids under the age of 10 and this is how her good will was returned. 

1) how would you handle the deposit?  

2) is there any further recourse with the government / section 8?

landlord feels very threatened that if they don’t give the deposit back they may show up at their house or something or somehow sue them. 

I’ve never had an experience like this before so welcome any ideas or perspective.

This tenant showed up at her house a couple months ago while still leasing the house because she refused to mail her the rent. The tenant demanded the landlord come to the rental house to get the check and when landlord refused she came to their house and was pounding on the door demanding they come outside and take the check from her - at the landlord’s house

Thx

[Karl B.]

Hello. Here's what to do:

-Document all the damage and get quotes

-Send a letter to the Section 8 tenant stating they owe X amount over and above the security deposit - include the list of damages and the repair costs

-Have the repairs done

-Once the courts reopen sue the tenant (I've only ever sued in small claims though it sounds like you would not be able to get the full amount of damage in small claims as it's capped at $5000; so you can either sue at 5K or hire a lawyer, which is likely not worth it as lawyers are expensive)

-In the event your friend takes the tenant to small claims and sues for $5000 and wins, you then go to the Housing Authority office and show them the proof (photos of the damage, contractor billing, supplies, etc.) so the tenant's voucher is frozen (it will be frozen until they pay you; of course there's a chance they won't pay you the 5K)

-After a set amount of time (where I've done evictions it's 30 days) you go to the prothonotary's office (mine was located at the courthouse) and for a small fee you can get a lien against the tenant. So in the event they obtain money through a house sale (maybe their aunt wills them a house and they sell it) or there's an insurance claim (they slip and fall somewhere and win a lawsuit) your friend will get paid due to the lien being in place though liens do expire after a few years (so you will need to file to extend the lien at expiration)

Also, I'm told a lien of this nature shows up on their credit report and is 'a thorn in their side'.