I've been thinking about suing my ex landlord to get my security deposit back. It's kinda long so I'll just ask what I came to TWW to ask. Basically my roommates and i moved out July 29th, after many attempts we finally get his accounting; today (October 19th). Not only do we not get any money back but he is asking we pay him an additional $300.

My question isn't whether is he has a valid claim (I know he doesn't); it's what is the maximum amount that I can sue for in small claims court with respect to the security deposit? I've seen some states allow up to double/triple the security deposit due to bad faith by the landlord but wasn't able to find anything for NC.

10/19/2009 6:58:25 PM

seriously? not worth it.

10/19/2009 6:59:02 PM

a few threats about a lawyer will typically get your money back.

i dont know if you can get anymore than you paid in though and honestly i doubt you can. just make some threats about a lawyer..hell, go talk to one. pay them to make some phone calls. he'll pay up.

10/19/2009 7:02:43 PM

you should have taken him to court already. he only has 30 days make his accounting and return your deposit. if they do withhold your money or ask for additional money, they have to provide you with the repair bill and it must fall into one of these categories.

Quote :

" The landlord can retain part or all of the security deposit to cover only the following costs: (1) the tenant's failure to pay rent; (2) damage to the premises; (3) expenses related to the tenant's moving out before lease expires; (4) unpaid bills of the tenant which become a lien against the premises; (5) costs of re-renting the premises after a breach of the lease by the tenant; (6) costs of removing and storing the tenant's property after eviction; and (7) court costs in connection with terminating a tenancy. "

heres a good little booklet from Roy Cooper, Atty General, on NC security deposit law:
http://cho.duhs.duke.edu/Legal/security%20deposits%20booklet.pdf


before you call the landlord, look over your lease and make sure there were no forfeitures he can claim against you. if not, tell him to get bent and pay your deposit back in full, immediately since he is well beyond the 30 days he is provided by the law to make his account.

[Edited on October 19, 2009 at 7:31 PM. Reason : ]

10/19/2009 7:28:50 PM

thank link is really useful. thanks.

10/19/2009 8:42:04 PM

If you're still a student, NCSU will provide you with a free lawyer.

I did this to sue Jerry Hailey back in the day for totally screwing my roommates and I

10/19/2009 10:21:45 PM

^ agreed. Go talk to student legal services in tally. They will def help you out.

10/19/2009 11:35:10 PM

^^ Jerry Hailey is a complete scumbag, we had to take him to court too...

10/19/2009 11:49:14 PM

Quote :

"before you call the landlord, look over your lease and make sure there were no forfeitures he can claim against you ... they have to provide you with the repair bill"

And put your request in writing via certified mail. Back it up with some documentation showing you've done some research on this. Landlord should fork over the money or repair bill or something. If not, seek legal services.

10/19/2009 11:56:23 PM

well, basically it doesnt matter anymore since he took too long evaulating his property, the money is yours kid

10/20/2009 12:49:38 AM

^ true...dude's got 30 days to tell you whats wrong or else return the deposit. If there wasn't a time limit, anything could happen to the house. What's to say someone else didn't go to the house and mess it up months later and now the landlord is trying to make you pay because he's a dirtbag?

I had to remind my old landlord of this about a year ago.

10/20/2009 7:35:07 AM

^ and ^^ are both accurate. My ex landlord took 35 days to get me an accounting of what he was docking my deposit for. After numerous calls by me around the 30 day mark and beyond, he finally told me he had it ready and I could come pick up my check. When I got there he had an accounting with about $200 in damages on it, but he wrote me a check for the entire amount because he took too long to get it to me.

But my ex-landlord was a reputable property management company, so they were very well versed in the law and knew they had no leg to stand on. In your case, you should probably get legal services involved to ensure you get the full amount back.

10/20/2009 8:32:30 AM

Indeed yes, if he did not get you an accounting of what was wrong within the 30 days, you will back all of it by default. However, there is no treble damages, just automatic victory, which should be enough to make it worth your while. But first send registered mail explaining his situation reminding him that if it goes to court he not only loses the deposit but court costs as well, wait a month while making an effort to get paid, then file in landlord tenant court. No need for a lawyer unless NCState will give you one for free. Bring a copy of everything on paper and you win, the Sheriff will make sure you get your money.

10/20/2009 9:55:17 AM

I can always count on you guys. Thanks

I wasn't aware that if he doesn't get me the accounting within 30 days that he defaults and owes me the entire amount. I will be getting that certified letter today and mail it out to him explaining everything. Supposedly he owns many other condo's so I assume he's well aware of the law but I'm guessing he thinks it's easy to screw students/recent grads if you just ignore them. I would have taken him to court long ago but the fact that I have a job just didn't seem worth it at the time.

Back to my first question though. Can I sue him for more than the security deposit for bad faith. Here is an example of this. Back on 9/22/09 he sent me an email saying he had to "clean the ductwork because of excessive amount of dust accumulated as a result of not replacing filters. We removed the dirty filter tells us that it wasn't changed for some time affecting the equipment. We have budgeted $135.00 based on advice from the duct cleaning folks."

I have no idea what "cleaning folks" he is talking about and we did change the filter a few times but on his accounting from yesterday he changed it from $135 to $110 and said "We have to postpone the duct cleaning due to unavailabitility of service firm and moving in of new residents". So he's charging me for something he hasn't even done.

This is just one example there are more but it will take way too long to type and way too much for yall to read.

10/20/2009 11:16:27 AM

Sounds like a load of BS, you do not have to clean ductwork anyway, the only dust that would collect would actually be in the HVAC unit. I think he is just trying to dime and nickel you.

10/20/2009 11:10:57 PM

are you at 2010 university woods dr ?

10/21/2009 4:01:35 AM

^no but this apt was in uwoods.

I sent the guy a certified letter today. Pretty much told him he has 14 days to refund me the deposit or we're going to court.

10/21/2009 1:42:52 PM

So I never heard anything about my security deposit from my last apt. I had already assumed that I wouldn't get anything back because there was a fair amount of damage. But since they never provided me with any documentation, could I get my money back?

10/21/2009 6:40:43 PM

^Sounds like you and the landlord were on the same page about that being called even...not the same with my case though because we didn't cause any damage to our place that were beyond normal wear and tear.


**UPDATE**So I mailed that letter yesterday and thought I would do the landlord a favor and email him the same day letting him know I received his accounting and responded via certified mail. I get this email from him today....

"We again send you a breakdown of the money you owe us on October 15, 2009. Today is October 22, 2009 and we haven't received the payment. "

It really bothers me the logic this guy is using. The letter I got had a date stamp from the post office of Oct 16th. I didn't get it until the afternoon of the 19th. Even if I turned around and mailed it on the 20th, he expected the payment to be at his door today before 10AM? just wow

10/22/2009 9:56:40 AM

^^ absolutely. Get your money

^ use the free legal services provided by NCSU. If you are no longer a student, you can go to Legal Aid in Raleigh and get free representation, depending on your income. Aside from that, I have several friends that are lawyers and at the very least will draw you up a letter to your ex-landlord for free. You are entitled to that money by law, and most likely he is assuming you will just forget about it like the dude that posted before you.

10/22/2009 6:51:40 PM

^^You have 90 days to respond anyway

10/22/2009 8:31:15 PM