DC - Tenant moving out early - expects full deposit back

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tkerr

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Hi,

I had written another post earlier about my tenant moving out 2 months early.

On July 2, 2008, I has advised the tenant that I would be moving into the condo at the end of the lease in Oct. He contacted me on July 16th to let me know he was moving out as of Aug 1.

Because of this short notice, I am now left paying August rent where I live as well as covering the mortgage for my condo that the tenant is moving out of.

He fianlly got all of his stuff out on August 2. I has movers there on that day and the place is filthy! I had to hire a cleaning crew to go in yesterday and try to clean. Two shelves had fallen off the wall and then tenant had just left them broken on the floor. Towels were left in the washing machine, cords were hanging down from my television that is mounted on the wall, etc. Just a mess.

I received an email from him yesterday asking if I had time to complete the inspection and give him his deposit back minus a couple of items that had broken.

Do I have a legal option of keeping the deposit to cover the expenses?

Thanks for your advice
 
I am sure your lease agreement has clauses that stipulate penalties for moving out of the property before the end of the lease term as well as to cover damages caused by agressive wear and tear from part of a tenant. Also, what do the landlord/tenant laws in DC stipulate when it comes returning security deposits?
 
I've attached some information regarding when/how the landlord (you) is to notify the former tenant whether/how much of their security deposit is to be returned...

http://www.rentlaw.com/dep/dcdeposit.htm

Laws vary in DC depending on the particular area. It's important for the landlord to follow the rules regarding notifying former tenants before the deadline and if needed in their state/district, providing copies of receipts for the repair work done.

Security deposits are used to clean up/repair damages above what is considered "normal wear and tear". For example, a few small nail holes in the walls are normal wear and tear; large holes or many holes are not. The broken shelves would not be considered normal wear and tear.

The time factor each state/district allows gives the landlord (you) time to assess the damage situation. Sometimes damage is not seen during the first walk through.

Gail
 
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