Deposit Back Questions?

[tkd1991]

My wife and I found a house to rent in Mount Carroll IL. We put in a $500 deposit but a week or so later we found out we would not be moving. We have requested that we receive the money back and have been told no. The landlord says we owe her a months rent for July.

The Landlord claims that we had agreed to bring the July rent the following week after the deposit. However my wife and I never spoke of this as we both sat at home wondering when the rent would be do.

We never moved into the house and were never even given a key. The first week of July the landlord was cleaning up the house so we weren't able to move in. It was during this week that we discovered that we wouldn't be moving in. I contacted the landlord and located tenants for them. These tenants weren't able to move in during July as the Landlord decided to redo part of the flooring in the house.

The Landlord now says if we get our deposit back then she wants our July rent payment. Any suggestions or advice. Small Claims court etc??

Any assistance would be of great help

Sincerely,
Brad
tkd1991@hotmail.com

 

[Michael Wechsler]

Originally posted by tkd1991:
My wife and I found a house to rent in Mount Carroll IL. We put in a $500 deposit but a week or so later we found out we would not be moving. We have requested that we receive the money back and have been told no. The landlord says we owe her a months rent for July.

The Landlord claims that we had agreed to bring the July rent the following week after the deposit. However my wife and I never spoke of this as we both sat at home wondering when the rent would be do.

We never moved into the house and were never even given a key. The first week of July the landlord was cleaning up the house so we weren't able to move in. It was during this week that we discovered that we wouldn't be moving in. I contacted the landlord and located tenants for them. These tenants weren't able to move in during July as the Landlord decided to redo part of the flooring in the house.

The Landlord now says if we get our deposit back then she wants our July rent payment. Any suggestions or advice. Small Claims court etc??

Any assistance would be of great help

Did you sign any written agreement? What was the deposit for? Obviously you put down money for a reason. How long did you agree to rent the house? Was it month to month? I really don't see any terms so I'm not sure what anyone can tell you with regard to an observation of rights.

Note that the landlord might still be entitled to the $500. It's not his fault you decided not to move and if he held the home off the rental market since you put down a deposit then you should likely expect that this was the obvious and appropriate quid pro quo.