Landlord took deposit for repairs, never made them.

[JFullerUCSB]

What is the name of your state? California

Hi guys, my name is Jeremy and I am a 3rd year student at UC Santa Barbara.

My question is about security deposits. I recently moved out of my old apartment into a new residence when my lease ended in June. About two weeks later, my roommates and I got our security deposit refund check with a list of deductions. Now, some of these deductions seemed pretty shady, like $300 to replace the doors that were old when I moved into the place 2 years ago, and $90 for carpet cleaning when we had the carpet professionally cleaned the day before moving out.

In their letter to us, the landlord's company stated "The charges which are deducted from your security deposit merely reflect the costs to bring your unit to an acceptable standard for those moving in - no more, no less."

However, my roommate and I went back to the apartment, and we saw that about $600 worth of repairs that the landlord claimed to have made deductions for were not actually done. The new tenants have the same doors and carpet that we had. In fact, the landlord did not even bother to remove a sticker my roommate attached to his bedroom door before letting the new tenants move in. Exterior cleaning we were billed for was not done, and a screen was not replaced that we were charged for.

What position am I in?

[longneck]

everything that i have read in the california civil code says that the landlord can only retain your security deposit for actual expenses. send him a CRRR letter stating which of the items he itemized were not completed and demand a refund. give him 14 days.

if that doesn't get some action from him, then take him to small claims court!