Ended rent contract:Owner is upgrading to sell at my expense.

[Deebo]

Help me in Utah! I am an eternal renter. I have a family. We lived in their house for seven years with pets. The landlord offered the property to me to buy. I felt their price was too high and let it go. I have since moved out. Now the landlord is voraciously itemizing problems in the house and attributing them to our presence. They have upgraded carpet, dishwasher, etc. much of which were in fine working order. We had a $300.00 deposit which they have taken and sent a letter to that effect. They have inferred that they will take us to a small claims court if we don't pay for the damages which they specify.
I feel that they are claiming that the house is unrentable without the upgrades, will charge us for them, and then sell the house. What are my rights in Utah as a renter? Is this a common scam? Can they take my money through my work if they win in small claims court? Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Tracey]

Be proactive on this. Sue L in small claims court for the deposit refund TODAY. As plaintiff, you'll get to talk first. Your arguement is that L plans to sell the house, & would have made all these "improvements" to prepare the house for sale whether there was any damage or not. Therefore, L can't charge you for a single penny. Also, since you lived there for 7 years, L cannot charge you for 7 years worth of normal wear & tear. If the carpet & appliances were old when you moved in, L would have replaced them before renting to a new tenant, so those costs arent' attributable to you even if L doesn't plan to sell.

Read the Utah Code, Title 57, chapter 17 on security deposits. http://www.le.state.ut.us/~code/TITLE57/57_11.htm Take highlighted xeroxes into court with you & hand them to the judge during your arguement. 57-17-3 says that L only gets to charge you for damages beyond normal wear & tear.

Also, you should argue that L should have the burden of proving that you caused damages, & that the damages were not there when you moved in. I hope you kept your move-in condition report.

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This is not legal advice and you are not my client. Double check everything with your own attorney and your state's laws. [email protected]