over-charged for damage to our former residence

We (my girlfriend and I) moved out of our Colorado home as of August 1st. Our landlord/rental agency said we would be sent our security deposit. Instead we recieved a bill for approximately $2,000. We responded to this in August as they requested by paying $150 for closing costs, lock changes, etc. and denyed the other charges, demanding our security deposit of $550 be returned. We assumed they gave up and just kept our security deposit until about a week ago when recieved a revised bill. They subtracted our payment, as well as some cleaning charges and screen repairs, but the bill is still approximately $1200 more than our deposit. What rights do I have in denying these alleged damages and protecting my rental history? If this goes to court what chances do I have of fighting the rental agency's allegations? Do I need to prove my innocence or do they have to prove my guilt? Any advice would be much appreciated. We are being harrassed. Thank you. Jeremiah Zimmerman

We live in America. Of course you have to prove your innocence.

You probably want to provide more information, i.e. specific damages, condition of property at move-in, was there a property condition report completed etc..etc...

Most of your defense comes before something like this happens like getting a property condition report signed by the L before you move in or out. Maybe getting a video tape of the home, things like that.

This is why it's best to just buy a home. I know a good mortgage consultant if your'e interested. heeheehee

We filled out a long report on the property when we moved in, but when we moved out They filled out the same form. Any differences were then charged to us. We left that house cleaner than when we moved in, but they claimed it was dirty when on our form we had said it was clean. It turns out our idea of clean isn't the same as theirs. The cleaning bill of $200 isn't really our main concern, it's the carpeting. They claim that it couldn't be cleaned and had to be replaced. They told us when we signed the lease that there is a manditory steam cleaning fee removed from our security deposit but I doubt they even did it. The stains on the carpet were minimal and I can't believe that a professional cleaning wouldn't get them out. How can I escape this battle of our word against theirs? Do they need to have pictures of the damage and reciepts of steam cleaning or will it be our responsibility to prove there wasn't enough damage to necessitate a complete replacement? This was my first experience renting a house and you can bet that I will be very careful of this ever happening again. Should I get a lawyer and threaten them with a lawsuit or just deny the damage like I did before and try to avoid them? Is there a statute of limitations with things like this? Thanks again for your help. Jeremiah

is there a reason you were unable to do a check-out with them?? just curious...

I am in kind of the same spot here. My past landlords are trying to take me to small claims court to have my pay garnished. They said they had to recarpet the house I moved out of and also had to replace the subflooring as well. They have my new address and have been coming around here bothering me. I will be served papers for court sometime this month I am sure. I thought they said "renters have more rights than the landlords"? Not here in Utah!