Can the landlord deduct utility bills from security deposit?

[herschen]

What is the name of your state? Hawaii

Our landlord is a couple that lives in Seattle and have been planning to demolish the house and rebuild their "dream home" on the property. They kept the utilities in their name, but did not include the utilities with the rent. They simply sent us the bills each month. Originally, we had a problem with the pool leaking. In order to keep the pool at the proper level (so as to keep the filtration system working and not have a swamp), we had to put excessive amounts of water in the pool. When the water bill came, we deducted the amount on the bill due for the leaky pool. We informed them of this and they did not raise objections. Other than that minor amount (about $300) we have always paid the utilities and have the receipts and bank statements to prove this.

They gave us 6 weeks that they would be demolishing the house. So we found a new place, informed them of our plans to move out, and asked to get our security deposit back. They told us that we could not just leave them "high and dry" and would have to give them 28 days notice, but if we did this, we would get the full amount back. I then looked up the law and found out that they actually had to give us 120 days notice to move out, and that we could move out whenever we wanted, so long as we told them of the date we planned to move out. At that point, they would have 14 days to either return the security deposit or give us a written estimate of why they were withholding any amount of the security deposit (and return to us the amount owed).

We received a letter from them that informs us that not only do we not get our security deposit back, we also owe them money for utility bills that we did not pay them for (the bill is for $3000)

They have violated several laws as landlords. They did not provide us with receipts for payment of rent, they did not give us ample time to move out, they did not have an agent on the island to deal with problems that we had with our house, nor did they fix the plumbing problems that we had.

So to recap: we were essentially illegally evicted from a house where there were multitudes of violations and not returned our security deposit (which in the state of Hawaii only can be kept for damages, cleaning costs, and for failure to pay rent).

We are taking our landlord to court. Is legal for the landlord to keep the utility bills in his/her name and not include it in the monthly rent? Is there a statute of limitations on unpaid bills (they did not say anything about this when we deducted this amount from the rent, nor did they mention it when we told them of our intentions to move out)? There are a lot of violations that they have committed, but our main concern is whether or not they can legitimately retain our security deposit for money that they claim we did not pay them, and has nothing to do with the rent.What is the name of your state?

 

[OHlandlord]

Since you made no mention of a lease, you should be listed as a month to month tenant. According to the last time I looked at HI law (unless it has changed recently), on a month to month tenancy the LL must give 45 days notice to terminate, the tenant must give 28 days notice. They gave you 6 weeks notice. You may not move out whenever you want without giving 28 days notice. Please post a link to the law that states 120 days notice from LL is required, but no notice is required from a tenant.

There is no law that says a LL cannot keep the utility bills in their name. They do not have to be included in your rent unless your agreement says they are included. If your agreement said you would reimburse the LL for these bills, that is what you are obligated to do. What other bills are owed besides the $300 for water? Or was that a typo and it was supposed to say $300, not $3000?

I have not looked up requiring receipts for payment of rent, but mosts states say this is not required if you are paying by check. You have your checkbook, duplicate copy of check, checking statement, and/or can get a copy of your cancelled check from your bank as proof of payment. (It is required to give a receipt if paying by cash.) You would have to find HI law which states receipts are required. Please post this link also.

They do have 14 days to return the deposit to you after you vacate. You state that "in the state of Hawaii (SD) only can be kept for damages, cleaning costs, and for failure to pay rent." Money owed to the LL is a damage. A monetary damage instead of a physical damage, and is usually allowed to be deducted from a deposit. If you failed to give notice when you left, they have the right to 28 days of rent for the required notice period that you did not give (unpaid rent), plus any unpaid utilities (damages). How long ago was this pool leak and your subsequent deduction from paying the water bill?

You further say, "They have violated several laws as landlords." Unfortunately, the time to complain about these is before you leave, not after.

 

[herschen]

Hawaiian Tenant-Landlord Code

Here are the laws from the Hawaii Landlord-Tenant Code:

Before a landlord terminates a month-to-month tenancy where the landlord contemplates voluntary demolition of the dwelling units, conversion to a condominium property regime under chapter 514A, or changing the use of the building to transient vacation rentals, the landlord shall provide notice to the tenant at least one hundred twenty days in advance of the anticipated demolition or anticipated termination, and shall comply with the provisions relating to conversions provided in section 514A-105, if applicable. If notice is revoked or amended and reissued, the notice period shall begin from the date it was reissued or amended. Any notice provided, revoked, or amended and reissued shall be in writing. When the landlord provides notification of termination pursuant to this subsection, the tenant may vacate at any time within the one-hundred-twenty-day period between the notification and the termination date, but the tenant shall notify the landlord of the date the tenant will vacate the dwelling unit and shall pay a prorated rent for that period of occupation. [FONT="Arial Black"][FONT="Arial Black"]http://www.hawaii.gov/dcca/areas/ocp/main/hrs/lt_code/part6.html#§521-71[/FONT][/FONT]​

Any owner or landlord who resides without the State or on another island from where the rental unit is located shall designate on the written rental agreement an agent residing on the same island where the unit is located to act in the owner's or landlord's behalf. In the case of an oral rental agreement, the information shall be supplied to the tenant, on demand, in a written statement. [FONT="Arial Black"]http://www.hawaii.gov/dcca/areas/ocp/main/hrs/lt_code/part4.html#§521-43[/FONT]​

(a) The landlord shall at all times during the tenancy:
(1) Comply with all applicable building and housing laws materially affecting health and safety;
(2) Keep common areas of a multi-dwelling unit premises in a clean and safe condition;
(3) Make all repairs and arrangements necessary to put and keep the premises in a habitable condition;
(4) Maintain all electrical, plumbing, and other facilities and appliances supplied by the landlord in good working order and condition, subject to reasonable wear and tear;
(5) Except in the case of a single family residence, provide and maintain appropriate receptacles and conveniences for the removal of normal amounts of rubbish and garbage, and arrange for the frequent removal of such waste materials; and
(6) Except in the case of a single family residence, or where the building is not required by law to be equipped for the purpose, provide for the supplying of running water as reasonably required by the tenant.

Prior to the initial date of initial occupancy, the landlord shall inventory the premises and make a written record detailing the condition of the premises and any furnishings or appliances provided. Duplicate copies of this inventory shall be signed by the landlord and by the tenant and a copy given to each tenant. In an action arising under this section, the executed copy of the inventory shall be presumed to be correct. If the landlord fails to make such an inventory and written record, the condition of the premises and any furnishings or appliances provided, upon the termination of the tenancy shall be rebuttably presumed to be the same as when the tenant first Occupied the premises. [FONT="Arial Black"]http://www.hawaii.gov/dcca/areas/ocp/main/hrs/lt_code/part4.html#§521-42[/FONT]
​

You are right. The landlord needs to provide a receipt for rent only upon request when a check is issued (however, there is one month when we paid them cash--and they are claiming that we owe them for that month) That was not a typo, we deducted $300 for the leaky pool in February and March and they are claiming we owe them $3000. When we made those deductions, they let us know that they were fine with it. And they told us last month that we would get our full deposit back if we gave them 28 days notice, so we did as they requested. Also, the utilities are not mentioned in the lease agreement (which was a 6-month lease agreement, and now of course we are renting on a month-to-month basis).

Please understand, we are taking our landlord to court. The issue is getting our security deposit back. The violations are mainly just to solidify our case; why should they get to deduct an invalid amount from our security deposit when they did not have someone on the island designated in the lease as an agent, they did not fix our plumbing, and did not initially disclose the leaky pool (nor inventory the condition of the house)? And they should have brought those issues up when they happened, not thrown us a curve ball in the last month. I believe that with records showing that we do not owe them the amount stated, and the laws that they have violated, the situations where there was just a verbal agreemnet will go in our favor.

I still am curious though, if utilities are not mentioned in the lease, are not included as rent, are in our landlord's name, can they legally deduct the utilities from the security deposit? (Keep in mind, we have records to show that we do not owe them as much as they stated--I am just curious about the legality of what they are attempting to do) Thank you.

 

[OHlandlord]

Thank you for the links to the state laws. Did they provide you notice in writing that said the unit was to be demolished? Or did they state that verbally? If verbally, how can you prove he is contemplating their demolition? It becomes a he said, she said arguement in court where the LL will swear that no one is thinking about demolishing the unit. (Just giving you the angle that would come up in court if this was heard.) Then that 120 day notice would not apply. Only normal m2m notice would. But since you then gave them notice to vacate, this point becomes moot. Even if they had provided the correct notice, you moved on your notice, not theirs. Their amount of notice becomes irrelevent.

Next, while the LL did not fully comply with the law, most judges will not listen to this because it has no bearing on the issue at hand - the deposit. Whether he had an in state agent or not does not affect your deposit. Whether he fixed the plumbing in the house or not has no affect on your deposit. (These isues were to be addressed when they occurred, not at a deposit hearing.) The judge most likely will only want to hear arguements on the deposit itself and any items related to or that were subtracted from it. Bringing up these other points only bothers judges. It makes you appear retaliatory in court. You want to appear calm and rational, concentrating on the issue in front of the judge. I'm sorry, but most judges are too busy to listen to other arguements but the one they are there to rule upon. (I've even seen judges get angry about this type of thing and order a plaintiff to stay on track.) I would suggest that you stick to giving evidence against any of their deductions, and vent about the rest out of court.

If you have nothing in your lease about utilities, that may play in your favor. Be sure to bring your lease to the hearing. (Your LL may show that you had a pattern of paying all the utilities though.) Still, the lack of any clause addressing utilities and the fact that they did not repair the pool leak after you informed them (which caused your higher bills) may absolve you of responsibility. (You did send them a written letter requesting repairs to the pool, right? Bring this to court.) You probably will be unable to prove that they knew about the leak prior to renting to you. Whether their lack of action after you took a deduction for the pool leak will show a willingness to forgive that debt or not is unknown. It will be up to a judge to decide this all. I still don't see where the $3000 figure came from though??? Good luck in court.

 

[herschen]

Nor do we!

We don't see where that $3000 figure comes from either. I do not know if my roommate wrote a letter to them explaining the pool situation. Most of this was done over the phone (in fact, I've been on the sidelines coaching my roommates). Since I do not think that my roommate did this, I am going to have her get a written statement from the pool serviceman that explains the situation, and that we have had to pay for a leaky pool for the whole time period. He can also explain that our landlord had been notified.

I am also going to get an estimate from the plumber of how much it would cost to repair the toilet; this will mainly be used for leveraging as we ultimately would just like to get our security deposit back.

We'll just formulate a case that sticks to the point...judges are a lot like Hollywood producers, they have no attention span and if you do not pique their interest in the first few minutes, you've lost them. Thank you.