Landlord-Tenant Security Deposit claims and disputes; 68 P.S. 250.512; Tenant surrender of leased premises.

I have previously written about landlords that find themselves on the receiving end of litigation because they fail to return the tenant's security deposit (or provide a list of damages) within thirty days of the tenant leaving the property.

The statute provides that a landlord must return the deposit or provide the damage list within thirty days of the "termination of a lease or upon surrender and acceptance of the leasehold premises, whichever first occurs . . . " or the landlord is responsible for double the deposit. 68 P.S. 250.512(a) and (c).

Landlords often say that the tenant did not return the keys and they are not sure when the tenant actually left (thus beginning the thirty (30) day countdown). Don't let your dispute turn on when the tenant actually surrendered the premises. In most court disputes as to when the tenant actually left, the tenant will win. Tenants will lie about when they left and the courts will often believe them. Send the letter as soon as you think the tenant might have left. Don't wait for the thirtieth day. Don't get hung up on whether you received "official" notice or the keys. Courts don't get hung up on those issues. Neither should you.

Landlord-Tenant security deposit disputes; 68 P.S. 250.512; Thirty day time limit;

I previously summarized the factors that cause landlords to get into needless trouble in security deposit disputes. One such factor is deception by the tenant. The basic rule is that a landlord must either (1) provide a written list of damages or (2) return the security deposit to the tenant within thirty (30) days of the tenant leaving the property.

Landlords sometimes get tripped up when tenants tell the landlord to take forty-five (45) days (instead of the statutory thirty (30)). Tenants do this when they know that there is substantial property damage and that the landlord will not voluntarily return the deposit.

Just because the tenant tells the landlord that 45 days is acceptable does not mean that the courts will find it acceptable also. Tenants often know the law better than landlords. Tenants will try to trick the landlord into waiting beyond the required thirty day period so that the tenant can force the return of the security deposit and avoid having to pay for the property damage. Courts will be unsympathetic to the landlord even when the landlord's delay results from the tenant's unsolicited inducement to take more time.

Remember, it does not matter what the tenant says. Provide your written list of damages within thirty (30) days no matter what.

68 P.S. 250.512; Security deposit disputes in Pennsylvania; Thirty day letter; contractor estimates.

Previously I have written that landlords often fall into traps by failing to return security deposits or provide a list of damages within 30 days of the tenant's departure from the rental property.

I have also pointed out the consequences to the landlord from failing to provide the list of damages in a timely manner.

Landlords often say that it took too long to get an estimate of the damages from their contractor. While that may be true, waiting for the actual estimate before sending the "30 day letter" is a bad idea. Many courts will enforce the penalties against the landlord even when the landlord is legitimately trying to get accurate information to provide in the letter.

It is unnecessary for a landlord to lose a security deposit dispute for this reason. If the landlord does not yet have an actual estimate, he can simply list the damaged items in the house in a letter to the tenant. The landlord can inform the tenant that the security deposit will not be returned because the damage exceeds the deposit (provided that is true). The landlord need not provide an exact dollar amount for the actual repair bill. (The landlord will need estimates (and perhaps live testimony) by the time of any hearing, but the rules of evidence do not apply to writing the 30 day letter.) The statute provides such a short response time, it is better to simply write whatever information is available without waiting for further detail.

Security deposit disputes and forwarding addresses under Pennsylvania Landlord-Tenant law; Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951; 68 P.S. 250.512(e).

In a previous post, I pointed out that many landlords fall into a trap by failing to send a letter itemizing damages within thirty days of a tenant vacating the premises.

Many landlords fail to send the "thirty day letter" because the tenant does not provide a forwarding address. The statute does require the tenant to provide a forwarding address in writing and relieves the landlord of all liability in the absence of such a written forwarding address. 68 P.S. 250.512(e).

Regardless of the above statute, the tenant will lie about having provided a forwarding address and may even backdate a letter for use in court. Courts often believe a tenant when there is a dispute over whether or when a letter was sent.

Most importantly, this issue is so easy to avoid. If the landlord does not have a forwarding address, the landlord should mail the thirty day letter to the rental unit in question via certified mail. If the former tenant fails to sign for the mailing, the landlord will have proof, in the form of the returned mail with the "refused" stamp from the post office, that the tenant left no forwarding address and resisted the landlord's attempts to comply with the statute. While this action goes beyond the requirements of the statute, it would preclude a tenant from succeeding on a falsified claim of having provided a forwarding address.

Pennsylvania Landlord-Tenant security deposit disputes; forwarding address; damage estimates; Pennsylvania Landlord-Tenant Act.

For landlords, the question of what to do with a departing tenant's security deposit might seem minor, but can create unnecessary headaches and expenses.

If you have reason to keep ANY of the deposit, make sure you provide a list of damages to the tenant as soon as he moves out (or as soon as you THINK he might have moved out). Be as cautious as you can. Even though the Pennsylvania Landlord-Tenant Act gives you thirty days and requires the tenant to provide a forwarding address, play it safe and send your letter without waiting. Do not use the following excuses:

• The tenant did not provide a forwarding address.
• It took longer than 30 days to get an estimate of the damage.
• The tenant said that the landlord could wait longer than 30 days.
• The tenant did not give me a key.
• I thought that the tenant was gone, but he did not provide "official" notice.
• The constable said I did not have to send a letter.

In future posts, I will debunk each of these reasons. Remember that courts often are sympathetic to a tenant even though the tenant is lying. Courts often disregard statutory time limitations where such limitations harm a tenant, but will strictly enforce such time limits against a landlord.

It is easy to win a security deposit dispute if you follow a few simple guidelines. Treat every security deposit dispute as if a court will eventually resolve all doubt in favor of the tenant, and you should avoid serious expense and inconvenience.

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Update - click here for more detail on dealing with the lack of a forwarding address and 68 P.S. 250.512(e).
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Update - click here for more detail on dealing with delays in assembling contractor estimates.
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Update - click here for more detail on situations where the tenant agrees to give the landlord more than thirty (30) days.