Full question:
If a tenant has honored the obligations of an 'Early Lease Termination' and was 'cleared' by the landlord of any damages, including normal 'wear and tear' after seven (7) years, can the landlord, all of a sudden, create a list of supposedly damages and charges, 2 weeks after the fact, and bill the tenant and threaten to send the tenant to collections?
- Category: Landlord Tenant
- Subcategory: Security Deposit
- Date:
- State: Georgia
Answer:
Under the laws of Georgia, a security deposit must be returned thirty (30) days from the date the tenant vacates.
If the amount paid was a holding deposit or fee, it would be refundable under the terms which the tenant and landlord discussed at the time of payment. The Georgia landlord tenant law does not directly address reimbursement of such deposits. It is possible that the holding deposit would not be refundable. The answer would depend on the agreement between you and the landlord at the time of payment.
Always get a receipt for any deposit or fee that you pay. If the fee is refundable, ask the landlord to put this information on the receipt.
If the landlord unlawfully refuses to refund the security deposit, the tenant may bring a claim for those monies in the magistrate court or state court where the landlord resides or otherwise has designated a person as his agent of service. A landlord who owns more than ten (10) units or uses a third party to manage the units can be liable for three times the amount of the improperly withheld security deposit plus attorney fees. The landlord may not have to pay treble damages if, the landlord shows that the withholding was not intentional and resulted from an error which occurred in spite of procedures reasonably designed to avoid such an error.
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.
