To the Management of ______________________________: I am writing this letter pursuant to California Civil Code §1950.5 requesting compensation for security deposition violations violations which we feel were improperly improperly deducted. Because you demanded and accepted a security deposit from us on ________________ in the amount of ______________, you are required to comply with the security deposit laws, outlined in California Civil Code §1950.5. As you know, _________________________ (names), moved out of the rental unit located at (_________) on _________(date that you actually vacated the unit here). As of today, ________________ (date), we have received a partial refund in the amount of $___________________, but we dispute the withholding of $____________________. Due to the events listed below we are now making a demand for the return of our security deposit, in full. It was your obligation under California Civil Code 1950.5(g)(2) 1950 .5(g)(2) to provide a complete refund of our security deposit and/or receipts and a complete accounting of any expenses for which our security deposit was retained, with the itemized statement, within 21 days o f the date that we vacated the rental unit. In a show of good faith, we allowed you additional time to turn over ov er those receipts or provide an explanation of estimated charges, to no avail. We are in receipt of the statement of repairs and deductions from the security deposit, but we have not received “copies of documents showing charges incurred and deducted by the landlord to repair or clean the premises” in accordance ac cordance with California Civil Code 1950.5(g)(2) or “a copy of the bill, invoice, or receipt” as a s further required in California Civil Code 1950.5(g)(2)(C). This 21-day statute of limitations is just that, a statute of limitations. Because you did not provide the complete accounting, with supporting documentation, to us within the 21 days, you have no legal basis to retain any of our security deposit. Therefore, under the law we are entitled to a full refund of the deposit. (Granberry v. Islay Investments (1995) 9 Cal. 4 th 738, 745). If we do not receive a refund within 10 days, d ays, we will regard the keeping of said deposit as an act of bad faith and will pursue our right to sue you for the deposit and $______________ in punitive damages (twice the amount of the security deposit) as allowed by California Civil Code 1950.5(l). California Civil Code section 1950.5 (b) provides that you may only retain a security deposit to pay for damages and cleaning BEYOND NORMAL NORMAL WEAR AND TEAR. When we released our tenancy of the apartment, the unit was left clean and in the same condition as when rented, but for the normal wear and tear. As it appears that you are asserting that the unit was not left in the same condition, we are further notifying you of your lack of compliance with additional California statutes, which would have remedied the situation.
Because we were not given the opportunity to conduct an initial inspection of the premises under California Civil Code 1950.5(f)(1), which states, “Within a reasonable time after notification of either party's intention to terminate the tenancy, or before the end of the lease term, the landlord shall notify the tenant in writing of his or her option o ption to request an initial inspection and of his or her right to be present at the inspection”, we were unable to exercise our rights under California Civil Code 1950.5(f)(2) and (3) which state: (2) Based on the inspection, the landlord shall give the tenant an itemized statement specifying repairs or cleaning that are proposed to be the basis of any deductions from the security the landlord intends to make pursuant to paragraphs (1) to (4), inclusive of subdivision (b). This statement shall also include the texts of paragraphs (1) to (4), inclusive, of subdivision (b). The statement shall be given to the tenant, if the tenant is present for the inspection, or shall be left inside the premises. (3) The tenant shall have the opportunity during the period following the initial inspection until termination of the tenancy to remedy identified deficiencies, in a manner consistent with the rights and obligations of the parties under the rental agreement, in order to avoid deductions from the security. •
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Please send a certified check for the total to _________________ within 10 days of the date of this letter. Again, the forwarding address is: _________________ _(Address Here). This will be ____________________ _________________ ___ Apartments only chance to settle this matter before we file suit against you in in Small Claims Court. If you decide to ignore ignore this demand for payment, we will pursue all legal remedies available without further notice to you. This letter serves as evidence that we have attempted to resolve this this matter informally. informally. The prompt return of our full deposit will make court action unnecessary.
Sincerely,
__________________________ ________________________
