In Oregon-Deschutes County

My daughter moved out of the house she was renting on July 10th 2008-She gave the landlord 2 months notice. She lived in his house for over 3 yrs. He said that’s OK, because I am going to remodel so y son can move in with his family. In that time he never came over to do any type of upkeep (paint-carpets, etc.). When she moved in, there was no grass in the back yard & the landlord said she could have dogs as long a she put up the fence. We put in a redwood fence (new wood). Now, 3 months later he is suing her for $7500 to remodel the house. When we moved, we shampooed carpet and left the house cleaner than when we moved in. He also kept her $950 deposit. She has been waiting to hear from him (he has her postal add, he cell phone number & wok number), there was never any contact. Are there any laws to help us? We don't think she should have to pay for the house being remodeled for his son. The landlord is a Workman’s comp attorney.

PLEASE HELP

CAROLYNN
:mad:

She needs to thoroughly read her lease, as well as the landlord / tenant laws for Oregon. There's a "sticky" at the top of this forum with a link to each state's laws.

Within that law it will state what the landlord's duty is when returning the security deposit. He will have XX number of days to return the deposit or a detailed accounting of any deductions he's keeping for damage. It will go on to say what her remedies are if he fails to do that. If he didn't do that properly I would recommend that she counter-sue for the full return of her security deposit plus whatever penalties she's entitled to.

In court he will have to present to the judge any receipts for damage she did beyond normal wear and tear. Your daughter will have to have proof (photos, video, etc) to refute his claims of damage. You can be there as a witness to the conditions she left the place in, but without some type of hard "proof" it will come down to "he said, she said".

No, he cannot charge her to remodel the property. But he can charge her for damage beyond normal wear and tear.

I would think she's got a pretty good case. Don't be intimidated by the fact that he's an attorney. She can also hire an attorney and include those costs in her counter suit. Might especially be worth it if he never sent the accounting of the deposit like I talked about.

Hello Carolynn:

I haven't read the laws of Oregon lately, but YOU should. We have a copy of them right here, at the top of the real estate page on a "sticky note".

I think you'll find that the landlord has x amount of days to return the deposit OR the remaining balance after the deductions for the repairs were made, PLUS an itemized list of what those repairs were.

His suit for $7,500 is beyond the limits of your small claims court, so he's suing in district court. I suggest your daughter hire a lawyer to defend her, AND to counter sue HIM for violation of the landlord tenant laws. IF he loses, and I think he will, your daughters attorney can ask the court to award her ALL her legal fees, and I'll bet she'll get it.

excon

I like this web site...

See question 24. I think that explains the answer to your question pretty well.

Application Fees, Deposits, Rent Increases, Late Charges, Utility Bills (http://www.osbar.org/public/olsbooklets/landlord/fees.html)

Ok, by August 10th, if he had not returned her deposit or an itemized list of what it was used for, then he basically forfeits the right to use it. So he doesn't have a leg to stand on.

I would find the exact section of the Oregon statutes that backs up the answer to Question 24 that Mommy gave you. I would then send him a letter stating that since he did not comply with that law, then he has forfeited his right to the deposit. If he does not return the $950 within 5 business days and drop his suit, you will countersue for double the deposit and legal costs.

Ok, by August 10th, if he had not returned her deposit or an itemized list of what it was used for, then he basically forfeits the right to use it. So he doesn't have a leg to stand on.

I would find the exact section of the Oregon statutes that backs up the answer to Question 24 that Mommy gave you. I would then send him a letter stating that since he did not comply with that law, then he has forfeited his right to the deposit. If he does not return the $950 within 5 business days and drop his suit, you will countersue for double the deposit and legal costs.

Would you go to him, or would you just countersue?

Guess it partly depends on how much time there is before the hearing.

Original poster...

What date is the hearing set for?

Is it small claims, or a higher court?

DID he send a letter stating that he was keeping the deposit and why?

I'd rather try to stay out of court. So I would try to get him to drop the suit and return just the original deposit.

Hello again, folks:

I don't know if one can countersue in district court as easily and as cheaply as one can in small claims court. I'll bet not. So, I'd do it by letter...

OR, in the alternative, I don't know if his lawsuit in DISTRICT court precludes her from filing her suit (not a counterclaim) in SMALL CLAIMS court. It certainly MIGHT... But, I'd do it anyway.

excon

Hello again, folks:

I dunno if one can countersue in district court as easily and as cheaply as one can in small claims court. I'll bet not. So, I'd do it by letter....

OR, in the alternative, I dunno if his lawsuit in DISTRICT court precludes her from filing her suit (not a counterclaim) in SMALL CLAIMS court. It certainly MIGHT.... But, I'd do it anyway.

excon

Do you KNOW that it's not small claims?

Where I live we can go up to $10,000 for small claims.

Hello again, mommy:

No, I don't. I assumed. So, since when did Texas get so modern?

excon

Hello again, mommy:

No, I don't. I assumed. So, since when did Texas get so modern?

excon

Aw shucks, excon. We's just tryin' to stay all new-fangled down here! ;)

Actually within the last year it jumped from $5k TO $10k. I know one of the Justices of the Peace pretty well and she said it's been interesting. It's opened up a WHOLE new arena of cases that fall within that $5 - $10 K range. And of course she gets all the ding-dongs that really have $5K cases who try to artificially bump it up to $10K just because that's the limit.