I recently moved out from my apartment in Minneapolis, MN. I recently received a letter from my landlady, informing me she was withholding my entire deposit for damages to two specific areas of the apartment.

1) The wooden island counter-top in the kitchen had a 1' x 1' cooking oil stain on it from my use. She attempted and could not repair the counter, so had it completely replaced. The island was unfinished, and in the dry Minnesota winter easily and quickly absorbed the dark, used cooking oil.

My question: Since the island was unfinished, is it reasonable for her to charge me with the replacement of a island because of a stain that occurred through the normal / typical use of kitchen equipment? While I take full responsibility for my actions, I don't believe that my actions were outside the normal and expected use of the kitchen, and don't believe I should be charged the full replacement cost ($750 U.S.).

2) (The less important, nit picky question)
When I moved in, the landlady agreed to paint the apartment for me before I moved in. She ended up not doing this, and told me that I could paint it myself. I'm an amateur painter, and some water based paint eventually ended up on the wooden floor and window sills. I was charged for the removal of this paint.

My question: Since it was her responsibility to paint the apartment by verbal agreement, and I was supplying the labor free of charge, is it reasonable for her to withhold deposit in order to pay for the paint removal?

Overall Question for both issues: If I decided to confront her with this issue, and we were not able to come to any sort of personal settlement, how strong would my case be in a small claims court?

Thank you in advance for your advice,

Jesse

How much did she actually charge you for the counter top? A satin on a used, unfinished counter should not result in a full cost replacement. I would tell her, in writing, what you think is a reasonable charge as your offer, if she refuses then says you may sue in small claims. I can't addess the paint without seeing it, how bad of a job was it?

How much did she actually charge you for the counter top? A satin on a used, unfinished counter should not result in a full cost replacement. I would tell her, in writing, what you think is a reasonable charge as your offer, if she refuses then says you may sue in small claims. I can't addess the paint without seeing it, how bad of a job was it??

The paint charge is reasonable. There are only small drops here and there, but if you factor in the cost of the tools to remove the paint (Paint thinner and a scraper) + her time, the cost is reasonable. I only ask because, if I'm going to burn this bridge in an attempt to get my deposit back, I might as well go all the way.

For the counter, I am far enough away now that the plane ticket back to the state, plus court fees, would make suing for my deposit unsound financially. I am more interested in my chances in court because I think that is a good benchmark for how reasonable my position is when I approach her in an attempt to make a personal settlement.

For matters such as this and other landlord tenant disputes you can receive advice from your State attorney generals office.They will be able to assist you.
Here is the on line link for your state.
Often just getting a letter from them will make a landlord think twice about their claim.

Office of Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson (http://www.ag.state.mn.us/)

Thanks, that was exactly what I'm looking for. I'll contact the state office and see what they say.

-Jesse

Frankly, I think you should drop it. What is going to happen is she will bring an affidavit from the company who replaced the counter top that will state replacement was necessary. Their expert opinion will trump your inexpert one.

What you should have done is get your own expert to state that a replacement was not necessary or that the unfinished nature of the counter-top contributed to having the stain set.