已经在法坛发了贴子,想想家坛有很多朋友热心又见多识广,决定再来问一下。有类似遭遇的请分享。
几天前在投坛咨询关于要回被扣租房押金的事。现在准备把房东告上小额法廷,有些法律问题想请教各位高人。
事情的前因后果大致如下:
两个星期前收到了儿子及室友上学年住公寓的押金。押金共$1,250,被扣掉了$475,如下:
- Professional Cleaning Service-$175
- Steam cleaning Service-$175
- Paint touch up-$75
- Light Bulbs-$25
- Smoker Detector Batteries-$25
我们觉得deductions are outrageous,特别是考虑到 去年在预定的move in 那天,房子根本就没有打扫。(有照片但照片看起来没有实际情况那么糟)。去找物管,说是周六没人打扫,得等到周一才有人。在两家家长的一再坚持下,物管才找人来草草打扫了下。但因为不能按时搬入,我们家长原本可以当天返回家 的,不得不在酒店住一晩上。 儿子和室友 had filed maintenance reports about the holes in the floor tiles, the cracks in kitchen drawers, and the MOLD in the bathroom before even setting up their beds in place.
儿子住在那儿的两学期,经历过了夏天长时间没有空调,没有洗衣机(坏了报告了没人修)的遭遇。
尽管如此,我们搬出前,还是把房间用吸尘器吸了一遍。
儿子就押金问题与房东公司交涉。房东只答应退paint up$75 。其它的,房东的答复就是都写进(rules packet ,which was given to the tenants 3 months after they moved in)里的。
我没有 rules packet ,只有 contract. Contract 里确实有很多fine prints.比如, In the contract, there are special provisions saying:
“Maid services and steam cleaning charges deducted from security deposit at move out".
我们查了本州的property code,认为以上条款与法律有冲突,例如法律规定:
“The landlord may not retain any portion of a security deposit to cover normal wear and tear” on the premises and may only charge for actual abnormal damage caused by a tenant.
我们的理解是如果 normal wear and tear 都不能扣,cleaning 的费用就更不该扣。何况房间搬入之前就很脏。
周二代表儿子与房东联系(email)要求房东提供以下文件:
1). Receipts of the deductions taken from the deposit check
2). An itemized list of deductions with a description of the damages
3). Move in inspection list
已经过去4天了,房东没有任何答复,估计不准备答复。(房东很aggressive,曾在电话上yell at an office woker while she was speaking to us "hang up the damn phone").
觉得房东 was abusive and mistreated the tenants because they are college students,所以想fight.
我的问题:
1)凡是写进合同里的东西,都有最高法律效力吗?即使与相关法律有冲突?
2)房客入住前没有打扫,房东算不算违约在先?房东以前的不作为(不修空调),现在还能告吗?
3)告房东,我们有什么事项需要注意以保护自己?
4)除了打官司,有其它解决办法吗?
多谢各位不吝赐教。