Owners Want to Move Back In
Question: I live in Houston and rent out a house in Southern California. The tenants have lived in the house for 18 months. They had a lease for the first year but then opted to go month-to-month.
Recently, my husband was transferred back to the area, and we want to move back into the house. We gave the tenants a 30-day notice to vacate, but they have threatened to see a lawyer because they don’t think I have given them enough time to move.
If they do not leave in the 30 days, what steps do I need to take? How much will it cost me, and how long does the procedure take? Can I recover any costs from them, such as furniture storage fees and hotel bills as well as court and lawyer fees? We have already given notice here in Houston.
Answer: You are right in your assumption that state law requires you to give the tenants a 30-day notice to move in a month-to-month tenancy. If your tenants had renewed the lease six months ago (which is actually done at the owner’s option, not the tenant’s), they would have been able to stay in the house for six more months, until the lease expired. If the tenants do not leave within the 30 days as required by the notice you have given them, you may have to evict them. First talk to them and try to work something out, which is a better solution than hiring lawyers and going to court.
For instance, the average uncontested eviction takes four to six weeks. If it is contested, as your tenants have suggested it may be, it can take from eight to 10 weeks. If you can negotiate something with the tenants in which they pay a little additional rent for the extra time they stay, and move out within a week or two after the notice expires, you will save money and aggravation.
The risk is that the tenants make the deal and then break it, and you wind up having to evict them anyway.
If you have to evict, you should use an eviction attorney (many attorneys specialize in this area of the law). The average cost of an uncontested eviction is $400 while a contested eviction will cost about $550 to $600.
You can collect attorney’s fees from the tenants, but only if you have a written agreement that provides for it. The agreement must contain the following type of language, which is taken from the rental agreement of the Apartment Assn. of Greater Los Angeles. It says, “If any legal action or proceeding is brought by Owner or Renter related to this Agreement, the prevailing party shall be entitled to recover attorney’s fees not to exceed $500.”
Note that the language in the agreement also gives the owner or the tenant the right to collect attorney’s fees should they prevail in court. This language is a must. Also, while you can collect from the tenants for attorney’s fees and unpaid rent during the course of an eviction, you cannot collect anything for your furniture storage or hotel bills.
General Cleaning Charges Disputed by Renters
Q: My wife and I rented an apartment in Manhattan Beach while our house was being built. When we moved out we were assessed the following charges: carpet cleaning, $95; general cleaning, $220; clean out gas stove burners from food/liquid overspill, $50.
I have never heard of charging a tenant for “general cleaning” (I also own and rent out a condo). The bottom line is that we cleaned this place for two days and left it cleaner than it was when we moved into it.
Are there any laws or codes relating to the return of security deposits? Are there definitions of normal use or typical wear and tear? Also, who is responsible for carpet cleaning and normal cleaning, and are there any time limits on returning the security deposit?
A: California Civil Code section 1950.5 contains the state law governing the collection and return of security deposits in residential rentals. The code specifically provides that money may be deducted from the security deposit for cleaning, which includes carpet cleaning. It is unlikely, however, that an owner can charge you for cleaning an apartment if you actually left the unit cleaner than you found it. Money also may be deducted from the security deposit for unpaid rent and damages.
There are no hard and fast definitions of normal use or typical (usually referred to as normal) wear and tear. In any event, normal wear and tear does not relate to cleaning charges, which are the ones your letter questions.
If you think you are being unjustly charged for cleaning of the apartment, you can sue the owner in Small Claims Court for the return of money improperly withheld from the deposit. Pictures are often great evidence in court, but it can be difficult to show the difference with pictures between their definition of clean and yours.
Under state law, the owner has 21 calendar days to return the security deposit, or unused balance of it, to you.
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Kevin Postema is the editor of Apartment Age magazine, a publication of the Apartment Assn. of Greater Los Angeles, an apartment owners’ service group, and the manager of public affairs for the California Apartment Law Information foundation, which disseminates information about landlord-tenant law to renters and owners in California. Mail your question on any aspect of apartment living to AAGLA, care of Kevin Postema, 12012 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles CA 90025, or e-mail aagla@aol.com.
