My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: Texas
I've recently downsized from a house to an apartment; both rentals. The lease at the house does not include any verbiage at all as it relates to smoking in the home. My landlord (also a smoker), and his wife, were both aware I smoked at the time I rented the home and never advised against it in any way. My sister stayed with me for 3 months, towards the end of my lease. It has come to my attention, that during that time she (and her boyfriend I assume) were smoking in the bedroom she stayed in. It's also probably safe to say they smoked inside during the time I was at work (full time). I however never smoked in the home the other 10 months of my lease. This was not a situation where it was a party house and 50 people were inside smoking for 13 months. There is not one physical sign of smoke damage; carpet burns or yellowing. This was smoking inside for 3 months, one bed room, possibly other areas during the house during 40 hours of the week. I would consider the odor of that to be very minimal, considering every article inside the home has been removed; smoky furniture, clothes, linens, etc. I agreed to paying to have the carpets shampooed (even using the fancy dry cleaning service he demanded) and agreed to pay for the walls to be repainted (and advised against them using flat/powdery, non-wipe-able, paint in the future). Before vacating the home, I scrubbed down every surface inside the home; walls, counters, doors, floors, toilets, etc. There was not a single sign of any damage besides normal wear and tear, which I have already agreed to pay for even though I shouldn't have to. The house was spotless when I left.
My previous landlord updated me (on day 27 waiting for the refund of my deposit) and is now referring to my deposit as a "final statement"
Apparently, what has happened, is the new tenants that moved in behind me are allergic to cigarette smoke and have detected a cigarette sent. They are claiming headaches have caused them to have to relocate back to the mother's home for all but 5 of the past 27 days.
The landlord has been spending the past 27 days claiming to have repainted the home 3 times, cleaned the carpet 3 times, rented air purifiers, and hired a smoke remediation team, as well as clean the entire AC unit and air ducts. This is only the list that has been reported to me so far, I am still awaiting a detailed break down. The wife of my landlord has also noted there was mold inside the outdated refrigerator. I assured her I cleaned the refrigerator before I left, and did not see mold. She states it was behind the vegetable drawer, and also the inside of the stove was dirty. She told me to expect to see those things on my breakdown as well. There were no other deductions that I am aware of at this time.
They are taking these costs out of my $1,550.00 deposit I paid at the time I moved in. And sending me a "final statement". Which I can only assume means I will owe them in addition to my deposit. In the lease agreement it states, if their costs to repair the home exceeds $1550, I am to pay the remaining amount in full within 10 days of the "final statement".
Due to the lack of physical damage to the home, beyond normal wear and tear, other than an odor. An odor which was previously deemed "undetectable" by my landlord at the time the new tenants did a walk through, 7 weeks ago. Should I be held accountable for $1,550.00 worth of damages? Can they withhold my entire $1,550.00 deposit for a smoke odor, they themselves said they couldn't smell?
The lease also has a clause that the tenants signing the lease are satisfied with the home "as-is" and shouldn't sign the lease until satisfied with the home. At what point would they become liable for costs associated with cleaning a home to meet their special needs due a health condition?
Am I wrong to expect my full deposit back at this point? Less the paint and carpet cleaning I agreed to previously.
Any links to legal assistance, Texas case law on the subject, further definitions of normal wear and tear are all welcomed.
I've recently downsized from a house to an apartment; both rentals. The lease at the house does not include any verbiage at all as it relates to smoking in the home. My landlord (also a smoker), and his wife, were both aware I smoked at the time I rented the home and never advised against it in any way. My sister stayed with me for 3 months, towards the end of my lease. It has come to my attention, that during that time she (and her boyfriend I assume) were smoking in the bedroom she stayed in. It's also probably safe to say they smoked inside during the time I was at work (full time). I however never smoked in the home the other 10 months of my lease. This was not a situation where it was a party house and 50 people were inside smoking for 13 months. There is not one physical sign of smoke damage; carpet burns or yellowing. This was smoking inside for 3 months, one bed room, possibly other areas during the house during 40 hours of the week. I would consider the odor of that to be very minimal, considering every article inside the home has been removed; smoky furniture, clothes, linens, etc. I agreed to paying to have the carpets shampooed (even using the fancy dry cleaning service he demanded) and agreed to pay for the walls to be repainted (and advised against them using flat/powdery, non-wipe-able, paint in the future). Before vacating the home, I scrubbed down every surface inside the home; walls, counters, doors, floors, toilets, etc. There was not a single sign of any damage besides normal wear and tear, which I have already agreed to pay for even though I shouldn't have to. The house was spotless when I left.
My previous landlord updated me (on day 27 waiting for the refund of my deposit) and is now referring to my deposit as a "final statement"
Apparently, what has happened, is the new tenants that moved in behind me are allergic to cigarette smoke and have detected a cigarette sent. They are claiming headaches have caused them to have to relocate back to the mother's home for all but 5 of the past 27 days.
The landlord has been spending the past 27 days claiming to have repainted the home 3 times, cleaned the carpet 3 times, rented air purifiers, and hired a smoke remediation team, as well as clean the entire AC unit and air ducts. This is only the list that has been reported to me so far, I am still awaiting a detailed break down. The wife of my landlord has also noted there was mold inside the outdated refrigerator. I assured her I cleaned the refrigerator before I left, and did not see mold. She states it was behind the vegetable drawer, and also the inside of the stove was dirty. She told me to expect to see those things on my breakdown as well. There were no other deductions that I am aware of at this time.
They are taking these costs out of my $1,550.00 deposit I paid at the time I moved in. And sending me a "final statement". Which I can only assume means I will owe them in addition to my deposit. In the lease agreement it states, if their costs to repair the home exceeds $1550, I am to pay the remaining amount in full within 10 days of the "final statement".
Due to the lack of physical damage to the home, beyond normal wear and tear, other than an odor. An odor which was previously deemed "undetectable" by my landlord at the time the new tenants did a walk through, 7 weeks ago. Should I be held accountable for $1,550.00 worth of damages? Can they withhold my entire $1,550.00 deposit for a smoke odor, they themselves said they couldn't smell?
The lease also has a clause that the tenants signing the lease are satisfied with the home "as-is" and shouldn't sign the lease until satisfied with the home. At what point would they become liable for costs associated with cleaning a home to meet their special needs due a health condition?
Am I wrong to expect my full deposit back at this point? Less the paint and carpet cleaning I agreed to previously.
Any links to legal assistance, Texas case law on the subject, further definitions of normal wear and tear are all welcomed.
Security Deposits: Is Sent of Cigarettes (Without a No-Smoking Clause) Normal Wear and Team
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