Legal Q&A: Penalty for returning security deposit late?

August 5, 2015

Question: I have a lease with two male tenants. The lease specifies two occupants only. One of the tenants has a girlfriend who’s spent the night every day of the week for the last month. How do you determine when a guest is an occupant?

Ted Kimball
Kimball, Tirey & St. John LLP

Answer: Unless the tenant admits to having another person move into the rental unit, you need to prove that they are occupying the unit through circumstantial evidence. Proof of facts such as receiving mail at the premises, coming to and from work on a daily basis, present on weekends, or making requests from management all could lead a trier of fact to conclude that the person is an occupant of the premises.

Question: Is there a law for returning the security deposit within a certain time frame? If I missed the due date is there an automatic penalty? I overlooked accounting for a deposit and it has been 25 days.

Answer: California law allows residential tenants and landlords to contract for up to 21 days for the accounting and, if applicable, return of all or a portion of the tenant’s security deposit. There is no automatic penalty for being late.

Question: When we have called attention to a violation of the lease or community rules, tenants frequently will say we are “picking” on them. How can we protect ourselves?

Answer: First, make sure you are enforcing the lease and community rules equally to all violators. The best way to avoid or minimize legal challenges is by documenting all incidents and responding in a consistent manner.

Kimball, Tirey & St. John LLP is a full service real estate law firm representing residential and commercial property owners and managers. This article is for general information purposes only. Laws may have changed since this article was published. Before acting, be sure to receive legal advice from our office. If you have questions, please contact your local KTS office. For contact information, please visit our website: www.kts-law.com. For past Legal Alerts, Questions & Answers, and Legal Articles, please consult the resource library section of our website.

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