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I have a rental unit that was recently vacated by tenants. They have been good tenants and lived in the unit for 8 years. No damage was done, only significant wear and tear.
My tenants advised me verbally over 2 months ago that they were buying a property that was a short sale. When they paid their rent for August, they still did not know a closing date. I was presented with a paper that suggested a closing might occur 8-31-12. The tenants wanted to do some upgrades to the new home before they moved in and thought they might be in my unit until that was accomplished, perhaps 2-4 weeks into September. I told them I was willing to work with that, but my assumption was they would be in the unit until the end of August. After that was up in the air. But I did tell them I needed 30 days notice prior to vacating the unit. I knew the unit would need some work done after 8 years and needed to prepare for the work.
August 22 I was advised by tenant they moved out of the unit on the 21st. They decided to move into the new home without doing upgrades and notified me after the fact.
English is not my tenants first language, so perhaps our communication was not quite understood.
My question is should I pro-rate the month of August and return a portion of the rent with the security deposit?
Thanks for the replies. I feel the tenants did not give proper notice and I am not going to pro-rate the rent for August. I had no intention of making them pay for September, so that's not a worry. So I will note the official end of term as 8-31-12. The security deposit will be returned previous to the 21 days following that date.
My former tenants refused to give me their new address (long story), but it has nothing to do with me as the landlord. They have asked I give the security deposit to their friend/neighbor a few houses down. As I read the law, it states with no forwarding address, send to the address they moved from, which would be my rental address. This is my intent.
The only other issue I have is one remote for the garage door that was not returned. A quick Internet search for the type of remote in question states they work for 1997 to current year. The remote not returned was 1996. Now I am wondering if I will need to purchase 2 remotes or will there be a problem in general with replacements due to the year and will I need to purchase a new opener with 2 remotes. Since I am not well informed on this issue, I guess I will need to contact a garage door company to inquire. I've never lost a remote. I have also considered holding back a specific amount of the security deposit to be returned once I either receive the missing remote or have it replaced. But am not sure how much that might be.
They lived in your place for eight years and were good tenants. Forget about the remote where they're concerned. As far as their security deposit is concerned, all you need to do is make the cheque out to your tenants and write up a note in duplicate saying that per their oral request, you are hand-delivering the cheque to so and so at such and such address and have the friends/neighbors sign the note acknowledging its receipt. One copy to the neighbors to give to the former tenants and one copy for your records.
Don't forget about the remote. It's causing you time/money out of pocket. So what if it's "small" and they were "great" tenants. They're still costing you.
I would not give a check to some stranger. Send it to the address, like you planned.
The tenants DID give the landlord a new address - the neighbor's. They very likely did not leave a forwarding address with the post office from the sounds of things. I agree with STT - have the neighbor sign for the check, "as per the request of the former tenants".
And I would forget about the remote. They lost an item. It might just be returned once they unpack. We're not talking hundreds of dollars either.
I would charge for 1 new remote. Write down the brand and model# for the garage door opener. go to Home Depot or Lowes. They have many remotes and they specify on the package which models they work with. And they give instructions for setting the code.
If you want to buy 2 remotes, go ahead. But only charge them for the 1 they kept. They are usually in the $20 range.
FYI...some state rules give you X days from the day the tenant moved out. In your case, send written notice/return deposit within 21 days of move out, not 21 days after 8/31. Just to be safe as far as proper dates. Still charge them through end of August, just send the security deposit return sooner.
I think I would follow state law as far as returning the deposit. i am on the fence as to what is proper to do and what will CYA. I would consider telling the friend that you must follow state law and send certified mail/deposit check to the rental address since they refused to give forwarding address. Seems you want to give the deposit to the friend because it's what they requested, but it doesnt follow the law and will you be deemed as breaking the rules? I am not sure what I would do in your case. It's a tough call.
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I have also considered holding back a specific amount of the security deposit to be returned once I either receive the missing remote or have it replaced. But am not sure how much that might be.
