Can my former landlord get away with this? (Austin, Howe: real estate, apartments)

[il_corpo]

My wife and I had to move out of a home we rented due to change in work. I contacted the landlord and told him that we need to find a new tenant but I would remain there and continue to pay rent and bills until one could be found. He agreed to let me out of the lease as long as we stay and an new tenant could be found. He also state that if he found a tenant or I did... there would be no charge. We did EVERYTHING our landlord asked of us and left the house in better than our "move-in condition". The only thing we didn't do was clean the carpets because we were told that the new tenants requested that the carpets be steam cleaned. I did however, spot clean and steam clean areas of the carpet to remove some spots (have a three year old).

Now my landlord states that he can back charge me for the months we lived there at a higher rate than what is listed on the lease because they agreed to a lower rent for a longer lease (not in the lease at all). Then he stated that I had to pay him a finders fee because he found the tenant and he is a real estate agent. His other big beef was that the carpets a wreck and stains would not come out. He also stated that there was a strong pet odor come from the carpet. His take is that he is doing me a favor by making me only pay for cleaning of the carpet.

I don't mind him keeping money for professional cleaning or rekeying the place. However, the fact that he feels it is his right to charge me a higher rent for the months we lived there because we were released from the lease early ticks me off. The lease states the rent amount and nothing else about him being able to raise that amount because he feels like it. I am also bothered by the finders fee he charged us. It specifically states that the tenant is not obligated to pay any finders fees if the landlord or tenant finds a replacement. The last thing that bothers me is him complaining about the carpets. The carpets were eight years old when we moved in and there was a musky smell as well. The smell went away when the carpets dried from steam cleaning and we sprinkled carpet deodorizer on the carpet. In addition, he lived there with dogs in his house for seven years and the tenant had dogs before us. We only had a mature tabby cat that used a litter box in washer/dry room. My landlord is making up crap to try and weasel his way into taking all my deposit.

Is it worth going after this guy for screwing us over or does the Texas Property Code so vague that he can do whatever he wants. He did refund some of my money but kept the other $1700.00. I have leased homes and apartments for the last 12 years and always got my full deposit back... this is just crazy!

[il_corpo]

By the way... the new tenant pay a much higher rent per month and the left a heftier deposit. I feel sorry for them when they move out!!

[XLadylawX]

Look to the terms of your original lease agreement. The answers are likely there.

[AusParent]

Just because it's in the lease doesn't make it legal. Run it by the Austin Tenants' Council. It's a free service.

[h886]

Eh, it's impossible to say with the carpets. One person's "in perfect condition" is to another in need of serious cleaning or replacement before they would consider living there. If it was me, I would have had them professionally steam cleaned, just to cover all my bases, had the landlord come in and do a full inspection with you there, and gotten the condition of the place in writing.

Everyone else has good suggestions on what to do if you really want to pursue this. IMHO, you broke the lease early on a house rental, had a 3 year old and a cat that (by your admission, at least for the kid) left stains, and only had to pay $1700 in fees for breaking the lease and deposit deductions for the carpet? I'm not sure it would be worth fighting. It's a chunk of change, I'll grant you that, but usually there are some stiff penalties for breaking the lease early.

[infoseeker2010]

Originally Posted by h886

Eh, it's impossible to say with the carpets. One person's "in perfect condition" is to another in need of serious cleaning or replacement before they would consider living there. If it was me, I would have had them professionally steam cleaned, just to cover all my bases, had the landlord come in and do a full inspection with you there, and gotten the condition of the place in writing.

Everyone else has good suggestions on what to do if you really want to pursue this. IMHO, you broke the lease early on a house rental, had a 3 year old and a cat that (by your admission, at least for the kid) left stains, and only had to pay $1700 in fees for breaking the lease and deposit deductions for the carpet? I'm not sure it would be worth fighting. It's a chunk of change, I'll grant you that, but usually there are some stiff penalties for breaking the lease early.

Totally agree. Read the lease carefully and research your rights as a tenant and his rights as landlord. Pursue only if needed.

Usually early lease break penalties range from atleast one month's rent to whatever. When we were in CA, one apartment used to charge a month's rent for early termination and other charged 50% of remainder of lease..!!

[DORAEMON4ever]

Originally Posted by AusParent

Just because it's in the lease doesn't make it legal. Run it by the Austin Tenants' Council. It's a free service.

I was going to suggest that.

[jbiggs]

Originally Posted by il_corpo

My wife and I had to move out of a home we rented due to change in work. I contacted the landlord and told him that we need to find a new tenant but I would remain there and continue to pay rent and bills until one could be found. He agreed to let me out of the lease as long as we stay and an new tenant could be found. He also state that if he found a tenant or I did... there would be no charge. We did EVERYTHING our landlord asked of us and left the house in better than our "move-in condition". The only thing we didn't do was clean the carpets because we were told that the new tenants requested that the carpets be steam cleaned. I did however, spot clean and steam clean areas of the carpet to remove some spots (have a three year old).

Now my landlord states that he can back charge me for the months we lived there at a higher rate than what is listed on the lease because they agreed to a lower rent for a longer lease (not in the lease at all). Then he stated that I had to pay him a finders fee because he found the tenant and he is a real estate agent. His other big beef was that the carpets a wreck and stains would not come out. He also stated that there was a strong pet odor come from the carpet. His take is that he is doing me a favor by making me only pay for cleaning of the carpet.

I don't mind him keeping money for professional cleaning or rekeying the place. However, the fact that he feels it is his right to charge me a higher rent for the months we lived there because we were released from the lease early ticks me off. The lease states the rent amount and nothing else about him being able to raise that amount because he feels like it. I am also bothered by the finders fee he charged us. It specifically states that the tenant is not obligated to pay any finders fees if the landlord or tenant finds a replacement. The last thing that bothers me is him complaining about the carpets. The carpets were eight years old when we moved in and there was a musky smell as well. The smell went away when the carpets dried from steam cleaning and we sprinkled carpet deodorizer on the carpet. In addition, he lived there with dogs in his house for seven years and the tenant had dogs before us. We only had a mature tabby cat that used a litter box in washer/dry room. My landlord is making up crap to try and weasel his way into taking all my deposit.

Is it worth going after this guy for screwing us over or does the Texas Property Code so vague that he can do whatever he wants. He did refund some of my money but kept the other $1700.00. I have leased homes and apartments for the last 12 years and always got my full deposit back... this is just crazy!

If the excess fees and charges are not a provision of your contract then most likely your landlord is screwing you! Watch the fine print in the contract that gives them a right to change terms without being specific.

Now if you want to check into this it would be well worth it. You say your landlord is also a real estate agent. Check his license at the Texas Real Estate Commission web site TREC - Home Page to make sure it is currently active. It seems he is acting as his own leasing agent for his property. That means he is acting under his real estate agent license. You can either threaten him with a complaint to his licensing board (TREC - Complaints & Consumer Information Main Page) and see if he backs off or just go ahead and file the complaint. If he is running against his licensing terms then his licensing board will nail him to the wall!! Many times these rogue real estate agents don't even want to deal with handling a complaint with their licensing board and will back down. You can read some of the complaints and actions the licensing board takes against agents on that site as well.

You can read at his licensing board web site all of the rules he must follow as an agent and as a leasing agent.