Is this legal to deny security deposit?
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Is this legal to deny security deposit?
I signed a 1 year lease that expired over 4 months ago. The landlord did not have me sign another one. Approximately 6 weeks ago I gave my landlord notice that I was moving on the first of this month. Onj the first, we did a walk-through and he stated, “Everything looks good. I will send you your deposit in the mail”. However, today I received a letter stating that he was not returning the security deposit because he was unable to rent the apartment until next month so he lost a month’s rent. Is this legal? Where do I go from here?
Asked on October 17, 2011 under Real Estate Law, New York
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
When there is no in-force lease--either because no lease was ever signed, or because a lease expired and was not renewed--the tenancy is a month-to-month tenancy. With a month-to-month tenancy, the tenant only needs to provide (as the term implies) one month's notice of his or her intention to terminate the tenancy. If you provided 6 weeks notice, that should be more than adequate. Therefore, from what you right, it would seem that a tenant your position should get his or her security deposit back. If the landlord won't return it, you could sue for its return. You could sue in small claims court, acting as your own lawyer, to keep costs low, though you may wish to consult with an attorney about this first, before deciding what to do (many lawyers will provide a free initial consultation): in some cases, you can recover lawyer fees and/or extra compensation if a landlord wrongfully withholds a security deposit. Good luck.
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