Can a landlord keep your security deposit if you never signed a lease or moved in?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Can a landlord keep your security deposit if you never signed a lease or moved in?
Asked on March 31, 2012 under Real Estate Law, Rhode Island
Answers:
Christopher Vaughn-Martel / VAUGHN-MARTEL LAW
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
In Massachusetts, the security deposit may lawfully be applied toward damages to the unit or unpaid rent. There are very specific requirements for taking and retaining security deposit payments. Talk to a lawyer. You will want to send a demand letter and, if you do not get a reasonable response, you will want to file in small claims court. A court may award triple your security deposit and attorney's fees if your landlord is in violation of the security deposit law. Good luck.
Gerard Donley / Donley Law Office
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
No. The security deposit is solely for "damage" in residential tenancies in Rhode Island. Individual circumstances in each case do have an influence on the outcome, but I can imagine no case in which a landlord would be able to retain the security deposit if you caused no damage or didn't move in.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.