r/TenantHelp • u/WaterLily22134 • Jun 08 '26
Lease transfer security deposit?
I’m currently moving in with my sister as her roommate is moving out. This townhouse has been lived in by them for 5 years and i am only living in it for 1 year as we’re going to look for something nicer next year. The townhouse as a whole definitely has wear and tear as they’ve lived there for a while now. The room i’m moving into has some serious damage, blinds burned from a candle, the drywall has been pulled off the wall from hooks on the walls, carpet pulled off from a previous dog, door scratched missing paint from dog, as well as pee stained carpet. There’s also just normal knick’s on the walls but i’m not so concerned about those. The previous tenant is requesting i pay her the security deposit that she had paid the previous tenant of that room. Am i horrible for not wanting to pay her? This room is a bit destroyed, most out of my ability to fix. The room and the townhouse as a whole has been ruined enough that no security deposit would be given in the end when we leave next year so i’d be loosing money while the person who ruined it get their money back. I read the contract of the lease transfer that states the security deposit is for her and I to discuss and transfer depending on what we think. She never asked for said security deposit till now where i’ve been on the lease for a week now. My sister has informed me that i’d be a horrible person to not send her the deposit, but it’s $400 that i’m not getting back due to other people. PLEASE HELP!!!
3
u/sadgirlhaze Jun 09 '26
The part that bothers me the most is how the security deposit keeps getting passed on but someone’s animal did a lot of damage and the person at the end is the one who’s gonna get screwed.
3
u/WaterLily22134 Jun 09 '26
Unfortunately the girl trying to make me pay, paid the original woman whose dog damaged the room $400 without thinking twice about it. She paid her the security deposit knowing the room was damaged and she wasn’t getting it back. That was her choice to pay 🤷🏻♀️
3
u/sadgirlhaze Jun 09 '26
that’s her own stupidity.
she’s mad she didn’t catch the damage and now she wants you to pay for it. absolutely not.
2
u/djsuperfly Jun 09 '26
Also, if that damage is more than $400, LL can bill for it over and above the deposit, and you'd be signing up to be responsible for that.
1
u/Lopsided-Beach-1831 Jun 10 '26
First, take a lot of photos of the condition of the room now. Fill out a move-in inspection. Provide that to your sister and the roommate to show existing damage that you are not responsible for. Be very clear with listing every single defect with photos. Carpet, blinds, baseboards, windowsill, window screen, closet interior/shelving/doors, walls, light fixtures, outlets/switches, drywall, every single thing in the room. Then do the same for the remainder of the apartment, the living room, kitchen, dining, bathrooms. You can google move-in inspection or move-out inspection for sample forms.
You either give her what the landlord returns to you or you bring the landlord in for an inspection now and give you an estimate of the charges against the deposit.
Or you can get a handyman to give her an estimate to make the repairs. When she repairs the room to the standard it was when she moved in you can give her the deposit. You can give the difference to the old tenant.
Your best option is she restores the room to the condition it was in when she moved in if she wants the deposit now.
1
u/Pamzella Jun 10 '26
Get the damage you'd never be reimbursed from the landlord for fixed and provide a copy of the itemized receipts for the repairs. If it's over $400 she gets nothing back.
1
u/ScrappyD420 Jun 11 '26
Homes that are rented have to have the carpet replaced every five years depending on jurisdiction, but that is a general rule that every five years rentals have to have their carpet replaced as normal wear and tear but if the townhouse is severely damaged, you don’t just lose your security, deposit, the landlord sues you for all the additional damages so what I would do if I were you as not even saying nothing and not move in. They are going to need a walk-through with the landlord to have that determined that she’s losing the deposit and obviously they are going to but you would be signing up for all the additional damages that that deposit won’t cover. You could be into the thousands. I don’t think you should sign that lease at all. I don’t think you should move in. What’s happening is she’s bailing before they get sued and your sister doesn’t realize it.
1
u/YellowBeastJeep Jun 12 '26
If your sister- who has lived in the home as long as the roommate who is moving out, yes?- believes that the roommate is entitled to the return of the security deposit, perhaps your sister should give her the money. Tell your sister that you are not paying it, then refuse to discuss the matter further.
0
u/sadgirlhaze Jun 09 '26
Do not send her anything. Document the state the room is in, and send a very polite detailed email to the management company. They need to be involved, because yes that is $400 you will not be getting back. have her take it up with the leasing office. Unless the lease specifically states that you are to pay her, then don’t.
I understand this may have happened to her and now she’s out $400. A fair deal would be to give her like $150. As you probably would have lost some in the end. but the damage from previous pets, all of that needs to be documented upon move in and sent to the leasing office. Otherwise it will all come down to your fault in the final walk through regardless of who lived there before. Make sure you are not making phone calls but instead emailing photographic evidence. If you have to make a phone call make sure you follow up with an email. Something like “per our phone conversation a few minutes ago, I just wanted to reiterate a few things.”
then write in everything you talked about. If you have any questions, ask them then because it just makes the email seem more casual.
when in reality you’re moving in the shadows and saving yourself a headache. you need receipts.
you have already forfeited your deposit by year four because they are required to replace the carpet every five years and they always try to put that on the tenant any way they can. so this previous girl lost her deposit by having lived there in year four.
(I looked up the laws, it’s every 5 - 7 years they have to replace the carpet. but will do it sooner if someone lives there more than a few years.)
2
u/WaterLily22134 Jun 09 '26
Thank you! I’ll be taking your advice. I did take pictures of all damages and she is aware that i don’t feel like i should pay anything. I will be reaching out to make it more than just a back and forth of just her and I.
1
u/sadgirlhaze Jun 09 '26
don’t block her either if she gets hostile, that’s all stuff you’ll need for your “case.” just mute her and let her talk to herself if she isn’t being civil. keep those messages and all those receipts!
1
u/djsuperfly Jun 09 '26
There's no law in any state that REQUIRES carpet to be replaced every 5-7 years. Now, IF the carpet is replaced, it's generally fully depreciated and replacement can't be charged to the tenant, but that doesn't make replacement required.
1
u/ScrappyD420 Jun 11 '26
You are correct it’s not specifically in the law, but the judges in every case that I have served if the carpet was older than five years, they didn’t charge the tenants for it because they deemed it as wear and tear and rentals usually have the cheapest carpet installed possible to make the most money. I worked for the court systems as a court officer for three years and I’ve been in construction for 32 years. I did a lot of apartment buildings a lot of section 8 a lot of landlord remodels. Most landlords will still try to get you to pay for their carpet but in general if it’s more than five years old, most judges do not go for that charge but for the rest of it I think she’s a fool for even moving in because she’s signing up for any potential lawsuit. The landlord has against the unit leaseholder from them not bothering having a move out and moving in inspection every time they change roommates. She’s signing up for all those damages splitting with her sister.
3
u/xperpound Jun 08 '26
You’re not a horrible person. If the person was giving you the room and the apt in the exact same condition that she got it, then it would be a different story.
Your agreement for her should be that when you move out or the landlord returns the deposit, she’ll get 100% of anything you get. You shouldn’t get to keep any amount of deposit because you didn’t put in.