New York Tenancy Deposit Lawyers

New York tenants who find that their landlord has not returned their security deposit or overcharged for rent have several options at their disposal if their security deposit or rent payments have not been returned as agreed. A demand letter should be written up immediately so that there will be a record of this request and action taken accordingly.

If a landlord refuses or does not return your deposit within an acceptable time after moving out of an apartment, filing a small claims court claim can be beneficial. Watch a few cases on your local court's website or ask someone experienced with similar cases for guidance before going to court; practicing your statement beforehand with someone can ensure it's clear and succinct when testifying before court is also useful; depending on the circumstance involved a landlord may be held liable up to twice what amount was wrongfully withheld as compensation.

Landlords cannot charge non-refundable fees on tenants' security deposits and cannot charge more than one month's rent as security deposits. Landlords are required to give tenants an itemized list of deductions taken from their security deposits and report the interest earned through them on their individual income tax returns.

Landlords should keep deposits separate from their personal funds to stay within the law and return any deposits held as trust to tenants at the conclusion of their tenancies. Any landlord who mixes funds from tenant deposits with personal funds violates this statute, so any such landlords should immediately return the deposits they've taken back from tenants when the tenancies end.

At times, tenants will need to move due to job changes or finding larger quarters for their growing families. Unfortunately, their security deposit with their previous landlord may no longer cover the last month's rent; New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) has specific rules pertaining to when such deposits can be used as final rent payment.

The DHCR states that landlords cannot retaliate against tenants who take legal action or report code violations. If you liked this write-up and you would certainly like to get more facts concerning no win no fee tenancy deposit dispute kindly visit the webpage. This means they can't increase rent, decrease services or evict them as a response. Therefore, tenants should report any problems they see to the DHCR immediately and consider taking photos when moving in and out to provide evidence of its condition and prevent disputes when collecting security deposits.