Security deposit angst
 

Advice, please, from any and all who own and rent out to seasonals. I've been a renter in TV for years and have never experienced this situation before. I rented this past season directly from an owner and paid a $750 security deposit. The owner has not returned it, nor does she respond to my emails or phone messages. I have been waiting for a month.

We left the house in better shape than we found it, so there is no cause for withholding the deposit.

What recourse do I have? Send a registered letter? Small claims court? Call the cops in TV or call the cops in the owner's home town? Call Tony Soprano?

Did you have a contractual agreement for the rental that noted the security deposit?

Bill

As a rule, we return the security deposit within a week. Perhaps they are on vacation........

Security deposit angst
 

Absolutely.

Excellent! A lot of people don't bother with contracts for short term rentals. The contract will at least give you a leg to stand on if you wind up needing to pursue recovering the deposit through legal means.

Bill

I would go to small claims court if required. Start by sending a registered letter with a return signature required. My contract with tenants states I have up to 15 days to return the deposit, however I try to send it back to them within two or three days. To date I have never had to remove any part of a deposit for any reason. People generally leave our homes in good condition.

The place to start on a dispute like this is Seniors Vs Crime. I take it you are not preently in The Villages so you need to give them a call to discuss your complaint. As an alternative, you can email them. They can tell you what they need in the way of documentation of your claim and can mail or email you the forms. Not sure where you rented in TV but there are two Seniors Vs Crime Offices here. It is a state organization so it doesn't matter which one you use. One is in north TV in Marion County and one is in south central TV in Sumter County. Emails for both are MarionSVC@yahoo.com or SumterSVC@yahoo.com. Phones for both are (Marion) 352-753-7775 and they are open Tue and Wed 10 AM to 2 PM; Sumter is 352-689-4600, Extension 4606 and they are open Tue, Wed, and Thur 10 AM to 2 PM. There is no charge for their services either.

I'm so sorry that you have had this experience. We had a similar situation last July - we rented a CYV that accepted no pets (we love dogs, but are allergic and look for rentals that do not accept pets for that reason) - it was a lovely stay and the owners were very nice - and, like you, we left it much cleaner than when we arrived. 2 weeks past and not a word from the owner, and more importantly no sign of our deposit. I emailed the owner, stating that according to the contract, the deposit was to be returned in so many days, etc. She emailed me back and stated that because the house keeper had found dog hair on the bed and pieces of dog food on the kitchen floor that we had not adhered to the agreement. And they had to call a repair man out to check out the dishwasher (we let them know that the DW wasn't working and that smoke and a burning smell was coming out of it when we tried to use it - thought I was doing them a favor by informing) so that was an expense for them. I had her phone number and had a long conversation w/her - assuring her that we would not have rented a villa that did not accept pets, if we were going to bring ours. I know she didn't know us and was trusting the feedback that she was receiving from her housekeeper, so I didn't expect to get our money back. But she finally agreed to send the full amount back to us. It was a good outcome for us financially, but it does puzzle me as to what really happened and I don't like people thinking I tried to swindle them in some way. Sorry, didn't mean to hijack your thread, but had to vent. I hope you get your money back.