[RUBIES77]

We rented a house for five weeks at a cost of $2,800, plus an additional $300 Security Deposit, in Davenport, Florida, near Orlando.

We left the house cleaner than we found it, and made sure that garbage was disposed off properly, dishes clean, sheets clean, etc. Now, the landlord is refusing to give us the Security Deposit, because "we did not leave the house according to his standards."

We believe this to be a ruse that he has used with many other people before us to take our money from us, and he needs to be stopped.

What we need is to know what agencies in the State of Florida, will safeguard the rights of people renting vacation homes. We live out-of-state.

Your prompt attention to this matter, is greatly appreciated, and we thank you.

[Denise in Fla]

Not sure who you would report it too, but anytime we rent we take before and after pictures. Never know when you might need them!

[Retiredcoach]

Did the owner of the property give you an itemized list of the damages?

You could always take him to court, but it is probably not worth your time and potential costs to pursue this.

[MiamiRob]

RUBIES there is a Landlord & Tenants Act in Florida which protects both sides. Did you have a written Lease agreement with him? If so he should have given you written notice on why he wasn't returning your deposit. You do have rights.

[On-da-Beach]

If you paid with a credit card, simply dispute the charge. His merchant account carrier will want him to prove the charge as genuine. If you paid by cash or check...good luck.

[cfIfan]

If you rented through a realtor you can report them to National Assosciation of realtors and they will be investigated. You can also complain to the Department of Business and Professional regulation. If it was from a private landlord, then in all honesty you are taking your chances renting from private land lords to begin with. You could engage an attorney but the liklihood is it would cost you alot more than you would get back.

Good luck

[Sunny-Days-in-Florida]

If you believe the charges were not warranted and he charged you for things that just were not there you need to contact the Florida Attorney General.

You can file a small claims lawsuit as well for a low fee cost.

And yes, if you used a credit card, file a chargeback, he/she will be working hard to fix it as they have to prove it or lose all of the money in your dispute.

[cfIfan]

I dont understand how people keep talking about if you paid by credit card. If you rented from a private landlord the liklihood is they wouldnt have the facilities to accept a credit card. Also i believe you would have no claim through the credit card company as it was a security deposit which can be withheld given certain criteria. You would have a claim if they charged you twice and didnt refund the second amount but this isnt the case. You would have to go through a court to show that the deposit which was withheld by the landlord was unreasonable which it sounds like it was. It is for this reason i say if it was through a real estate or management company go through the DBPR. They are a government entity who deal with licensure and you can make a complaint online through their website.

Once again if it was a private landlord the only recourse is court.

[On-da-Beach]

Originally Posted by cfIfan

I dont understand how people keep talking about if you paid by credit card. If you rented from a private landlord the liklihood is they wouldnt have the facilities to accept a credit card. Also i believe you would have no claim through the credit card company as it was a security deposit which can be withheld given certain criteria. You would have a claim if they charged you twice and didnt refund the second amount but this isnt the case. You would have to go through a court to show that the deposit which was withheld by the landlord was unreasonable which it sounds like it was. It is for this reason i say if it was through a real estate or management company go through the DBPR. They are a government entity who deal with licensure and you can make a complaint online through their website.

Once again if it was a private landlord the only recourse is court.

This was obviously a vacation rental (5 weeks) and many owners have a merchant account in order to offer the use of credit cards when booking the property. It increases the number of bookings tremendously.
Many guests will only use credit cards for that reason. They can dispute charges if necessary.
Or they could call my cousin...Crooked-nose Louie...he'll take care of the dispute. But he's kinda pricey...

[RUBIES77]

Originally Posted by MiamiRob

RUBIES there is a Landlord & Tenants Act in Florida which protects both sides. Did you have a written Lease agreement with him? If so he should have given you written notice on why he wasn't returning your deposit. You do have rights.

Yes, I do have a written lease, but he is in England, and I am in NYC.