Old roommate asking for deposit even though I didnt cause any damages

I used to share an apartment with a couple for one year. I found them on craigslist looking for a roommate and moved in with them. We had no written agreement, just the rent amount was decided verbally. I was not on the lease but paid $300 deposit. Before moving out, I deducted the deposit I paid and transferred rest of the amount. Now the couple has moved out of there and the management has refused to give back their deposit ($1200) for damages in kitchen/dining area. So they are now calling me, sending messages/emails to pay my share of it (My room was clean without any damages). My question is-If I was not on the lease,should I still pay the deposit?

Nah mate. Serves them right for not putting you on the lease (which they probably did because their agreement might specify the number of people allowed to stay in the joint at the agreed rental price).

But...

If you did damage the kitchen, then you should pay. But whats the damage anyways? If its wear and tear then this couple should take it up with whatever your countries form of minor claims court or tribunal to fight it. The landlord could be trying to pull a fast one.

Also they should have a condition report which they should've noted all the defects before moving in. Ask the couple for a copy and see if perhaps it was like that before you got there. Then tell them to shove it.

They allowed you to leave and keep your deposit, therefore in their eyes they didn't see a reason to keep any of your deposit at the time, they can't then claim they want it back now.

Also, you wasn't in the tenancy so legally you shouldn't of been staying there, atleas in the UK, subletting is not generally allowed.

So basically, screw them.

Legally you are probably in the clear because there wasn't any formal lease.

That being said, I would caution against doing this again. No lease works both ways, with you giving up protections afforded to tenants in most jurisdictions. Nothing was stopping you from coming home one day to changed locks and all your stuff on the street.

Did you damage the kitchen or dining area though? Your room being clean doesn't mean much if you put your fist through a press door or the wall of the dining area.

@jesus_phish: Morally that might be an important question, but I'm not sure it matters much legally. If there is no mention/documentation of the damage he did to the kitchen at the time of his moving out, there is absolutely no way the previous tenants can demonstrate that the damage was caused by him. He could just as easily say that they caused the damage themselves - no proof either way, no way he can be held liable. And if the entire arrangement was illegal, I think that invalidates their ability to enforce any claim regardless.

Sure, legally in the clear but if he helped in damaging the place he should do the right thing. if the damage occurred before he moved in, then screw them.

I am a lawyer.

Don't take legal advice from people on video game websites. Even if they claim to be lawyers.

You can take moral advice from anyone you find credible, I guess.

It sounds like your security deposit was basically with THEM (the tenants who sub-let to you) so that they could kick you out if you broke something and refused to pay. It has nothing to do with the security deposit that they made with the rental company. If they didn't have any problem with any damages or cleanliness at the time that you moved out then you're in the clear (as far as common sense goes, legally I have no clue).

If they were like, "Hey we had to hire a maid and you didn't clean the common areas when you moved out, so here's 1/3 of a maid's bill" then that would make sense. Or "Hey you broke this hinge when you lived here so I had to spend an hour and $20 at home depot to fix it, so give me $40!" But for $1200 I only see a few possibilities... either they were negligent when they moved out and didn't clean anything and didn't make basic repairs, they broke something big that they didn't tell you or the maintenance dept about, or the rental company is just screwing them over for the extra money (likely). Not your problem either way because you didn't make a deal with the rental company and you didn't have any opportunity to fix whatever they left broken.

@jesus_phish: He claims that the leasing office is charging him for carpet of the entire house. They had damaged the carpet in the dining area (it was residue from incense sticks that they used to light) and the counter tops of kitchen needed replacement. I hardly used the kitchen during my stay. Moreover, the rent was not equally divided by 3 (I paid more than 1/3rd, I was totally fine with that). So I keep asking them that when they can divide the deposit by 3, why didn't they divide the rent also the same way? His reply is "We charge less than others, people usually charge 40-45% of the entire rent".

@xkkzz: That's exactly what I told him. It was his dealings with the leasing office. He had to figure out how to get his money back. It was not my problem at all and I am not to be involved in it.

@kiran1220: If you had no part in causing damages then I'd say you're clean both morally and legally.

This is a common situation, and from what you've said, in the US (N.E. US at the very least), you're likely in the clear morally and legally. If there was no damage or excessive wear to the carpet that you caused, that's on the landlord to replace as routine maintenance between tenants (every few years, unless excessive wear or damage) - except for whatever damage your roommates did, and that's on them.

In my experience, Landlords pull shady crap all the time with deposits, often just to try and intimidate some money out of someone who doesn't want the hassle and will just pay out of fear or avoidance of going to small claims court.

Often, it's the management/landlord corporations that do this, not private landlords who actually have any sort of compassion or morality. So, beware renting from a landlord who is, or uses, a corporate management company... they will usually be more problematic, on average.

I would kindly suggest to your former roommates that they should fight the landlord on at least your portion of what they were charged... sometimes the challenge alone will cause the landlord to give up instead of going to court. If they do try to take your roommates or you to court, just show up... sometimes the landlord won't, which usually gives you a win by default. Quite often it's really an intimidation tactic, not a real threat they actually want to put the work into going through with.

Hell naw, you shouldn't pay. Morally, you didn't break anything and they're asking for "the thing you pay with if you broke something." So you're good there.

Legally, you say you "had no written agreement" with them. In my incredibly layman's understanding, and what multiple others have said, that means your ex-roomies can't prove anything beyond "they paid us money every little bit while happening to crash at our place." Without a written agreement or SOME proof that you were under a strict agreement involving damages, they can't even get to the stage of claiming rental deposit responsibility, never mind the matter of whether or not you actually had anything to do with the kitchen.

They might take you to small claims, but you'll win if there's no documentation for any of your rental agreements. That's kinda the end of it.

For what it's worth, I'm pretty comfortable saying that the individual responsible for the specific damage is not the person who is legally required to pay for the damage, it's the person/people who signed the lease, so whether or not you did the damage is currently irrelevant. If one wanted to bill someone else for damages for which they were legally responsible, they would have to take that person to small claims court.

Unless a cop shows up, you can do whatever you want!

@kiran1220: Just curious but what made you decide to register for an account on a video game website of all places to ask this question? It's not against the rules or anything I just find it interesting how people choose these things when there are dedicated forums out there for topics like this.

If you are still trying to maintain a friendship with them, you may want to give them some money but it shouldn't be a 3rd of the deposit, they stayed in the place longer than you did, where they there before you moved in also?

Say they were there for 2 years vs your 1 year then you'd only owe a 6th of the deposit vs a 3rd had you been there the same amount of time.

Did you see a picture of the damage, was it there when you were there?

There are alot of reasons not to pay and really the only reason to pay is if you are still trying to be friends with them or you actually caused the actual damage.

You - probably - illegally sub-let an apartment, ain't shit they can do do fam.

As someone who also gets all his legal advice from a video game forum, I would tell them to go pound sand

If you are out of the place and clear of them otherwise....ignore them. Change your email and block their number, if they keep at you. If you truly did no damages and did not sign a lease or sublease they you are morally and legally clear.

These are no people you need to be friends with, you can be polite but just be very clear you did no damage and you sign no agreement. Then say nothing else - no angry words, no back and forth of they said and you said - you are done with this issue.