When should I call an attorney about a security deposit return?

I moved out of a apartment on May 15th and as of yet I have not received my security deposit back from the old landlord. She is refusing to answer my calls and has not returned any of the voicemails that I have left her. There was no damage to the apartment and the lease state 30 days after I move out that I can have my deposit back.|||You do not need to pay a lawyer for this.





Many states require that you send a demand letter 1st. This should be sent certified mail for proof she got it. She then has another x# of days to send your refund. this # varies by state. If she still does not refund it then you have to sue her for it.|||First, ignore the spammer. Then, take your landlord to small claims court. 'The fact that she doesn't answer your calls and hasn't given you an itemized list of damages to justify keeping the deposit means she'll be in trouble. In some states she has two weeks to return the deposit or tell you why she's keeping it. If she doesn't she may legally owe you 3 times the deposit in damages. Small claims court was mad for this very thing....and no lawyers are allowed.|||What state are you in? Take her to court...she has more than likely already violated state landlord tenant law.|||Filing a small claims suit against the landlord is a relatively simple process; but the key to your success, is the documentation on the condition you left the rental , without documentation you will have a very difficult case to make.





You can consult a lawyer but in majority of small claims jurisdiction lawyers are only allowed if you are suing a corporation in small claims court





To begin with check your state laws on the time frame for returning a tenants security deposit, if the state time line is shorter then the 30 day within the lease, then the state statute time line is the controlling authority





Once the time line has passed, all you have to do is go down to the local court house where the property is located, request a small claims form, you maybe even able to download it from the county web site; fill it out make the required number of copies, and pay the filling fee





at court the best option for you would be if the landlord failed to make an accounting of your security deposit within your state time line or lease, in that case all you would have to show is the landlord failed to make the accounting on time. if on the other hand you receive and accounting within the time line and want to sue for the difference you would then need to produce evidence to refute the landlords claim of damage to the rental|||Most states require that the deposit be "postmarked" by the 30th day. Since it's only the 16th...I would give a few more extra days before you even think about small claims court.