Court Shuts Down Landlord's Security Deposit Side Business

A jury in Alameda County, California put an end to a landlord's practice of illegally keeping departing tenants' security deposits. According to The Mercury News, over an eight-year period, the landlord refused to return security deposits after falsely claiming that tenants damaged their apartments well beyond normal wear and tear. If tenants complained, they were intimidated. The landlord reportedly defrauded some 200 tenants in 150 apartments, to the tune of $183,000.

In finding the landlord liable, the jury awarded the tenants $5.5 million in punitive damages, a figure that represents 30 times the amount the landlord illegally withheld. The landlord faces possible fines under a state unfair competition law and could also be ordered to pay the tenants' attorneys' fees.

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