Landlord Had Incorrect Address when I Sent a Dispute of Charges

My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: Michigan

My landlord sent a list of damages to my apartment (kind of). I sent my dispute of damages within 7 days (via certified mail) to the address listed for him on my lease. However, the letter was not delivered because the address on the lease is not his correct address. Should I just send another to his correct address? Am I at fault for not getting it to him within 7 days? It has now been 45 days since my move out date, and I have not received my deposit back. Under Michigan law, I should be able to sue for double the amount, provided I followed all laws preceding, including returning a dispute of damages within 7 days. But since he never received my dispute (through an error on HIS part) should I just resend to his correct address, or just file a small claims case now?

Did you send it to the address he provided to you to contact him? If so you fulfilled your requirements as far as that goes.

Did you provide him with a proper new address for yourself?

Yes, I provided him with my new address when I gave my move-out notice. The only address ever provided to me is the one on the lease, which is apparently wrong. I did notice after my letter was returned that his return address when he sent me the notice of damages was different than the address on the lease, but I feel like I shouldn't really be expected to notice that difference. I guess my question now is, since the 7 days I'm allowed to respond has long since passed, should I go ahead and resend my dispute? Would this show a good-faith effort being made on my part if and when it goes to court? Or should I just go ahead and file a small claims case on the basis that I have no way to contact him to dispute his charges?

Michigan has some very specific requirements regarding these issues. I will have to research it a bit so I can be accurate but cannot do it at the moment but if nobody else picks this up, I will get back to it soon.

Thank you, jk. I might also mention that I did not receive an itemized list of damages, just a list of numbers and some photocopied receipts. Also it seems that I was charged $400 to replace an interior closet door--I found the same door at lowe's website for $30. There are several things fishy about this LL.
Here's one of the laws I've found--just have questions about interpretation.

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/%28S%2...me=mcl-554-609

He also did not included the "you have 7 days to respond" clause anywhere, but I wonder if a judge would see that as nitpicking. Thanks for the help.

that is one of the statutes I was speaking that has specific language required.

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The notice of damages shall include the following statement in 12 point boldface type which shall be at least 4 points larger than the body of the notice: “You must respond to this notice by mail within 7 days after receipt of same, otherwise you will forfeit the amount claimed for damages

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so by that alone he loses a right to claim any damages. I like the part about it must be in 12 pt boldface type and that must be at least 4 points larger than the body of the notice.



any judge who would see that as nitpicking should not be a judge. That is a very specific element of the law and is there for a reason. The fact they legislature felt it must be so noticeable that is in larger and boldface type, they mean what it says.

there is more that needs to be discovered in other statutes as well

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Quote:

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554.603 Security deposit; notice.Sec. 3.
A landlord shall not require a security deposit unless he notifies the tenant no later than 14 days from the date a tenant assumes possession in a written instrument of the landlord's name and address for receipt of communications under this act, the name and address of the financial institution or surety required by section 4 and the tenant's obligation to provide in writing a forwarding mailing address to the landlord within 4 days after termination of occupancy. The notice shall include the following statement in 12 point boldface type which is at least 4 points larger than the body of the notice or lease agreement: “You must notify your landlord in writing within 4 days after you move of a forwarding address where you can be reached and where you will receive mail; otherwise your landlord shall be relieved of sending you an itemized list of damages and the penalties adherent to that failure.” Failure to provide the information relieves the tenant of his obligation relative to notification of the landlord of his forwarding mailing address.

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were you given proper notice at the onset of the lease, including the part about your requirement to provide a valid forwarding address within 4 days after termination of occupancy?

and did you provide that address within the 4 days?

I gave my landlord my forwarding address when I gave him my notice to vacate, which was sent in writing 30 days before me move out date. Does that count? He obviously had my address, since he sent me the list of damages.

yes it does. The law requires you provide it within 4 days after the termination of occupancy. That is the date you effectively moved out. If it was included in your notice it was more than adequate.

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regarding the landlord's address; from a previously cited statute:

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A landlord shall not require a security deposit unless he notifies the tenant no later than 14 days from the date a tenant assumes possession in a written instrument of the landlord's name and address for receipt of communications under this act

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and another section:

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554.612 Response to notice of damages.Sec. 12.
If a landlord claims damages to a rental unit and gives notice of damages as required, the tenant upon receipt of the list of damages shall respond by ordinary mail to the address provided by the landlord as required by section 3 within 7 days, indicating in detail his agreement or disagreement to the damage charges listed. For the purposes of this section the date of mailing shall be considered the date of the tenant's response.

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I would argue that if the landlord did not give actual notice of a change of address, then the address you were required to respond to was the one on the lease. In the notice, did it specify you were to reply to the address contained in the notice?

The notice of damages had no address. It was literally just a series of charges with no description, like so:

$625.00
-29.18
-40.90
-412.94
.... and so on. Al hand-written. Then wrote "Please send ck" at the bottom. He also included photocopied receipts. And that's it. No address in the list of damages. I would argue that this doesn't even constitute a "list of itemized damages". Looking through my paperwork, I just now noticed that the addendum concerning my security deposit DOES have his correct address... :/ On my actual lease, the street number is 257, but on the security deposit addendum it is 251. When I mailed my dispute of damages letter, I used the 257 address from the lease. So hmmm... now I wonder if that will come back to bite me. Still, it isn't exactly crystal clear. And there's still the issue of no itemized list of damages, and no clause about responding within 7 days.
So, should I just resend the dispute to the correct address and hope that a judge will recognize this as confusion caused by the LL? He is supposed to file a court case within 45 days after I move out, which is actually today. After that time, I must take HIM to court, for up to double the amount. But if he doesn't receive my dispute within 7 days, the law says I cannot dispute it. So I'm just wondering what is the best course to take from here. Resend it, then wait for him to file a case? Or should I just file a case against him right now?

do you believe there is anything actually owed you? It sounds like the damages claimed far exceed the deposit held by the landlord.

He wants to keep my entire deposit, and is even asking for an additional $30 or so. In my dispute, I agreed to some of the damages and asked for something like $460 out of my original $625 deposit. But I'm wondering if I should just ask for all of it back since he never really sent an itemized list. Also, if LL doesn't file a court case against me within 45 days, I am allowed to file a case against him for double the amount of the deposit. He can still take alleged damages from this. 45 days has passed, but he still hasn't received my dispute, because of the issue under discussion here.

be cautious with being too picky about an itemized list. I don't think the court is going to require something made on an excel spreadsheet.


can you post what you were sent either transcribing it here or hosting a pic on a site like dropbox or drive? (obviously redacting any identifying information)


your statement about the correct address being on an addendum regarding the deposit suggests you were given the proper address. if that is the case, you had 7 days to dispute the charges BUT of course the landlord was required to provide you with certain notices as well. I would think the purpose of the landlords requirements are that the landlord, as the businessman is required to convey the requirements of the law to the tenant while they, as businessmen, should be aware of the laws they are required to follow. That may be good for you since he did not include the part about the 7 day requirement.

regarding the 45 day issue;

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Sec. 13.
(1) Within 45 days after termination of the occupancy and not thereafter the landlord may commence an action in a court of competent jurisdiction for a money judgment for damages which he has claimed or in lieu thereof return the balance of the security deposit held by him to the tenant or any amount mutually agreed upon in writing by the parties. A landlord shall not be entitled to retain any portion of a security deposit for damages claimed unless he has first obtained a money judgment for the disputed amount or filed with the court satisfactory proof of an inability to obtain service on the tenant or unless:

(b) The tenant has failed to respond to the notice of damages as required by section 12.

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section 12:

Quote:

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554.612 Response to notice of damages.Sec. 12.
If a landlord claims damages to a rental unit and gives notice of damages as required, the tenant upon receipt of the list of damages shall respond by ordinary mail to the address provided by the landlord as required by section 3 within 7 days, indicating in detail his agreement or disagreement to the damage charges listed. For the purposes of this section the date of mailing shall be considered the date of the tenant's response.

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you admit you failed to respond to the proper address within the 7 days.

at this point I can't tell you what a court might do. Both you and the landlord have failed to perform as the law requires. If I were you I would first dispute the charges properly. If he does not refund what you believe is an adequate amount, head to small claims and see what the court has to say about the matter. The worst you are going to get is the judge telling you you lose.

Wouldn't providing two addresses be seen as understandably confusing? I don't think I should be expected to send a letter to both.
Here is a scan of what he sent:

http://i.imgur.com/xpB1eyL.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/Zf7XpWF.jpg?1

He also included receipts, but it is unclear what they are for.
The first one I think wouldn't really qualify as an itemized list of damages.
The second one about the doors is fine, but I'm disputing the bulk of it. I agreed to pay for one interior door, which costs about 30-50 to replace.
I'll just resend my dispute and see what he does. If he does nothing within a week or so I'll file a case in small claims. Does that sound reasonable?

yep, I'm with you on the lack of an itemized list. That is a tally of charges with nothing associated with the charges. The purpose of itemizing the damages is so the tenant can consider each one and determine whether they believe it is valid so they can contest them if not.


I would surely contest the charges based on that alone

as to the doors;

there are 3 doors in that list; 2 interior doors and a storm door. Depending on the value of the storm door, the materials may not be totally out of line but I would still argue the materials so he must provide proof of the costs.

I'm arguing that there was nothing at all wrong with the storm door. Not sure how things like that work in court. I lived there 5 years anyway, so I don't think I should have to pay for a brand new door, regardless. I have no idea what was wrong with it, but I don't think there was anything besides normal wear and tear.

then dispute the charges, even if you or I believe you did not meet the 7 day requirement.


but to that point; you said there was a proper address provided. It was your obligation to read new contracts. Since you didn't, it will likely be seen that the landlord did provide a proper address and you failed to respond properly to his statement of deductions.


but he has done a variety of things wrong as well, apparently including the statement you have 7 days to dispute the charges, so personally I would suggest letting a court figure it out.

The lease addendum wasn't a new contract. It was signed the same day as the lease. Two documents, signed same day, two different addresses.
Still sounds like a crap shoot either way... Well, thanks so much for your help, jk. When this is resolved, I'll post an update.

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Quoting bluecollaraddict

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The lease addendum wasn't a new contract. It was signed the same day as the lease. Two documents, signed same day, two different addresses.
Still sounds like a crap shoot either way... Well, thanks so much for your help, jk. When this is resolved, I'll post an update.

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an addendum effectively creates a new contract as it alters the original contract.


but anyway, if you wish, take a shot. In fact, you might consider the double damages claim.

somebody told me one time:

shoot for the start, settle for the moon.