Security deposit being used as last months rent

[Vince Beusan]

If you know your tenant is going to use their security deposit to pay their last months rent, what are some things that as a landlord we can do to hold them accountable for the costs associated with the security deposit?   Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

[Mark Vieira]

This is something that tenants ask to do a lot. My strategy is to tell them they can't do it and inform them they need to pay rent for their last month. If they do not pay rent, and their security deposit isn't sufficient to cover what they owe (in rent or in repairs), they will then have a negative balance on their deposit reconciliation you send them within 14 days of them moving out. If they do not pay the deficiency, I typically just turn the account over to a collections agent. In some cases, if the amount owed is large enough I have given it to an attorney who will pursue the debt on contingency. I have only had to do that for commercial though...the amounts owed on the residential side has never been large enough to justify that.