Under what circumstances can a landlord withhold the deposit on a rental?
Case Details: \"If a term on a lease is up and the tenant vacates a unit, can that tenant lawfully be charged rent for the \'lag\' days between her tenancy and the tenancy that follows? I have a friend whose landlord charged 16 days of rent for the transition time between her and the next renter. The landlord took the 16 days rent out of the security deposit, saying that the unit was not immediately ready for the next tenant and that my friend had to pay for the lag time.\"
Susan of the HawaiiAnswers.com Hui provides this quick response: No, it\'s not. I\'m including the whole text of section 521-44, Hawaii Revised Statutes, below, and I\'ve highlighted the relevant portions. To sum up, a security deposit may be used for only three statutory purposes, or one purpose agreed to by both parties in writing. The three statutory purposes are (1) damages, (2) failure to pay rent due, or (3) failure to return all keys. The only contractual agreement would be if the tenant gave 45 days notice, and the landlord agreed with the tenant in writing to use if for the last month\'s rent. Use of the security deposit for any other reason is forbidden. There\'s no such animal as \"apartment not ready to rent.\" If it needs to be cleaned, well, the landlord is entitled to the cleaning fee and that\'s all. Take \'em to court!
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