I am an American living and studying for my Master’s degree in Paris. The time I have spent there has been great, save for my run-ins with my landlady, who doesn’t seem to want to give me a break. I could use some advice from anyone with knowledge of French housing regulations.
My security deposit was 1900€ and I paid a little more than half of that each month for rent. After calculating replacements and repairs, she claims I owe her 164€. That means it supposedly cost her 2064€ over the last month to fix-up the place.
The apartment is 12 square-meters. I left it in good condition, save for a broken plastic stepladder, a few scuff-marks on the wall and broken cups that I neglected to replace.
My landlady sent me receipts for my electricity bill (209€) and the dry-cleaning bill (125€) for the linens she left for me. However, she also charged me 1280€ to repaint the walls, the desk (?), the bathroom and floor (wtf?). I received neither the quote nor the receipt for this task.
I find these charges unfair and questionable. In addition, I don’t think I should be charged beyond my security deposit, as it is a relatively large sum and I left the apartment in good condition. I have no way to prove it, but my landlady may also be giving me a hard time because I refused to move out early so she could sublet the place to tourists.
It appears that there is a mediation program for landlord-tenant disputes. At least, I think it is a mediation program, my French only takes me so far. At any rate it’s a dispute-resolution system. http://vosdroits.service-public.fr/F1216.xhtml
If you’re fluent in French, call the 39-39 (“allo service public”) and ask for someone specialized in housing issues to take your call. They’re very knowledgeable.
I’m no specialist, and furthermore the kind of rental agreement you have is in all likelihood a “location meublee” that follows different rules, less advantageous for you than the usual standart rental agreement. However, about every single thing I read in your post seems wrong.
The security deposit by law cannot exceed one month of rent (again, that might not be true for “locations meublees”). You apparently didn’t sign an “état des lieux” (basically a document signed by both the tenant and the landowner describing in detail what’s wrong with the place you’re entering/leaving) neither when you entered nor when you left. So I’m not sure how she could make any claim of damages stand. Painting is done at the landowner’s expense (at least regarding normal wear and tear, as opposed to actual damages, and again I don’t know for “locations meublees”, even though I can’t see why it would be different). And she is obligated to provide receipts to you to claim any payment or to keep any part of the security deposit.
There are two things she might (I don’t know) be right about : the electricity and the dry-cleaning. I would insist on seeing those bills, though, especially the € 125 bill for cleaning linens. I’m assuming here that the “receipts” you’re talking about aren’t the actual bills because I’m not sure what upscale, 5 stars, hand-washing with a special designer’s soap laundry business is charging that much.
There’s one thing she’s definitely right about : she can charge you more than the security deposit. If she can show that she had that much expenses as a result of your stay, that is. The onus is on her, not on you.
Again, talk with someone more knowledgeable than me about your kind of rental agreement, but IMO she’s so full of shit that she must have sprayed it all over the apartment, the desk and the linens, explaining the high cleaning cost.