Q: My former tenant sued my wife and I as well as our LLC, for the failure to return the security deposit. What are we supposed to do?
A: You have two main legal issues and a factual one as well. First, make sure you sent out your security deposit accounting in compliance with A.R.S. § 33-1321. It must be sent first class mail to the tenant’s last known address, within 14 business days of getting possession (while there are additional provisions, this is generally the date we at WZP suggest landlords follow).
Next, if your lease was written properly and your LLC owns the home, you should have a good basis to get the complaint dismissed against you and your wife. When a company owns the home and the company is properly listed as the landlord on the lease, it is improper for the tenants to sue the named members of the LLC. Therefore, you and your wife should be dismissed.
Finally, you will have to proceed to trial and defend on the merits of the case: were the charges reasonable and do you have receipts and pictures to demonstrate what work was done and at what cost it was done? These are the facts you must present to the court.
Mark B. Zinman – Williams, Zinman & Parham P.C.