Des Moines Register
02-18-07
Students want stiffer fines for damage deposit scams
Iowa currently sets a $200 limit on penalties for landlords who unjustly keep
tenants' funds.
By DREW KERR
REGISTER CORRESPONDENT
Iowa City, Ia. - University of Iowa law student Eric Salter lost more than 60
percent of his $1,300 security deposit last year when he moved out of a rental
house in Ames.
Salter's landlord charged him and his roommates $200 to replace window
screens that weren't there when he moved in, $100 because the kitchen wasn't
clean enough, $50 to remove garbage and several hundred dollars for carpet
cleaning, the Iowa State University graduate from Pella said.
"The carpet was so bad when we moved in that it could almost be a health
hazard," Salter said. "In addition, I spoke with the next renter who stated that it
was never cleaned."
College students, who frequently complain about landlords charging exorbitant
rental deposits and keeping large sums for seemingly small infractions, are
fighting back.
U of I student leaders are working with Iowa City lawmakers and student legal
services to lobby the Iowa Legislature to increase penalties for landlords found
guilty of cheating students out of their deposits.
Sen. Joe Bolkcom, an Iowa City Democrat, has introduced a bill in the Senate
that would fine landlords double the amount of the rental deposit in question or at
least $500 if a court finds the landlords guilty of wrongful deposit retention.
Senate File 199, co-sponsored by Sens. Bob Dvorsky, D-Iowa City, and Jeff
Danielson, D-Cedar Falls, is assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The Iowa law that now sets the limit for punitive damages at $200 was enacted in
1978.
"Maybe that worked then, but it doesn't work now," said Eric Fisher, an attorney
with U of I Student Legal Services. "It's very easy to exploit the situation."
Fisher estimates about 300 small-claims cases involving rental deposits are filed
each year in Johnson County. He sees many of these students at legal services
and decided to help student government lobby for the change.
Austin Baeth, a U of I student government senator from Des Moines, said the law
needs to be changed so all wrongful retentions, even if the landlord claims it was
a clerical oversight, are punishable.
Dennis McDonald, director of the Iowa Landlord Association, supports changing
the law to tie landlord fines to inflation so they would adjust accordingly.
Landlords shouldn't escape blame by saying they made a clerical mistake, he
said.
"Clerical oversight is a pretty weak excuse unless the landlord has a lot of
properties," said McDonald, of Des Moines.
However, many landlords - especially those in college towns - view deposits as
their only security against damage that goes beyond normal wear and tear,
McDonald said. Tenants can avoid excessive charges by filling out a damage
report with their landlord at move-in and again when the tenants move out, he
said.
The Des Moines Register contacted dozens of landlords and property
management companies, but all declined to comment.
Student government leaders are trying to build a network of lobbyists from
college towns across Iowa to increase the bill's visibility at the Capitol.
Bolkcom said he was hopeful the legislation would receive wide support because
it protects not just students but all at-risk renters, such as the elderly.
"Clearly this is for anyone that rents a home in our state," he said. "While
students are bringing the language, this will provide consumer protection for
everyone."