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Re: Renter backed out (by KC):

melissaw98 wrote:

What is my obligation to refund the money of a renter,who paid me a deposit fee for the week,then backed out,because he found a room cheaper. Am I obligated to refund his money?

Your post does not indicate or identify in any way whether or not you had a signed rental contract in place, or if so, exactly what the stated written agreement was in regard to deposit money. This missing information makes all the difference in the world.

If you have no contract and no deposit agreement in writing, my personal recommendation would be to refund the deposit money, ALL of it, whether or not you find an alternative renter. If you fail to do so, with no written contract in place, the (now-former) prospective renter could simply go after you alleging "theft" --- you took his money, he got nothing in return ---and he has asked you for his money back. Without a written agreement, you don't have much of a legal leg to stand upon (although I know that's not what you want to hear --- don't shoot the messenger). If you have a contract regarding cancellation and retention of deposit money (and from your post I'm just guessing that you don't have any such thing), then you might save yourself a whole lot of grief by just refunding the money and learning a lesson --- to execute a signed contract with a specifically identified refund policy. Keeping 50% of the rental amount, received as deposit in a rental agreement, is not unusual (IF so specified in a written contract), but refunding 100% is, in my opinion, the prudent thing to do if you have NO contract at all. Just my personal opinion.