A Los Angeles renter who sued her ex-landlords for allegedly withholding $800 from her will not be reimbursed, even though she lived in the Marina del Rey apartment for only two months before finding a new place.
Kiran Krishnamurti admitted she sacrificed her $1,575 deposit to break her yearlong lease on the rental but said her landlords, Sarlo Management, went too far.
She sued them for $800, claiming she was owed $600 in pro-rated rent for moving out early and another $200 for damages she said Sarlo falsified.
Krishnamurti said the management company agreed to reimburse her $600 for moving out of the apartment on September 15, 2002, two weeks before the end of her last month, but later reneged their offer.
When she received a list of damages she’d caused, she said she was charged $750 for chipped paint and holes in the wall.
“I was never told I couldn’t hang pictures,” she said, adding that the apartment was filthy when she moved in. “I cleaned that apartment from top to bottom.”
Representatives from Sarlo told a different story. They said the apartment had been “completely remodeled” before Krishnamurti moved in, with “no expense spared.” Even though they did not bring pictures of the damages, they said they were amazed the place could be so trashed after only two months.
Commissioner Donna Groman took the matter under submission, later ruling against the renter. Krishnamurti will not be reimbursed for court costs.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 23, 2002. Read the original PDF.