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Landlord Demanding $5k For A Cracked Quartz Wall I Didn't Break (ca)

Location: Los Angeles County, CA

I moved out of a back house in California on 8/10/2026 after living there for 4 years. Shortly after, my landlord sent a partial $1,000 refund of my $2,000 deposit and kept the other $1,000.

In late September, he mentioned a "cracked quartz wall" in the bathroom for the first time. I never hit or damaged the wall—the backhouse is poorly built and things break on their own. I immediately denied causing it and asked for my deposit back.

Today (10/8/2026), he sent a single-page statement claiming $5,950 in total damages, taking my remaining $1,000 deposit, and demanding I pay $4,950 within 60 days under threat of small claims court.

His arbitrary round-number charges:

$4,000 — Cracked Quartz Slab Wall On Bathroom
$850 — Wall Repair & Painting Fee
$400 — All Room Cleaning Fee
$350 — Furniture discarded on street-Moving
$350 — Two Curtain Damage

What should I do? Should I send a formal dispute letter demanding my remaining $1,000 back, or wait for him to take me to Small Claims Court where he has to prove I caused structural wall damage?

Appreciate any advice on how to handle this!

submitted by /u/Opening_Commercial_2
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Landlord Demanding $5k For A Cracked Quartz Wall I Didn't Break (ca)

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