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When the Landlord Refuses to Return the Deposit

  • Affiliation : Seoul Foreign Resident Center
  • Poster : 서울외국인주민지원센터
  • Post date : 2023-02-24
  • HITS : 5,697
When the Landlord Refuses to Return the Deposit
 
1 Do not move out. - When the landlord does not return the deposit after the termination of your housing contract, do not move out until you get the deposit back because you will lose countervailing power* and preferential payment right* if you move out. * Countervailing power: Anyone can claim that he or she is a tenant of the house during the contract period * Preferential payment right: The right to receive the deposit by priority when the house is put up for auction

2 Send a certified mail. - Certified mail is official proof by the postmaster that a document containing requests, etc. of the sender through a certified copy - When the lease deposit is not returned, the tenant should send a certified mail stating “the landlord is liable for damage caused by not returning the deposit on time” to the landlord.

3 What if you have to move out? Option 1) Maintain the state of occupancy. - Even if you move out, your countervailing power and preferential payment right can be maintained if you leave your stuff and lock the door of the rented place. However, you lose your countervailing power if you register your move-in into a new house. Option 2) Request for a leasehold right registration order. - If you don't get the deposit back after the lease ends, you can request a leasehold right registration order in a competent court. It’s a system for maintaining the countervailing power and preferential payment right to move out freely if the registration is completed. ※ It is possible to request a court order even if you don't get a part of the lease deposit.

4 If you didn’t get the deposit after the certified mail, request for an order for payment. - An order of payment is a quick, special written trial, which does not require attendance in court and costs less. When the opponent fails to request to file an objection in court within two weeks from receiving the order of payment, it is possible to conduct compulsory enforcement on the property of the leaseholder.

5 If you didn't get the deposit after the order of payment, request litigation for the return of the lease deposit. - If the deposit does not exceed KRW 30 million, a tenant can get the deposit back through a small claim suit. - However, if the deposit is over KRW 30 million, a tenant must take legal action for the return of the lease deposit. Since the Act on Small Claims Lawsuit is partially applied to litigation for the return of the lease deposit according to the Housing Lease Protection Act, once the petition is filed, the date for argument is appointed immediately to finish the hearing at once and pronounce sentence immediately. If the judgment of concluded, compulsory execution can be forced. - The lawsuit takes about over six months and costs a lot of money but if the landlord still does not return the deposit after the judgment, you can receive a refund through a request for auction.

※ Apply for lease deposit return guarantee to prevent this situation. - A lease deposit return guarantee is an insurance product to receive the deposit from an insurance company if don't receive the deposit after cancellation and termination of the lease contract of a house or store. - You can apply through Seoul Guarantee Insurance Company (SGI) and Korea Housing and Urban Guarantee (HUG) - For details on the lease deposit return guarantee product, contact Seoul Foreign Resident center (+82-2-2229-4900).
 

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Seoul Foreign Portal

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