If you break a rental aggrement, & the owner states they will refund your deposit, will this hold up in court?

ms texas: If you break a rental aggrement, & the owner states they will refund your deposit, will this hold up in court?
I had to break a rental aggrement, and the landlord told me if I cleaned the house, and rented it by the 1st, (so that they weren’t out any money,) they would refund me deposit to me. I did everything they asked, and they told me the house looked good, and they had 30 days to mail me my deposit. If they don’t follow through, will I still be able to get my deposit back?

Answers and Views:

Answer by smedrik
Did they rent the house by the first?

You generally are not entitled to a deposit back after early termination. You are quite fortunate they did let you out early. If you sue, you will probably get dinged for for more rent.

I would let it be, if you get your deposit great, if not such is life. At least your landlords were good enough to let you out of your lease early.

Answer by sensible_man
This is typical. Since you already “lucked out” by not having to pay for the remainder of the agreement, I would let it drop. You will probably get the check when stated though. Also depends on your State rental laws. In Ohio, I was told that deposits could only be used for damages and repairs.

Answer by David S
You should have memorialized the agreement on paper, because now all a court would have to go on is the lease and the testimony of you and your landlord. It would be a “he said, she said” situation, with the judge trying to make a determination based on your credibility and common sense.

If your landlord is ethical, he will return the deposit. If he decides to stick it to you, your verbal agreement may not hold up.