My deposit Rental Agency's bonus...

Gave notice to vacate to this rental agency on 16 March 2016 for 30 April 2016. We actually vacated the property and handed keys to new tenants on the 27th of April 2016 (Danica, the RW owners daughter did a post & pre inspection which we got charged R150 for - I'm sure the new tenants also paid a fee). We left the unit in a much better state than what we received it in and had prepaid electricity. The owner, Kevin Scanes ***) is stalling the refund of our deposit paid (>R8000) due to deductions that needs to be made. His message was that according to the "Rental Housing Act we have to pay your deposit back within 14 days of the unit being restored". If there was ANYTHING that needed repair, I was happy to put them in contact with the previous tenant, who would confirm that any issues were like that on hand over to us. I was a great tenant and any landlord's dream... Dealing with the admin lady in their office, Nothando is a waste of time as she has no understanding or knowledge of customer service. We originally dealt with Blenn and Heleen (Heleen has now left the company) and according to my records the Rental Housing Act states that if there are no damages, the deposit must be refunded within 7 days of expiry of the lease (that was 7 May 2016). My deposit is not the Rental company's bonus to upgrade or perform maintenance they feel necessary. Its also not the owner's decision when and where he might feel its now time to pay back the deposit. Lesson learned: Tenants - ensure you do a proper pre and post inspection. If you pick up anything during the first few days of occupancy, send an email / have it in writing. Know your rights and don't let rental agencies tell you how things will work, they all have to report to a higher authority (report them to '***') Owners - do your homework, check HP.com and ensure you place the letting of your unit in professional, capable hands if you want to attract great tenants!