In a settlement announced by state Attorney General Bill Lockyer, R.W. Selby & Co. further agreed to pay $138,000 in civil penalties and legal costs. Officials at Selby deny any wrongdoing, but say they settled to "avoid the time and expense of further negotiations."
Selby manages about 1,600 apartment units in Orange, Los Angeles and Riverside counties. According to government prosecutors, the company often kept a tenant's entire security deposit even if the vacated unit was left in good condition and other times included language in its lease documents that illegally made a portion of deposits nonrefundable.
Some tenants-rights advocates say such practices are widespread. Locally, the Orange County District Attorney's Office is investigating whether another firm--Arnel Management Co.—also overcharged hundreds of renters when they moved out.
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