RISING house prices have forced would-be buyers into letting property only to lose money at the hands of unscrupulous landlords, according to one Times reader.

Stephen Cummins, 25, has been renting property in Chiswick for over three years but a recent run in with a landlord has cost him and his flatmates £2,583 in withheld deposits.

Mr Cummins, a civil servant, Hayley Kinch, a NHS physiotherapist, and Lynn Hawkins, a personnel worker at GlaxoSmithKline, rented a property on Wilton Avenue through a Chiswick estate agent and paid £1,700 a month in rent between them.

Mr Cummins said of the property's condition: "It was like student accommodation to be honest, which was why the rent was so low. We all decided we wanted to live in a nicer house and a nicer environment so we ended our tenancy there."

Initially the landlord, Mr Mark Elliott from Northern Ireland, inspected the property and seemed happy, but this soon changed. Mr Cummins said: "He met with us face to face and showed no signs of discontent. To then change his mind, without legitimate reason, is incredibly two faced."

Despite the residents having a weekly cleaner and hiring a professional to give the property a once over before leaving, the landlord said it was filthy and refused to return their deposit. The estate agent was legally obliged to send the money to him.

The landlord also listed various complaints including a missing front room carpet. However, Mr Cummins pointed out to him that when they first signed their contract with him the room had polished wooden floorboards, no carpet had ever been in place.

The landlord also said the whole house would need redecorating. Mr Cummins argued: "At no point was any redecoration done while we were there, nor while the previous tenant, who we are friends with, lived there. "

Redecorating should actually be done at the landlord's expense. A landlord is only entitled to withhold a deposit if he has incurred financial loss through damage to the property, unpaid rent, missing items or if the property needs substantial cleaning after occupancy. He cannot retain the money for breaches of contract that would not cause him to lose money, for example tenants holding parties or having guests over, nor can he keep it to finance repairs under general wear and tear.' Mr Cummins has found the whole episode disgraceful and is now preparing for legal action. He said: "The day I moved in it was in the same condition as when I moved out. There were never any wild parties. We paid our rent regularly, we were particularly good tenants.

"We are prepared to pay for any reasonable reductions but we are not prepared to pay for anything that is unfair, especially as he has never spent a penny on the property the whole time we have been there."

Mr Elliott was not available for comment.

While taking your landlord to the small claims court to get your deposit back is relatively easy there are several things you can do in order to avoid this route.

Shelter, the UK charity which deals with housing issues, recommends that you and the landlord agree to an inventory before you move in, detailing what items are in the property and their condition. This will hopefully eliminate disagreements on missing items and damages and can be backed up with photographic evidence.

If a landlord then refuses to return a deposit a tenant is legally entitled to a breakdown of reasons for the decision, accompanied by receipts or estimates for repairs and replacements. Such work should be carried out on a like for like' basis, charging for a brand new freezer is not acceptable if the old one was 10 years old.

Tenants should do their best to negotiate with a landlord and any correspondence should be photocopied and kept for future queries. More information on dealing with landlords can be found at www.shelter.org.uk or by contacting your local Citizen's Advice Bureau.