A landlord is engaged in a dispute with a man who rented his house but returned a week later saying he was no longer interested.

"The situation is, I advertised a house for rent and more than 30 people responded," the landlord explained.

"(After seeing the house,) they were asked to fill out a form, giving someone as a reference, state their address and place of employment.

"After they left, I called my sister and we both went through the list, and chose a gentleman who worked at a well-known businessplace. I telephoned him and told him that I was going to rent him the house and he came the next day, which was a Friday, and signed the agreement form.

"He paid his month's rent of $20,000 as well as the security deposit of $20,000. He said he would move into the house over the weekend. He did not. Seven days after he signed the agreement and collected the keys for the house, he telephoned me, saying he was not taking the house again because he could not afford it. He has promised to return the keys before the end of this week".

"I was very upset that this man wasted my time, and I asked him if he did not know he could not afford the house before he conducted the transaction.

"Some of my friends are saying I should deduct money from the rent for the time he has the keys while others say he is not entitled to a refund of the rent and should only get back his security deposit."

The law is on your side and the tenant is not entitled to the month's rent because he signed an agreement, took possession of the keys and had them for more than a week. He is the one who forfeited the agreement. However, it is entirely up to you to decide if you will hold him to the agreement, give him back all of the money for the rent or deduct rent for the time he had the keys. While you make a decision as to what to do in relation to the rent, you must bear in mind that you will have to return the security deposit when he delivers the keys.