Cirrus Asset Management Attempted Wrongful Withholding of Deposit Calabasas California

I was a resident of a property managed by Cirrus for over 2 years.  I eventually decided to vacate because the level of service  provided by Cirrus' employees was unreasonably low.  

I read reviews posted by former tenants on different social media forums, and noticed that the manager of the property has a reputation for trying to wrongfully withhold tenants' security deposits.  I knew this manager, Lourdes Clinton, to be extremely dishonest from my encounters with her.  For example, I asked her for the name and number of her supervisor and she wrote down a phone number that has nothing to do with Cirrus.  

Based on the bad experiences described by prior tenants, I decided not to take any chances with respect to my deposit, and I hired the most reputable cleaning service in the county to do a thorough move-out cleaning of my apartment, at a cost of $660.  The cleaning service did a great job and the apartment was exceptionally clean.

Today I did a move out inspection with one of Cirrus' agents.  I took extensive pictures before they arrived, to demonstrate the excellent condition of the apartment.  During the inspection, Cirrus' agent told me I would be charged because the exterior of second story windows hadn't been cleaned.  When I told him that I thought it would be unsafe and unreasonable for any tenant to either climb a 2 story ladder or to remove the screens and hang out the window, he responded "wasn't it explained to you that the apartment needs to be perfectly clean?"  I asked who would have explained this to me and he said that he didn't know but that maybe it was in our lease.  There is no such provision in our lease.  

Cirrus' agent also said he would have to charge me because there was a literal speck of dirt in one of the bathroom sinks.  Incidentally, I had just gone over that sink with lysol wipes and paper towels minutes before he arrived, and the speck of dirt could only have come from one place - his filthy shirt when he leaned over the sink.  I asked him to confirm that he was talking about a single speck of dirt, and he said "well that means it's dirty."  I pointed out to him that his shirt was covered in stains and visibly dirty, and that he must have been responsible for the speck of dirt that he was "going to have to charge" me for.  In response, he shrugged and walked out of the bathroom.  He later reiterated that I would be charged for that single, literal speck of dirt in the sink.  

I have rented all over southern California for the last 14 years, and I have never encountered 1) such a low level of service while I was a tenant and 2) such a flagrant attempt to unlawfully deduct cleaning costs from a security deposit.  I am alarmed by Cirrus' pattern of engaging in unethical business practices.  

I am an attorney, so I plan on taking Cirrus to small claims court in the likely event that they wrongfully deduct any cleaning costs from my deposit.  But I don't think this issue is about me - Cirrus' unlawful abuse of the rights of their tenants is a matter of public concern.  I have also reported this incident to our county's Housing Rights Center, but I wanted to share my experience with the public as well, in hopes that I can save other people the hassle associated with giving this terrible management company their business.