Essex Property Trust reaches nearly $28 million settlement in San Diego security-deposit class action
SAN DIEGO, California — Former residents of Essex Property Trust apartment communities across California will benefit from a proposed class-action settlement valued at approximately $27.95 million, resolving Norman, et al. v. Essex Property Trust, Inc. in San Diego Superior Court, in San Diego County, California. The settlement — a $19.25 million cash fund plus $8.7 million in automatic debt forgiveness — will be presented to the court for preliminary approval on November 13, 2026.
The lawsuit, filed in September 2022 by former tenants Alexis Norman and Nicolette Cochran and later joined by seven additional plaintiffs, concerned move-out charges for cleaning, repairs, painting and replacements, and the itemization and vendor documentation required by California Civil Code section 1950.5. Essex denies the allegations and any wrongdoing. Eligible former tenants who submit a claim will share in the $19.25 million non-reversionary cash fund in proportion to the qualifying charges deducted from their deposits; unclaimed funds will support tenant legal-aid organizations in San Diego, Los Angeles and the Bay Area.
Essex will also forgive all outstanding move-out turnover balances claimed from former California tenants from September 27, 2018 through December 31, 2023, with no claim required, and will ask the credit bureaus to correct or delete negative reporting tied to the forgiven balances.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 圣迭戈夜景。图片：ChetChang，CC BY-SA 4.0，经Wikimedia Commons。 / San Diego skyline at night. Photo: ChetChang, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
