[ex-]landlord relations question

Hey, apartment-dwellers!

I received an email today from my ex-landlord that just sent me into a rage, and any advice is appreciated. I’m sure I’m not the first one to deal with this particular problem:

I moved out at the end of March. At this time, the landlord came over to do the walk-through with me. She said she’d mail me a check returning my security deposit within 2-3 weeks. Nothing was said about deductions for any damages.

During the walk-through, she laughingly said, “Oh, you sure put a lot of holes in the wall, sweetie!” I thought nothing of it, because under my lease, I was allowed to hang stuff on the wall, and I didn’t hang more than the “normal” number of paintings. Whatever that is.

Fast-forward to today. I received an email from her saying I will receive NONE of my security deposit back. She charged me $750 because they “had to re-paint the place.” Um, isn’t that always done between tenants? She said I had an “unreasonable” number of holes in the wall.

Then she accused me of not cleaning at all, charging me $125 for bathroom/kitchen cleaning. The truth is, my father and I literally spent two whole days back at the place after I moved, scrubbing it top to bottom. She then charged me for damage to the ceiling, when I never touched during the two years I lived there. She charged me for damage to the hardwood floors, which were supposedly “perfect” before I moved in. Yeah, I’m sure floors from 1827 (that’s how old the building is) were pristine until I stepped on them in 2008.

The list goes on and on… long story short(er), everything is completely unreasonable and came out of nowhere. However, I didn’t get anything in writing during my walk-through. (Stupid, stupid me.) So it’s my word versus hers.

Legally speaking, what chances do I have of getting my money back? I’m wary of bringing in lawyers, but I really need that money.

Help?

In return for your help on this, I PROMISE to post photos next week of my shiny new apartment!