Landlords cannot charge automatic fees and must pay for repairs of damage not caused by renters, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled last week, Iowa Public Radio reported. The case began in 2011 after University of Iowa student Elyse De Stefano sued Iowa City rental agency Apartments Downtown over an automatic carpet cleaning charge and a deposit withheld for damage caused by burglars. Apartments Downtown argued renters signed leases allowing the charges, but the court held that those terms violated the Iowa Code. Attorney Christopher Warnock called the ruling “a big win for the Iowa Tenants’ Project” that better defines the landlord-tenant relationship in Iowa.