Is this fair that I take this out of the renter's deposit?

Question

The renter had left the house in bad shape. Most I chalk up to wear and tear--even though it was beyond wear and tear. I had a cleaning lady at $20 per hour, and she spent the total amount of 3.5 hours cleaning the bathroom. I feel I have the right to charge the tenant for 2 of those hours. The cleaning lady also spent 2 hours cleaning the oven--it was so dirty. I feel they should pay for all of this.

They also removed carpet without permission. I not asking them to pay for the carpet since it was old, but I do feel they should pay for the majority of the carpet installation which is $800.

Their dog also scratch up the back door, but I can't prove this.

Please let me know what is fair.

Answer 1

Part of the problem, and what has you asking all this, is that you did not stipulate in your rental agreement what were eligible charges to take out of the deposit, and possible damages that may be charged for if not covered by deposit. You should also require a move-in damage checklist to use as a baseline.

Typically, pet damage is covered under the non-refundable pet deposit you should have collected.

Extra cleaning should be charged for, and the carpet should.
No places I have ever lived has allowed alteration of the premises without permission.

Places I have lived have had a list of the possible extra charges, like $20 for leaving oven dirty, the same for leaving the fridge dirty, etc. Bathrooms I have never seen charged for. For a move out, there should be an expectation that not people are not great housekeepers.

I would do a lease addendum and get clear for yourself using this as your test case, what you don't want to be unfairly stuck with, and put it in writing for your tenants. You can't think of everything, but these are examples of things you can think of, and which I have seen addressed in leases I signed.

Answer 2

You can deduct reasonable costs and expenses which are over and above the normal wear and tear you would expect from the unit.

1) You were very wise to hire someone to do the cleanup work instead of doing it yourself. Get a statement/report along with the bill from the cleaning lady. This gives you the testimony of an independent person. Include this with an explaination of the deduction.

2) Carpet: If it was old and you would have had it replaced anyway, then you would have paid for the installation - right?

If there was any life left in the carpet then you are entitled to that portion. For example if the carpet had a 10 year life and it was only 8 years down the road when they tore it up, then you lost 20% of the value. You can apply this amount against the deposit . My suggestion is not to get involved in dividing carpet and installation issues since that gets somewhat subjective.

Scratches: Did previous tenants have a dog or animal that might have made the scratches? Were the scratches identified in your lease/rental agreement as pre-existing? If you get no to both of these questions, then charge them and let them offer proof otherwise.

NEXT TIME: here is a suggestion for your rental units.

Take photos of the place before you re-rent it. Keep a set and GIVE a set to the the new tenants as a part of the rental contract.

Take photos on the date of re-posession of the unit. Cheap insurance and a quick way to end some disputes in a honerable and fair method.

hope that helps

.

Answer 3

I think making them pay for bathroom & oven cleaning is more than fair. The carpet, however, is another matter.

You said it was old already, would you have been replacing it anyway? If so, then no - that's your cost as it improves your property values or makes your rental that much more appealing to the next renter. If the carpet, honestly, had a few good years left in it, you might bill them for some of the cost. But, to be frank, I think carpet replacement falls under your costs & not theirs unless they did damage to it or the floor when they removed it.

As far as the dog-scratched back door goes. You can try, but if you have no documentation that the door was undamaged before they moved in, you might be out of luck.

I don't know if you do a walk through before your renters sign, but you probably should. You should also take pictures of the place after it is cleaned and of any damaged areas if they will not be repaired before new renters move in.

Answer 4

You agreed to all of those words upon flow in, yet now have themes with them? Splitting the utilities become agreed upon and under no circumstances an project for various months. Why out of the blue? If there's a signed lease in existence, then that is binding. you do not "have self belief" that you ever gained a replica of the lease. have you ever, interior the purely appropriate 5 months, requested a replica of the lease? you're a month to month tenant. The guidelines of your state govern your tenancy. you're required to grant proper written word to terminate your tenancy. in case you fail to achieve this, you'd be held to blame for an extra suitable month of lease. there is not any requirement that landlords clarify or modern all prices for damages or cleansing on flow out day. the owner won't be able to appropriately ascertain such prices on a whim. The landlords can legally deduct any agreed upon prices for utilities from the deposit. If the software chop up become agreed upon interior the lease - that is official. once you've paid various months earlier software expenditures depending interior of both/3 chop up, that shows your settlement to the chop up.

Answer 5

I would keep the deposit! Was there anything in the lease about modifications to the apartment? Were they allowed to have pets? Scratched doors are not normal wear and tear regardless of how it happened...if it wasn't there before the tenant, it's the tenant's fault.

Answer 6

keep the deposit and spend the money on repairs to the property
you will need to keep the receipt's for the repairs in case they take you to court also take pictures of the damage for your records.. i hope you had a lease with them ,that states that all damage done to the house will come out of the deposit
including a $150.00 cleaning fee if its not clean when they move out.[ cleaning fee should cover replace the carpet and or clean carpet,clean kitchen ,paint,repair wall,windows,screen,doors ,locks,light fixtures,any and all damage caused by tenant

Answer 7

It depends on what you stated in the lease. Normal wear and tear is the responsibility of the landlord, but if you have documented proof (i.e. photos) you should be okay with the charges. However, you are not entitled to carpet installation.

Answer 8

I think it sounds fair to make the tenant pay for it. But i bet you that if you hadn't cleaned yet I bet you could've taken them to court and gotten all of it paid for!

Answer 9

Hopefully you got a deposit from them. I would just keep that and not return it to them.