Am I responsible for painting apartment?

Question

My husband and I rented a very expensive apartment(last minute move) for 1 yr. The condition of the apartment was mediocre but was freshley painted. We have 2 young children but we kept the house pretty clean. We moved out this august and bought our own house but after moving our landlord and his wife refused to give us back our full deposit because they claimed that they had to repaint the apartment and their were lot of nail holes in the walls that we didn't take care of. Not to mention the addional charge for removing scratches from hardwood floor in living room.
My question is if I were to take them to court would I have a chance in getting back my $1900 from them or do they have the right to charge tenant for painting the apartment without any notice?

I lived in NJ.

Answer 1

Call housing court in your county in NJ and find out what the laws are and what your rights are. The landlords may have limited rights. What does your lease say? Even the lease may be outside what is allowed for the landlord. Ordinary wear and tear like a nail hole in a wall is not reason enough to keep a deposit. Get legal info and help immediately. As for repainting the apartment, if the lease calls for you to repaint, you are out of luck. If it's only been a year and they choose to repaint, that was their option because they can let the next tenant paint what they want.

Always read the find print on contracts and know your rights. Next time, take video of the place or photos before and after the move to document the condition of the home. Use that days newspaper in the photos to show when they were taken.

You have rights. Go to court and file.

Answer 2

I'm afraid your dead meat sweetheart. This is what a deposit is for. You should have cleaned the apartment, made an effort to patch the nail holes and, at least tried to make an effort to used furnituree polish to put over the scratches on the floor or, use something like carpets to pull your furnitur on.

I remodeled these units like this for over twenty years. This is about right. To go in and repaint the entire unit and refinish the scratches. Clean the place and make it look good.

You took advantage of the landlord and, now expect him to take the overcharge and make the place look good for the next tenant.
I don't know what the laws are there but, where I come from, If the tenant were in the unit for more then six weeks the entire unit must have the carpets steamed, the walls painted and the unit must be remodeled like new.

You won't win in court, you left the landlord with a mess.

Answer 3

Depends upon which state you live in. I rented in CA when I was in the Navy and landlords were required by law to repaint before the apartment could be rented again. With 2 small children, consider yourself lucky that you're only losing $1900. Hardwood floors are expensive to refinish and maintain. Taking them to court will make them prove the expenses incurred, including the nail holes you didn't take care of. Labor is very expensive these days and you may end up owing instead of getting a refund.

Answer 4

Anytime you rent you should clean top to bottom. Always get repairs done yourself if possible. The money and time you spend on getting the place spotless will be worth it and make any landlord give you a full refund.

One place we rented, everyone that stayed there claimed that we wouldnt see our deposit. Well we all pitched in and just did touch ups on holes or dinged spots on the walls. The landlord said NOBODY has every did this and gave us a full refund.

You dont need to paint the whole wall just paint small holes. Give yourself a week to clean the house in case you find major dings or damage.

You can do a search of your state and find Housing Developement Authority and see what they say.

Answer 5

I would ask for an itemized list and receipts for all the work they did. If they won't give you one, you might have a chance in court. Did you take any pictures of the place before you moved in and when you moved out? If you did then they would have to prove you did the damages they said you did.
They have to expect normal wear and tear on the apartment.
Was there excessive scratches on the floors when you moved in?
You stated you kept the place pretty clean, but if you left quite a few nail holes and there were any crayon marks( it's hard to keep young artists from using the walls as a canvas) then they can keep your deposit. Your best bet would be to talk to a lawyer.

Answer 6

Be sure and read the contract that you signed when you moved in. More than likely they can charge you for these items. If they do they will need to show copy of invoices showing what repairs were done and the cost of each.. When this is done you would be able to get the balance of you deposit.. But if these charges exceed this amount they could bill you for the difference. Be careful how loud you scream because most contracts spell this out.

Answer 7

By law...nail holes and scratches on the floor are NOT considered "normal wear and tear" and therefore can be deducted for the deposit. They don't need to give you notice to make such repairs since you failed to rectify the situation before you vacated.

Answer 8

Your apartment has to be in the same condition as when you moved in. There were no holes in the walls and the walls were painted. You taking care of the spackling of the holes you created, and then painting the walls back to the condition they were in is your responsibility.

Answer 9

I would check your lease agreement. If it states in it that you are required to paint then you are out of luck. However, you could buy the supplies and do it yourself and then if he still doesn't give back your deposit you could take him to court. But up here in Alaska unless it is noted in your contract it is the responsibility of the owner to repaint. Most of our landlords figure that money into their upkeep. Good Luck!

Answer 10

each state has its own renters rights/laws...i know in california it is the owners responsability to paint, and nail holes are not punishable, only bigger holes, and or damage....getting a lawyer will cost you at least 1900 for the retainer. I would do my own research and then take them to small claims.