Rent deposit//wear and tear how much is reasonable??

Question

We moved out at the beginning of this month in California, today we got an itemization of the deduction for our deposit, it has things on their like finger prints on hall closet door, scuff mark on tile, we're being charged $200 for cleaning, $225 for carpet cleaning, $75 for repair of a small shelf in linen closet, $100 to repair the linoleum in the laundry closet, $75 for oil stains in the driveway. I'm thinking this is ridiculous and excessive the house wasn't in bad shape it was in good/fair shape, we cleaned it when we moved but I guess not good enough as he's saying there was crumbs in the the drawers, and dust.

Answer 1

Reasonable is up to the judge.

Landlord cannot charge you based on "estimated" cost.  He may charge the amount he actually paid to have the items cleaned/repaired.  Invoices must be provided on request.  If landlord did the work himself, then he must itemize the actual hours expended, and a "reasonable" hourly pay rate.  The only time a landlord can withhold an "estimated" charge for repairing damages is if the repairs cannot be done within 21 days.  In that instance, landlord must provide a good-faith estimate.

All you need to know is in California Civil Code 1950.5.  Read it, then decide if it is worthwhile in your mind to argue about the landlord's charges in court.

Answer 2

Would you rent it in the way you are leaving it?

Looks good to me.

Sorry!

Answer 3

Take pictures before you move in, and take pictures when you move out.  Sometimes people for give how clean the unit was when they first moved in.  Was the carpet clean or dirty when you moved in? Was there stains in the driveway when you move in?? Where all of the floors clean without scuff mark on the tile??

People always want to get 100% of their security deposit back, but they do not want to clean everything to the original condition.

Ask yourself--if you were to go back to your old apartment, would you rent it as you left it today??  I doubt it, you would complaint about the floors, the holes, the shelves, etc.

Answer 4

ordinary wear and tear, how long did you live there? you are to return the property in as close as possible to the way you found it when you moved in.allowing for ordinary wear and tear the longer you lived there the stronger the normal wear and tear defense is..if you wore out the carpet through  normal use you would not be expected to replace it,but if it needs cleaning you do pay for that, or if you stained it and it couldn't be cleaned you would be required to replace it if you got it new ,but if used when you got it a percentage of it's value.finger prints and scuffed tile would be your responsibility ,oil stains in the drive might be classed as normal wear and tear but not a build up of grease on the floor.did the linoleum wear out or was it damaged,did the shelf collapse under excessive weight or was it defective? look it over carefully i bet you could have done better ,and he is probably being nit picky so maybe he will negotiate ,offer 200 less  see if he bites........tom  

Answer 5

If you want to go the Small Claims route, then it is up to the judge to decide what is reasonable.

Tearing the linoleum floor is not reasonable. Thinking the landlord can repair/replace the linoleum for $25.00 is not reasonable. Leaving the carpet dirty is not reasonable. breaking a shelf in the linen closet is not reasonable. Leaving oil stains in the driveway is not reasonable.