What Do Landlords Consider Normal Wear And Tear?

What Do Landlords Consider Normal Wear And Tear? It depends on the landlord, and everyone has a different approach.   Personally, I charge my tenants for anything that is in worse shape than when they moved in.  Of course, the carpets will get older,but they better not get dirtier, as in “spots” and “stains”!  Same thing with the paint – if it has obvious marks and holes, I will charge for a partial or full repaint.   As far as the blinds go  – they can last for years if the tenants take good care of them, so the tenants will definitely pay for the blinds if they damage them.

Technically, however, if there’s no damage to the walls or carpets, but the landlord decides to repaint and/or steamclean – it is the landlord’s choice to do so and should not be charged to the tenant.  Do I charge for those things?  I’ll never tell…

The link below is to a great discussion, and other landlords’ input, into the subject – http://bbs2.mrlandlord.com/display.php?id=13831733