Tenant Turnover Question

[Jennifer A.]

I have my first tenant turnover in 5 years and I would like some thoughts as I move forward.  First, prior to the tenant occupying the property, this house was majorly rehabbed with new carpeting in living room, new luxury tile in kitchen, new appliances, new bathroom (tile, floors, cabinet, toilet, etc.), hardwood floors were immaculate and the entire house was painted top to bottom.

These tenants have been very physically hard on the property.  Their kids have written on the walls with crayons, the vanity installed 5 years ago has been scratched to the point it needs to be repainted (it is white and a lot of paint has been scratched off), the caulking around the sink and tile has turned black, the hardwood floors are extremely dirty and will likely need to be sanded and stained and the carpet must be replaced.  Plus, the stove that was new when they moved in is filthy and has been damaged by their cast iron pots they sometimes use (gouges out of the surface).

That said, they've lived in this property for 5 years so some wear and tear is expected.  Of what I have explained above, what do you think is normal wear and tear versus excessive?  How do you draw the line?  My husband is livid that the carpet needs to be replaced and we will need to sand and stain the floors, but carpet isn't supposed to last forever anyway.

[Jennifer T.]

The carpeting is definitely wear and tear.  Probably the caulking also.  I typically need to re-caulk some/all items between tenants, even if it has only been 1-2 years.  Though it's not usually black, just worn.

To commiserate, I had a tenant who broke their lease and ended up only staying in one of my units in 4 month.  Some of the worst damage I have ever seen, especially over such a short time.  Her daughter painted on the walls with emerald green nail polish.

Crayon on the wall and the vanity needing to be repainted are not normal wear and tear.  Neither is the significant cleaning needed, including the stove.

First, you all will need to clean the hardwood floors to determine if they actually need to be sanded and stained.  Unless there are gouges/scratches, cleaning them should be just fine.  However, if there are major/medium gouges and scratches, that would not be normal wear and tear.  Especially if the floors were new from 5 years ago.  Hardwood floors shouldn't need to be sanded and restained that often. 

As for the stove, once it is clean, is the damage so bad that you'd feel like you would need to replace it?  If not, although the gouges are from careless use and annoying, I'd probably chalk that up to wear and tear also.  Because they did live there for 5 years and that stove...just being 5 years older, even if it was in great condition...is now worth a lot less than what you paid for it anyway.