Move-out walk through, what do you think of this issue?

[Maria G.]

Hello,

I had my tenants' move-out walk through yesterday. The carpet was brand new two years ago and it's been kept well. The only two issues are some discoloring by the legs of the bed and some discoloring by the shower, where there is carpet.

I am not planning to charge them for it because they have kept good care of the property. However, it does seem like it could have been avoided. They said they had a rug there, but it happened anyway and it is "wear and tear." However, it looked to me that the rug was not big enough, as the discoloring was on the edges of where the rug must have been. What do you think? (The lighting is not the best, so the blackening doesn't show up as clear as when you look at it, but I hope you can see what I mean.)

Going forward, should I tell the next tenant to have a large enough rug? 

Should I consider replacing the carpet in that area by linoleum or something else?

Thanks!

[Matt Devincenzo]

IMO that is 100% wear and tear, and the rug/mat is a non issue. A floor covering is designed for walking on, and discoloration from walking on is 'normal'. The issue is that carpet is not really a suitable material for outside of a shower, so the solution to the problem is really yours not the tenants....as in I would be hard pressed to expect that a tenant should be subject to an opinion of what is a suitable sized floor mat for outside the shower....

There is a bit of a subjectivity to the discoloration i.e. if they walked inside with motor oil on their shoes, obviously that is not a 'normal' level of soiling. But if it is difficult to get a photo, and on top of that it is a carpet located where carpet is really not appropriate...that's pretty normal.

So like you said, I wouldn't charge them for it....and I would personally look for some closeout Vinyl flooring or someone trying to get rid of 50 SF on craigslist and throw that in on a Sat so you don't end up with a damp floor that damages the framing.