Decision on replacing carpet due to heavy smoker tenants.

General Landlording & Rental Properties
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Decision on replacing carpet due to heavy smoker tenants.

Lisa K.
Investor · Arlington, TX · Member since 2019 · 14 posts · 4 votes

I am trying to make a decision on what to replace the carpet with, damaged due to heavy smokers. 

Since it was carpet before and I am wanting to do away with carpet upstairs. How would I go about to deduct from tenant's deposit. Do I get an estimate on the carpet and planks flooring then pay the different?

To avoid any disputes should I keep it the same?

What do you guys think?

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Isaac Pepper
Rental Property Investor · Zanesville, OH · Member since 2020 · 70 posts · 78 votes
5y

@Lisa Kiu

Dont replace with carpet again just to avoid disputes. You will be in the same situation again after another tenant or two.

I recommend taking the depreciation amount remaining of the carpets life according to the IRS Publications. IRS pubs 527 and 946 should be a good place to start. Then take the amount cited and deduct it from the tenants deposit. This gives you a concrete explanation for your tenants (and a judge if needed) of why you took the amount you did.

From here replace with the desired flooring that wont hold smells (LVP, Laminate etc.)

Hope this helps!

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  • Isaac Pepper
    Rental Property Investor · Zanesville, OH · Member since 2020 · 70 posts · 78 votes
    5y

    @Lisa Kiu

    Dont replace with carpet again just to avoid disputes. You will be in the same situation again after another tenant or two.

    I recommend taking the depreciation amount remaining of the carpets life according to the IRS Publications. IRS pubs 527 and 946 should be a good place to start. Then take the amount cited and deduct it from the tenants deposit. This gives you a concrete explanation for your tenants (and a judge if needed) of why you took the amount you did.

    From here replace with the desired flooring that wont hold smells (LVP, Laminate etc.)

    Hope this helps!

    4Reply
  • Sean Lambert
    Investor · Pacific City, OR · Member since 2016 · 174 posts · 123 votes
    5y

    Have the renters moved out and you're trying to get them to pay for the carpet replacement, or do they still live in the unit?

    How old is the carpet?  usually if the carpet is too old (5+ years), it's already been fully depreciated and can't be deducted.

    Definitely don't put new carpet in the unit, especially if the smokers are still there.  If they have moved out, don't replace the flooring with new carpet.   

    1Reply
  • Lisa K.
    OP
    Investor · Arlington, TX · Member since 2019 · 14 posts · 4 votes
    5y

    The tenants have moved out. The carpet is probably 5yrs +, but could have a few more years. Even if its in our lease, we can't deducted? They are prohibited from smoking in the property. Stated if they do they are liable for replacing carpets and any other expenses to restore. 

    I thought I could charge and deduct some money for depreciation on the carpet.

    0Reply
  • Lisa K.
    OP
    Investor · Arlington, TX · Member since 2019 · 14 posts · 4 votes
    5y

    What do you guys recommend for flooring upstairs? Someone told me laminate wont be good and planking is better. 

    1Reply
  • Claudio Salvatorelli
    San Diego, CA · Member since 2020 · 150 posts · 54 votes
    5y

    Hey Lisa,

    I would recommend Luxury Vinyl https://www.homedepot.com/p/Tr...

    This is Waterproof vinyl planks with scratch, stain, and slip resistance and cost about $1.59 per square foot. 

      1Reply
    • Isaac Pepper
      Rental Property Investor · Zanesville, OH · Member since 2020 · 70 posts · 78 votes
      5y

      @Lisa Kiu if they are prohibited from smoking in the property but did anyways, I wouldnt hesitate to hold their deposit for cost of removing the smell (paint, deodorizer, ozone machine etc.) regardless of carpet. However, lots of properties where smokers live will stink even if they didnt smoke inside due to their clothes bringing it in as well as basically everything else. I believe it is important to spell out your lease to say that the tenants cant smoke inside, or allow the property to smell of smoke.

      As far as what route to take on flooring....it really depends on your market area and what class of tenants you are targeting. Weigh the pros and cons of each option and do a cost analysis to see what fits best for your situation. Some floors are extremely easy and even enjoyable to install. Durability is key in my experience.

      0Reply
    • Theresa HarrisPro Member
      Member since 2019 · 15k+ posts · 11k+ votes
      5y

      If they were told no smoking and they smoked, they violated the lease and as per the contract, you can charge them.  Charge them for professional cleaning as you will have to wash down all of the walls as well.  

      For the carpet, if after talking to a carpet cleaning company, they don't think the smell will come out with cleaning; charge them for part of the costs of replacing a carpet even if you replace with vinyl plank or something else.  So if the carpet costs $1000 to replace, but it was 5 years old and you get 10 years out of it, they'd be charged $500 (making up numbers).

      Others have mentioned an ozone machine to get rid of the smell.  You can buy them online, I think for under $100, then follow the instructions.  The house needs to be vacant as far as I understand.

      1Reply
    • Gavin WelchPro Member
      Real Estate Broker · Lakeland, FL · Member since 2011 · 305 posts · 181 votes
      5y

      Carpet in rentals is always an issue.  If it is just the smell of the carpet, then try an ozone treatment on it.  It will get rid of cat urine smell!  Plus you can buy one cheaply on amazon.  Save a portion of the deposit that is beyond wear and tear for the tile upgrade later.  Keep in mind, wear and tear items can't be deducted from the deposit.  We have a No Smoking clause in all our leases, if that is your case then keep as much as you need to treat the carpet, but I think using their deposit to replace the carpet is not being fair to the tenant.. 

      0Reply
    • Lisa K.
      OP
      Investor · Arlington, TX · Member since 2019 · 14 posts · 4 votes
      5y

      We have provision for them to cover carpet clean, so going to get it clean and see if it doesn’t anything to the smell. On top of that we will start the ozone generator. Will change out the carpet to planks on our expense to avoid any disputes. Plus since he broke the lease they don’t have much left on the deposit. 
      Thank you for all the great advices.”

      0Reply
    • Dana Williams
      Member since 2020 · 21 posts · 6 votes
      5y

      HI, an ozone machine should do the job but make sure to follow the directions before running one. It can be dangerous to your health if you don't air out the property completely. 

      1Reply
    • Matt Ziegler
      Rental Property Investor · Colorado Springs, CO · Member since 2020 · 433 posts · 284 votes
      5y

      Vinyl plank flooring has been a great option for our units. Relativity inexpensive, and more durable than carpet. Not to mention easier to clean, and won’t pick up odors. Best of luck....

      1Reply
    • Lisa K.
      OP
      Investor · Arlington, TX · Member since 2019 · 14 posts · 4 votes
      5y

      Just an update, we used ozone generator 6,000mg Enerzen in the bedroom where there was heavy smoke. It works well for the bedroom, running it for 3hrs. In the living room running it for 4hrs didn't do much. I am thinking maybe we need to run it all day and changing out the carpet will fix this.  So the old tenants are trying to denied that they ever smoke, even when the house smell like it. There is no way they can argue this in court. Ac filter is brown instead of gray with smoke smell, ashes along the trim and window panel. Cleaning lady for witness. Gosh now I have to store a sample of the carpet and filter for evidences, bc you never know people are happy suing nowadays. 

      Thank you for all the great advices, happy land lording!

      0Reply
    • Richard Weinberg
      Rental Property Investor · Winston Salem, NC · Member since 2018 · 102 posts · 66 votes
      5y

      @Lisa Kiu

      We bought a house on auction that had heavy smokers. Of course, you typically can’t go inside homes bought on auction so we did not know till after we closed and then, its ours and it’s rehab time. We spent thousands with professional cleaning services and many, many hours of manual cleaning and lots of days of ozone use and there was still a lingering but lesser smoke smell. It was a dramatic clean up process but eventually the house looked great and smelled almost ok. I learned several important lessons....Be prepared to get it cleaner before allowing a painter to enter or adding any new flooring. Don’t accept somebody else’s idea of clean. ....use your own, because, if you add all the paint and finishes and it still smells smoky, you will not be enchanted and the expenses only seem to go up and up. One of the easiest yet time consuming processes and most important to do on every turnover is run the glass light fixtures, globes and such, through the dishwasher. Vent covers as well. Thoroughly wipe down the top of light fans, blades and such, even after your ....deep cleaning crew leaves. That’s when you can see and smell the difference between clean and clean. Good luck.

      0Reply
    • Dana Williams
      Member since 2020 · 21 posts · 6 votes
      5y
      0Reply
    • Jimmy Chao
      Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 132 posts · 91 votes
      5y

      @Lisa K.  Cheapest laminate is $1/sqft in boxes of 20sqft. Add in padding, moisture barrier, trim, etc. $2/sqft isnt so bad. 500 more than replacing with carpet but will last much longer.

      0Reply
    • Lisa K.
      OP
      Investor · Arlington, TX · Member since 2019 · 14 posts · 4 votes
      5y

      This is was $400 more and it made a big different. Was unsure what to do with the stairways, so that was the only area we kept it carpet for now. With laminate they had to laid down some wood. No more carpet is the way to go guys. 

      1Reply
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