I am the tenant looking for advice on floor replacement.

[Dhvaya Narasimhan]

Hello everyone,

I posted on Facebook and was advised to ask for feedback here. 

My family and I are long term tenant in my apartment, having been here for almost 8 years. We intend to stay here until at least September, 2023. Our landlord is a corporation, a publicly traded REIT. It is not an individual landlord.
 
Here is my situation: 

After extensive rodent damage to our carpets, our property manager indicated that they will be replacing the damaged carpets with vinyl plank. However, they stated that IF they were to do this, then we would be responsible for moving all the furniture out of the unit to accommodate this, and that we would also be responsible for any damages that occurs to the new flooring from date of installation to our final move-out date, "whenever that would be" (which we know is tentatively 09/23).

Upon doing my research on vinyl plank, I learned that it is easy to damage it, if we were to accidentally drop something on it and that - more worryingly - damage usually happens when furniture is being moved. This concerns me because we cannot always control what the movers do. Our furniture includes a couch, twin beds, a King bed, TV stand etc. How do we handle this?

How expensive is damaged vinyl plank flooring to replace especially if - God forbid - something does happen to it before move out or at move out? Is this a risk we should take or should we simply request that they replace the damaged carpet with new carpet? Or just stay with the old carpet, covering the holes with rugs, esp since moving furniture in and out of the unit makes it difficult? 

BTW, knowing this company, there would likely be nothing "luxurious" about the material. So I am getting really nervous here. How much does damaged vinyl plank cost to replace? We're looking at an area of around 850 sq.ft!

Thanks for any advice you can give me in this regard. Much appreciated!

[Kevin Sobilo]

@Dhvaya Narasimhan, the reason landlords like LVP (luxury vinyl plank) is durability. Especially because it is unaffected by moisture like laminate floors are.

Your situation is the same as if you were moving into a new rental that had new flooring in it. So, I would think of it that way.

If you are satisfied with the flooring until you leave, express that. They may be willing to wait until you move out to replace it.