"The carpet was already like that when we moved in." Every maintenance supervisor has heard it on a move out walk. Sometimes the tenant is right. The move in record decides who is.
Normal wear and tear is the decline that comes from living in a home as intended. Think faded paint, light scuffs, carpet worn along a walking path, loose hinges, sun bleached blinds. Damage is harm beyond that, caused by accident, neglect or misuse, such as pet stains, burns, large holes or broken fixtures. A landlord can charge a deposit for damage, at a fair share of the repair cost, but not for wear and tear.
Room by room: wear or damage
Use this table on the walk. The right column is what usually decides a borderline call. It assumes a residential lease and a tenancy of a year or more.
| Item | Normal wear and tear | Damage | What settles it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walls and paint | Fading, light scuffs, a few small nail holes | Large holes, crayon or marker, unapproved paint colours | Size and number of holes, and what the lease says about hanging items |
| Carpet | Matting and wear on walking paths, slight fading | Pet urine stains, burns, rips, bleach spots | Carpet age and the move in photos |
| Hard floors | Light surface scratches, dull finish | Deep gouges, water damage from a left running tap | Whether the cause was ordinary use or a single event |
| Blinds and screens | Sun fading, a stiff cord | Bent or missing slats, torn screens | Count of broken parts against the move in report |
| Kitchen | Worn counter edges, small cabinet chips | Burn marks, cracked tiles, heavy grease left behind | Cleanliness at move in, and the cleaning clause |
| Bathroom | Worn grout, a dripping tap from age | Cracked sink or toilet, mould from a fan left switched off | Whether the tenant reported the problem in time |
| Doors and hardware | Loose handles, worn locks | Holes in doors, broken frames, damaged locks | Signs of force |
Texas puts the line into law. Property Code 92.001 defines normal wear and tear as deterioration from the intended use of a dwelling. It excludes deterioration from negligence, carelessness, accident or abuse by the tenant, a household member or a guest. Other states use similar wording, often "ordinary wear and tear", and leave the details to the courts.
The age of the item sets the charge
Even when something is damaged, the tenant does not owe the price of a brand new replacement. Carpet, paint and appliances lose value every year. The tenant owes the value that was left when the damage happened.
The useful life method
Give each finish a useful life in your written policy. Then charge only the share of that life still remaining. The formula is simple:
Charge = replacement cost × months of life left ÷ total months of life
Say your policy gives mid grade carpet a life of 8 years, which is 96 months. A bedroom was carpeted in February 2021 for $900. At a September 2026 move out, it is 67 months old. That leaves 29 months. The fair charge for ruined carpet is $900 × 29 ÷ 96, or $271.88. Charging the full $900 would be very hard to defend.
Paint ages faster
Interior paint is often given a life of a few years in landlord policies. After a tenancy of that length, a full repaint is a normal turnover cost, even if the walls look tired. A tenant who leaves large holes may still owe the patching and the touch up of that one wall.
Three grey areas
Some findings do not sort cleanly. These three cause the longest emails.
Approved pets
An approved pet does not turn its damage into wear and tear. Scratched doors, chewed trim and urine stains are still damage. Ordinary pet hair that comes up with a normal clean is not. If the lease has a separate pet fee, check your state rules on whether it can be used for repairs.
Smoke and odour
Where the lease bans smoking, heavy smoke residue on walls and a smell in the carpet are usually treated as damage. Charge for the extra work, such as sealing primer or odour treatment, and keep photos and the vendor's notes. A general repaint that was due anyway stays a turnover cost.
Problems the tenant never reported
A slow leak under the sink can rot a cabinet floor over a year. If the tenant saw it and said nothing, many leases treat the resulting damage as the tenant's. If the leak was hidden, it is a maintenance cost. The service request history is the evidence here, so check it before you charge.
A two bedroom move out in Austin
This example is fictional. The figures show how a supervisor turns a walk into a deposit statement.
A tenant rented a two bedroom unit in Austin, Texas from 1 October 2023 to 30 September 2026. Rent was $1,650 and the deposit was $1,650. The tenant had a dog, approved in the lease. The move in report from September 2023 has 64 photos, signed by the tenant.
The supervisor walks the unit on 1 October 2026 with the move in report open on a tablet. She sorts each finding as she goes.
| Finding | Call | Charge |
|---|---|---|
| Pet urine stains through the second bedroom carpet | Damage, prorated by age | $271.88 |
| Three large anchor holes from a TV mount, living room wall | Damage; patch and paint that wall | $185.00 |
| Two blinds with bent and missing slats | Damage | $64.00 |
| Heavy grease in the oven, clean at move in per photo 41 | Cleaning the lease allows | $95.00 |
| Faded paint in both bedrooms | Wear and tear | $0 |
| Worn carpet path in the hallway | Wear and tear | $0 |
| Loose kitchen cabinet hinge | Wear and tear | $0 |
| Total deductions | $615.88 |
The refund is $1,650 minus $615.88, which is $1,034.12. Texas Property Code 92.103 gives the landlord 30 days after the tenant surrenders the unit. Our Texas security deposit guide covers the full rules. The tenant handed in keys and a forwarding address on 30 September, so the statement and refund go out by 30 October. Each line on the statement carries a photo pair and an invoice or work order.
The tenant emails a week later. "Why am I paying for the hallway carpet?" The supervisor replies that she is not, and points to the $0 line. That is the last email in the thread.
Evidence that holds up
A deduction is only as strong as the record behind it. A judge or a tenant will look for the following.
The move in record
Photos of every room, close ups of anything already worn, and a report the tenant signs. Our move in checklist lists what to capture. Without it, a judge has only two memories to compare.
Matching move out photos
Shoot the same angles at move out, before any repair starts. California now writes this into law. Civil Code 1950.5 requires photos after the tenant returns the unit and before repairs or cleaning, since 1 April 2025. For tenancies starting on or after 1 July 2025, it also requires photos at the start. The same section bars claims for professional carpet cleaning unless needed to return the unit to its move in condition.
Invoices and time records
Keep the vendor invoice, or the staff time and hourly rate for in house work. California requires these with the statement in many cases. Texas does not use the same list, but a judge will ask the same questions. See security deposit laws by state for each state's deadline and itemising rules.
Short answers for the move out email
Can a landlord charge for repainting after I move out?
Not for normal fading after a long tenancy. A landlord can charge for repairing damage such as large holes or unapproved colours, usually for the affected walls only.
Are small nail holes wear and tear?
A few small nail holes from hanging pictures are generally treated as wear and tear. Many large holes, or holes from heavy mounts, are usually treated as damage.
How long does carpet last for deposit purposes?
There is no single legal number. Landlords set a useful life in their policy, often several years for mid grade carpet, and prorate any charge by age.
Is cleaning a deduction?
Cleaning to bring the unit back to its move in standard can be deducted in many states. Routine turnover cleaning of a unit left reasonably clean generally cannot.
What if there is no move in report?
Then the landlord has little to show that the damage was new. Many deductions fail for this reason alone.
How RIOO links the two inspections
RIOO runs property inspections on mobile, with photos and notes attached to each item on the unit and lease record in NetSuite. At move out, the inspector compares each item against the move in record. A finding can become a work order, a chargeback or a deposit deduction in the same platform, and the final statement draws on those lines. Your state rules and policies still decide what is chargeable.
A checklist for the walk
- Open the signed move in report and photos before you enter
- Photograph every room from the same angles, before any repair
- Mark each finding as wear, damage or cleaning, with one sentence of reason
- Look up the install date and policy life for anything you plan to charge
- Prorate replacement charges by remaining life
- Attach an invoice, quote or time record to each line
- Diary the state deadline from the day the tenant returns the keys
For the turn that follows, our apartment make ready checklist picks up where this walk ends.
