What is Normal Wear and Tear

This question is bound to come up at the end of most rentals. How much should the tenant be held responsible for and how much should the owner accept as a cost of doing business?



Is it reasonable to expect a tenant to leave the property in rentable condition? The law says no. Florida law allows the tenant the leeway of "Normal Wear & Tear". Any damage which is considered Beyond normal wear and tear can be charged against the tenants security deposit (hopefully there is one) (and presuming you know the law well enough to follow it to the letter in claiming a deposit).



Sounds pretty cut and dried, huh? (Right). So this leaves us a lot of arguing room (the bane of a property managers existence). The owner wants tenants to take responsibility for something they caused and the tenant wants their deposit back. That is the reality so how can we address it?

Well, lets begin by trying to put a definition to Normal Wear & Tear. It has to be reasonable in case we get before a judge and it we define it at the beginning of a tenancy, then no one can claim surprise at the end. Here is a definition which comes not from statutes, but case law seems to support:

Definition of Normal Wear & Tear:

Anything that can be covered with one coat of paint is normal wear & tear

Any carpet stains that come out with a standard steam cleaning are normal wear & tear

Any dirt that can be removed with a standard maid service cleaning is normal wear & tear

So there we go. Pretty simple actually, but by applying this definition and laying out expectations at the beginning can go a long way towards eliminating aggravation at the end.