Help with the carpet charge (apartment, landlord, pay, bedrooms)

[thetangyan]

Hi, everyone,
I just moved out of my previous apartment in Gainesville, FL. And my landlord requires me to pay for the carpet change for 250 dollors because he said that we made oil stain on it and it cannot be cleaned. We dont have any burn holes or destory marks on the carpet. When we moved in, the carpet is not new and the quality is not that good. So I want to ask could I refuse to pay for the charge.

[macrodome2]

Did you take pictures to show there was no oil stain when you left? Do you have pictures of the stain being there where you arrived?

If there actually is a stain that won't come out and you don't have photos to prove he's lying, he will probably win. If you have to pay him, you could not pay and see if he takes you to small claims court. If he owes you security back and is withholding it because of this stain, you could take him to small claims court. If he can prove the stain (he has pictures) and you can't prove it was there when you arrived you're going to have to pay.

[thetangyan]

Thank you very much for your reply. I will go to take pics this afternoon. I admit that I caused the oil stain but should I pay for all the expense for replacing the carpet since it is not new carpet already when we moved in. Or I should ask the landlord how long has the carpet has been used and its lifetime so I only pay for the left over time of the carpet?

[Spring Hillian]

Originally Posted by thetangyan

Thank you very much for your reply. I will go to take pics this afternoon. I admit that I caused the oil stain but should I pay for all the expense for replacing the carpet since it is not new carpet already when we moved in. Or I should ask the landlord how long has the carpet has been used and its lifetime so I only pay for the left over time of the carpet?

If its an oil stain there is hope. Go to your local Home Depot and get a product called "Industrial Purple".
This stuff kills grease and oil like nothing I've seen before. I originally got came to know about it when my wife was working in the fast food industry. They use it to clean their fryers and other very greasy things. This stuff just breaks it down to a easy to clean up liquid. You have nothing to loose.

[Floorist]

How old was the carpet when you moved in? Carpet depreciates out at about 7 years.

[macrodome2]

You're right, you shouldn't be responsible for 100% of the cost of new. There should be some depreciation, but how big was the room? I just put down new carpet in 4 bedrooms and it cost much more than $250 per room, and I didn't pick very expensive carpet.