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So tenant moved out about two months ago. They only lived here a short time - yet damages exceeded their deposit and I closed everything out by the required number of days...
In the last couple months, we sold our primary home and are looking for a new one. Decided to stay in our rental until we can close on a new home. We move in the bare minimum amount of stuff and haven't been home much.
Carpet was barely over a year old when they moved in. Stupidly, I arranged with them to leave the carpet remnants along with extra tiles, touch-up paint, and a ladder on a out of the way ceiling mounted rack in the garage.
It was higher end carpet with upgraded padding but it really took a beating when they were here - the two sets of stairs really wore poorly and had a lot of stains/smell (which still lingers, I think). The bedrooms looked better than I would have thought based on the condition/cleanliness of the house.
Still - they did have a lot of small stains and the tenants had unauthorized pets so I decided to get the carpets steam cleaned. I don't go in that room much, my daughers bed is in there -but she doesn't paly up there, I vacuum every couple days.
So (sorry this is so log) - yesterday, I noticed that the floor felt weird in a few spots. Normally I'm wearing my house slippers so I hadn't noticed. and further examination - basically, I guess the tenant had stained the carpet there just as much - and randomly, cut the sections of stained carpet out and "patched" it with pieces on my remnants. And now, whatever he used to glue those pieces down is coming up.....
I think I have enough remnant to put a vertical line where the patches are and have a professional tack and stretch a piece the width of the room. I'll end up with a seem in the middle of the room .
So to the tenant - he moved out 2 1/2 months ago. Can I have the repair done and send him the bill, take him to small claims court? Should I call the carpet company and see what it is to redo the whole room (it's a smallish bedroom)
You can try but two months later its undocumented, and you can't prove it was him. The two month gap he can simply say when I left the place was it was perfect you did not charge. Sorry man chalk it up to experience.
I don't leave ANY materials on site. All my paint materials etc go in a storage unit. And I go over the whole unit. Carry a good flashlight and a notepad when you inspect.
Wow, sure you could 'try' getting the money out of him but I think it would be extremely doubtful whether you would ever have a case if it went to court. As Electrician4you stated, anything could have happened in 2.5 months since the tenant vacated plus you have been living there. I would say chalk it up as a hard lesson learned and make sure to inspect thoroughly next time and be careful what materials you leave around.
Most states impose a time limit on claiming damages when you are making a claim against the security deposit. But if you are not making a claim against the security deposit, standard statutes of limitations for property damages apply. There are a few states that have lowered any claim to a shorter period to avoid landlords making claims 5 years 11 months later after a person moved out.
So, your first task is to read your state's landlord tenant laws and see if they impose any restriction outside the security deposit time limits followed by your state's standard property damage civil claims.
Now, you have to be very careful in the claim as many courts are weary of delayed damage claims so having a professional inspect and inform you of the exact specific damages, estimates, opinion as to cause, and that it was an attempt to conceal (remember that phrase) the damages. the ultimate decision is if it is worth the expense and aggravation for the cost of repairs. However if they say it can't be properly repaired and has to be replaced, you have greater options on your side outside the landlord tenant laws.
I seriously doubt if you have any recourse. You were responsible for the inspection, and what ever you missed is on you, is what I figure the court would say.
You say they didn't live there long, how long were they in the apartment? The wearing of the stairs carpet would be a poor installation possibly. Just curious about that.
Now, all that said, in the future try to screen your tenants more thoroughly and conduct reasonable periodic inspections, say every 3 to 6 months, and when there is a move out, inspect very carefully. Photograph the apartment with the tenant present at the move in and make detailed notes. That will let them know you're going to pay close attention.
When you move out, replace all the carpet and pad. If there are pet stains, it's a lost cause trying to get all that out.
I think you missed it when you were inspecting and repairing and you've missed your chance to collect.
(Shrug), you could get it repaired and send them the bill and hope they pay it.
Some tenants will go to great lengths to hide damage and smells, so a landlord has to learn how to inspect with care. I almost always find some carefully hidden damage during the 30 days when I am doing repairs
I think you missed it when you were inspecting and repairing and you've missed your chance to collect.
(Shrug), you could get it repaired and send them the bill and hope they pay it.
Some tenants will go to great lengths to hide damage and smells, so a landlord has to learn how to inspect with care. I almost always find some carefully hidden damage during the 30 days when I am doing repairs
I once had tenants remove custom window trim at the top, can't think of the word for the life of me, but they said "oh we think it looks better without, and figured the owner would like it this way." I heard that from them regarding various things about 5 or 6 times during the move out inspection! AACK!
I once had tenants remove custom window trim at the top, can't think of the word for the life of me, but they said "oh we think it looks better without, and figured the owner would like it this way." I heard that from them regarding various things about 5 or 6 times during the move out inspection! AACK!
I think you missed it when you were inspecting and repairing and you've missed your chance to collect.
(Shrug), you could get it repaired and send them the bill and hope they pay it.
Some tenants will go to great lengths to hide damage and smells, so a landlord has to learn how to inspect with care. I almost always find some carefully hidden damage during the 30 days when I am doing repairs
Yeah, the can be really sneaky - these tenants were and I found a lot of little stuff they tried to hide. When I went to meet the husband to get the keys , he was a little jumpy and wanted me to sign off on the damages then and there. I've learned to never to that - I just told him that I didn't bring the paperwork with me and I'd mail it to him. The damages I saw over the first couple of days ate thru his whole deposit - and I gave him several chances to come and view/talk about the damages before I repaired them....
The carpet - just didn't see that one coming. My own fault for leaving him the materials to do it though.
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