So right off the bat, I left the apartment in perfect conditions and cleaned everything out. During the move out this small portion of the carpet got caught and tore up this 4”x4” patch. I expected there to be a charge but it turns out to be $675?! This is almost the amount I paid monthly when I lived there. I was paying half of the $1500 between a roommate.
Can I bring this to collections or report this? I feel like I’m being taken advantage of:(
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As an anecdote, I have only received a security deposit back one time. Every other landlord I had nickled and dimed me over stupid little things.
This may be helpful concerning carpet in particular.
https://www.azibo.com/blog/apartment-charge-for-carpet-replacement
Reread your lease. If you lived there longer than a year or two, it has to be replaced anyway. Idk if it varies by state or management company, but there’s a clause for “normal wear and tear”.
They are probably just trying to get you to pay for the new carpeting they put down anyway.
You can also check your state attorney generals website under renters rights or tenants rights.
Send them an email with the statues that apply and let them know it’s against the law. A lot of times, they are counting on you not knowing what the law is.
A 4’x4’ patch isn’t really small… did you perhaps mean 4”x4”?
[https://learn.roofstock.com/blog/average-life-of-carpet-in-rental-property%5D(http://Average Life Expectancy of Carpet
Carpet in a rental property has an average life expectancy of five years, according to HUD (page 57). A carpet manufacturer will also assign a life expectancy rating to the different styles and types of carpet made.)
Most carpets used in rental homes have a useful life of about five years. If your resident manages to damage the carpet within the first five years after the date of installation, they may be responsible for the pro-rated share of the cost of replacement, or for cleaning costs if the carpet is simply very dirty.
https://www.apartments.com/rental-manager/resources/maintenance/landlords-guide-normal-wear-and-tear-rentals
A lot of this depends on how long you were in the apartment and whether or not the carpets were new when you moved in. Carpets have an expected functional lifespan of 5 years in a rental. After 5 years, the landlord can’t deduct damages from your security deposit because the law presumes normal wear and tear will have already damaged the carpets to the point where they would need to be replaced. HUD has a list of life expectancies for fixtures in a rental that is a general guideline that you can use to determine whether or not your landlord can deduct damages from your security deposit. Your landlord also needs to prorate the damages based on how long the carpet was expected to last after you moved out and by how much physical area was damaged.
They have an obligation to mitigate the costs of the repairs, so they can’t just hire the most expensive person to do the work and charge you. You have the right to an itemized bill with proof that they paid somebody that amount to do the work. You can demand receipts and invoices. I strongly recommend you do. It sounds to me like you were overcharged on your security deposit even if you were only there for a year.
You could file in small claims court right now to dispute these charges, but I would recommend reaching out to your landlord first. You may luck out and they may acknowledge that they overcharged you and give you back the rest of the security deposit and not have to spend time in small claims. You should email them and send them a letter in the mail requesting an itemized statement of the charges to your security deposit and the receipts and invoices documenting their direct costs. Say that you were surprised by the cost and would like to have the required documents so you can be sure it was correct. If they refuse, immediately file in small claims court. If they send the documents over, make sure that they actually paid out the full amount for the repairs. If they didn’t, if they charged you more than they paid for the repairs, I’d suggest emailing and writing a letter to the landlord again requesting they send you the difference or you will be forced to file a small claims. This hopefully saves you time in court, but if it doesn’t, you are documenting their failure to follow the law for when you get to court. If you don’t have a check in your mailbox within a week of communicating this to them, file in small claims court.
I don’t know what state you were in, but there are many states in which you will be awarded triple damages for the landlord not returning your security deposit. It’s definitely worth your time.
Hope this helps!