Who is responsible for painting costs in a rental unit after three years of renting?
Question by Peter H: Who is responsible for painting costs in a rental unit after three years of renting?
I’ve been in an aprtment for over three years. As this is my last month, I didn’t pay the rent because I am using the deposit for that, since I am leaving the place in paint ready mode. I paid to have the carpets cleaned, and am leaving the place, other than painting, in move in shape. The ladndord is balking at the cost to paint it. He wants the last months rent, and wants to keep my deposit to cover the painting costs. Who should pay for the painting?
Best answer:
Answer by lucy
The answer is in your rental agreement you signed 3 years ago period. Pull it out and read it. It may state that if apartment in same condition as you did 3 years ago, not required, but if needed, you are obligated to pay or deducted from your deposit.
If no contract signed, which unlikely, then the only other thing to do is to compromise and pay 50%.
good luck
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Quite possibly you should pay for the painting, if there was “unusual wear and tear” on the unit’s paint prior to you moving out. But the answer is in your rental agreement.
But flat out, the security deposit is NOT the last month’s rent. So expect to end up in court over that.
Yes, the last month’s rent is NOT paid by the security deposit. You will owe a late fee on top of that. And, if you don’t pay it, he can take you to court to get it. You’d have to define ‘paint-ready mode.’ You’re allowed to leave very small holes from hanging pictures as that is considered wear and tear, but anything larger than a nail head is considered damage. If you painted the place a particular color then YOU need to return it to its original state. If you went through the place and repaired the holes but didn’t paint then you’re going to need to pay for the painting as well. Nonetheless, communication with the landlord is key and if you leave something that was YOUR responsibility, he/she will be using your security deposit to fix it. You may want to just paint it and then bring the landlord in to see if the current state is acceptable. There’s no sense in waiting ’til it’s too late to find that out. Incidentally, the landlord has 45 days (in most states) to return your deposit. They can’t just withhold it for no reason, but if you you did damage then they can fix it. There is some grey area, but not being a jerk is the key.