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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2015
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    2

    Default Can a Landlord Charge for Bleach Spots on the Carpet

    My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: Georgia

    I am utilizing the early termination option of my lease, about 8 months in, because I'm having to move for school. The contract clearly states that upon terminating early, the security deposit ($200) won't be refunded, and that I will have to pay liquidated damages of 2 months' rent ($1100) and a $200 repainting fee. I don't dispute those. But, they're charging me $270 for supposed damage to the carpet, namely pet odor and bleach stains. The manager says that due to 8 small bleach stains in 1 room, the entire unit's carpet will have to be replaced, as that type of carpet is no longer manufactured and they cannot replace just parts of it. She says they're giving me a break by only charging $270 instead of the entire $800 to replace it. I would hardly consider a few small bleach stains to be more than normal wear and tear. Furthermore, the only reason I used bleach was to get rid of recurring mold that was occuring in the window sill. The manager herself had told me to do this to treat the mold in the window sill. Aside from that, though, I still think they should at least be taking this $270 out of my security deposit and/or the $200 pet fee (which was non-refundable from the start) I paid several months ago. I understand that both of these are non-refundable now, but isn't the very purpose of them to cover potential damage? I think the money they're charging me for carpet damage should still first come out of my deposit money. Any options for me to dispute this? or am i better off just sucking it up? It wouldn't be that big of a deal for me, but it's eating into my student loan money, and since I'm already paying $1100 in liquidated damages for early termination, this additional charge is adding insult to injury, it seems.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Behind a Desk
    Posts
    98,846

    Default Re: Is My Landlord Charging Me Excessively for Terminating My Lease Early

    Without being able to read your lease, I'm not going to speculate as to whether you should get credit for the $200 deposit toward alleged carpet damage, or if you forfeit the deposit and have to pay the full cost of repair without credit.

    If you caused eight bleach stains to the carpet, small or not, that's damage to the carpet for which you are liable. Normal wear and tear comes from activities of daily life, like walking across the floor, not from spilling something like bleach that is certain to visibly damage the carpet.

    You have told us nothing about the window or mold, or what you told the landlord about problems with the window, so I'm not in a position to comment on that issue -- but even if the landlord could or should have done something to prevent the mold, if you are using bleach for cleaning purposes you need to be careful not to get it onto the floor.

    If the landlord is paying $800 for the replacement carpet, and is charging you a depreciated amount of $270 based upon the age of the carpet, that may be a reasonable calculation -- we don't know the age of the carpet or its condition at the time you moved in.

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