Wear and Tear Versus Property Damage in Maryland

Wear and Tear Versus Property Damage in Maryland

One of the questions we are often asked by landlords who invest in real estate, as well as tenants, is “what is the difference between wear and tear versus property damage in Maryland?” The tenant wants to know “what am I going to get back on my security deposit?” as the owner says “well, what am I going to be withholding from the tenant’s security deposit?” We are going to offer a few suggestions:

Check your local and state laws

Maryland does have a definition for wear and tear versus damage. “Generally speaking, “ordinary wear and tear” includes small scratches, marks, or scuffs on walls or floors from moving furniture or just living in the property normally. Tenants are not responsible for repairing, or paying for, ordinary wear and tear. This means that a landlord cannot keep a portion of a security deposit to paint over a small scratch that appeared over time on a wall.” 

“If the rented property has been damaged – meaning that it is not in the same condition as it was on the first day of the lease – then the landlord may be able to keep all, or a portion of, the security deposit in order to fix the damage. But there is an important exception: tenants are not responsible for damage caused by “ordinary wear and tear.””

Have internal standards

Another thing we highly recommend, whether you are managing a property yourself or if you have a property management company managing it for you, is to have internal standards. What you DON’T want to do is take things on a case by case basis. You want to have very clear standards. For example, we have a document that we use in our office that is simply called “Wear and Tear versus Damage”. We give it to all of our tenants as well as our landlords to make clear to all parties involved what we consider wear and tear and what we consider damage, as well as provide specific examples. For example, wear and tear that the tenant would not be charged for would be something like a small hole caused by a 6 penny nail or smaller. A 6 penny nail is a 2 inch long nail used for hanging picture frames and other items on a wall. However, a larger hole caused by hanging a TV on the wall would be considered damage.

Take Length of Tenancy Into Consideration

As the landlord, you must consider the length of tenancy as well as life expectancy of the thing that you are charging for. Say the tenant has been living on the property for 15 years and the carpet is ruined. Well, they have been there for 15 years and the life expectancy for carpet has long been exceeded. Therefore, it does not matter how bad the carpet looks at the end of that 15 year occupancy. You are not legally going to be able to charge them ANYTHING, whether they damaged the carpet or not. This is a fine line to walk and there are opinions on both sides, but as a property manager and as a real estate investor, you want to make sure that you have standards. 

Need Professional Property Management in Anne Arundel County?

Are you looking for professional property management services in Anne Arundel County? At Innovative Properties we specialize in turnkey property management solutions for residential homeowners and commercial property owners in the Annapolis Maryland area. Property owners can feel at peace knowing that Innovative Properties is managing their investment. We treat each property we manage as if it were our home and our core principles of honesty, integrity, and professionalism are at the core of each service we offer. Learn more about our services by contacting our team today.