Normal Wear and Tear vs. Damage: What Landlords Can Actually Deduct

Normal wear and tear refers to the deterioration that happens to a rental unit from ordinary, everyday use. It's the cost of being in the landlord business — you cannot deduct for it from a tenant's security deposit. Every US state recognizes this exclusion.

The legal question is never 'is there damage?' but 'does this damage exceed what a reasonable person would expect from ordinary use of the unit over this tenancy?'

The following are almost always considered normal wear and tear:

• •Faded paint from sunlight
• •Small nail holes from hanging pictures (a handful, not dozens)
• •Light scuffs on walls and baseboards from furniture
• •Worn carpet in high-traffic paths
• •Faded or slightly worn window blinds
• •Loose door hinges or handles from normal use
• •Minor dirt or dust that normal cleaning would remove

These go beyond ordinary use and are usually deductible:

• •Large holes, gouges, or broken drywall
• •Burn marks on carpet or countertops
• •Stains that won't come out with reasonable cleaning
• •Broken or missing blinds and fixtures
• •Holes larger than a standard picture nail (e.g., shelf-anchor holes in clusters)
• •Pet urine damage to subflooring
• •Cracked or broken windows from impact
• •Excessive filth (e.g., the unit was left filthy, not just uncleaned)

Wear-and-tear disputes are won and lost on documentation. A tenant can credibly argue 'that stain was there when I moved in' — and without a move-in photo, you have no rebuttal.

Take dated photos of every room at move-in AND at move-out, from the same angles. The before/after comparison is what a small claims judge will look at first. If you don't have it, you'll usually lose the dispute even when you're right.

Even legitimate damage isn't always a full deduction. If you're replacing an older item — carpet, paint, an appliance — many states require you to prorate the cost by remaining useful life. A 7-year-old carpet that should last 10 years has ~30% of its useful life remaining, so you'd typically deduct 30% of the replacement cost, not 100%.

Useful-life tables vary by state and item, but common benchmarks: interior paint 2-3 years, carpet 5-10 years, blinds 3-7 years. Charging full replacement for an item near end-of-life is a common way landlords lose in small claims.

MoveOutGuard's review workflow is built around this distinction. When the AI proposes a deduction, it flags whether the item might cross the wear-and-tear line and what the landlord should verify before approving. The deduction letter it drafts cites the move-in evidence — so if a dispute goes to court, your documentation is consistent.