I mentioned our worst move-out in years recently. It was tongue in cheek because I know most landlords would kill for the way my properties get returned. BUT as I've been totting up the SD accounting I was thinking about what's wear & tear vs. a chargeable repair, and I decided the key words are BROKEN or DIRTY vs worn-out or used-looking.

Broken shelf holder thing in freezer? Chargeable repair because it's BROKEN, not worn out - even though the fridge is from 2009 (!) there is a part number for it and the replacement was just ordered from Amazon. $20

Broken blind? Ditto. Probably $10-$20.

Dingy doorframe needs paint touch up: wear & tear.

Under-sink cabinet shelf stained and rubbed maybe from water or cleaners leaking or what have you: Wear & tear. We'll cover it with Allure which we should have done when it was new anyway.

Toilet seat screw thing BROKEN: chargeable.

Paint missing on wall, probably a Command strip issue: wear & tear, it's just touch-up not a drywall repair.

Kitchen drawers not vacuumed or wiped, with some junk left in one: chargeable for time & effort.

W,

Good list.

My lease is clear: describes a whole list of things that are NOT normal wear and will be charged - dirt, stains, rub marks, gouges, scratches, marker, crayon, wax, soot, trash, furniture left behind...

It also states the home must be in PERFECT HOTEL CLEAN (I think I got that from you!) ready for the next resident, with NOTHING for our crew to do.

So yes I would charge to wash down a grimy door. $75 per hour.

When I do a photo sheet for court I put at the top in bold letters RESIDENT COULD HAVE DONE THESE FOR FREE BUT CHOSE TO LEAVE FOR MANAGEMENT.

The ONE THING we will do is roll the trash toter to the street for pickup day. I don't want it sitting there all week.

BRAD

Yes great list WMH. We use your list with add ons. I send a reminder checklist copied from their lease with their signature on it about a month ahead of time. We also ask them let us know at least 2 weeks ahead of time what requires fixing. That allows us to get a jump on finding what we need to do the job. When they don't tell us and we find out on our own frustrates me. One guy had a broken door lock and a glass block window. Had a heck of a time getting the correct replacement.

Blinds get charged at $40 - $85.

Why?

First, they cost about $20. But... handyman has to make a trip to the rental (20-30 minutes), measure, drive to store (15 minutes), pick up blinds (10 minutes), drive back to rental (15 minutes), install blinds (minutes).

He bills me $65 labor and cost of the blinds.

The reason there's a range is that if there's more than one blind, I knock some off because we get it done in one trip instead of 2.... unless they happen to be out of stock of that particular size, because then my guy has to go back again.

As Brad said, "Resident could have fixed this for $20 themselves, but they chose to leave for management to fix."

Also, I charge a 10% of total turnover costs as a project management fee or $50, whichever is more. Because I had to take pictures of the broken blind, coordinate with handyman, then inspect the work after it was done. Again, because RESIDENT CHOSE TO LEAVE A MESS/DAMAGE.

Everyone else charges for their time and effort. Only (some) landlords seem content to let others eat their lunch.