What's normal wear and tear in my case?

[ladyt262001]

My friend's just moved out of there rental home in Florida. The landlord did a brief walk through of the property with her. He didn't have any issues with the property at that time. Several days later, he called her to inform her that he will be keeping $300 from her security deposit for base board paint, fingerprints on doors (paint)and dirty tile grout in kitchen. Is this legal to keep a portion of the security deposit for minor repairs or considered normal wear and tear of the property? He gave her no chance or option to fix any issues that he/landlord may have had. Is this right? Or, is he trying to get a few bucks out of her?

The LL does not have to afford you an opportunity to clean up. Once the move out inspection is done, your tenancy is over. Dirt is not normally wear & tear. Dirty grout is failure to clean and he can charge you for that. A few fingerprints would be wear & tear, but a lot would be failure to clean (again it is subjective depending on how many occupants lived there and for how long). What was wrong with the baseboards? How did the paint get messed up on those so close to the floor? More info please.

[ladyt262001]

Per my friend, the baseboards had no damage to them. Over time, it being an older home, they just look a little dingy. In regards to the kitchen tile grout, the kitchen was cleaned but the landlord had no grout sealer on the floors so the grout looked darker as would any floors with NO grout sealer. She said that she offered to paint the baseboards to freshen up the home but the landlord declined her offer in the walk through inspection. He didn't even mention the baseboards to her, she mentioned it to him. The doors had fingerprints on him from her two children, not alot but just around the knobs. My issue is that she would have easily fixed any issues he had during the walk through inspection and it would have been minimal money involved. He didn't have any problems with the house at that time and said that he get back with her in regards to mailing her security deposit to her new address. She was shocked when he had deducted money from her and his reasons for doing so didn't sit well with her. So she called me because I'm a landlord myself and Realtor but I'm stuck. I wouldn't have handled the situation quite like that. I do the checklist method w/pictures. What I need to know is it even worth pursuing her $300 lost portion of her deposit?

The LL had no obligation to allow her to paint the baseboards or do any work beyond the final inspection. (I don't let any tenant paint.) If the baseboards got dirty during her tenancy, she should have washed them. Beyond that, there should be no charge if it was normal wear & tear. Unsealed grout collects dirt and stains easily. They make bleach pens that clean this grout. Once cleaned, it should have been sealed again (sealant wears off over time.) If there was dirt or stains, she needed to clean it.

It will cost some money to pursue the $300 in small claims court. Check to see how much it costs to file the case there, then weigh the options. Is the time needed to take off from work for the hearing and the time needed to prepare the case worth what she could gain from the suit? The choice is hers.

[ladyt262001]

Thanks so much for your opinions. You've been very helpful. I think she should just take her losses and move on. I'll relay the info to her. Thanks again.