Is this "normal wear and tear" on a rental property

[Dundundun]

I hand my keys back to my rental property tomorrow and just wondered what counted as "normal wear tear" as i really need my full deposit back.

So I have cleaned every visible surface including paintwork and windows, cleaned inside all kitchen cupboards and drawers, cleaned the oven and extractor etc. Basically if you can see it I've cleaned it.

I've filled in all holes from where I had my TV on the wall and painted over the marks with the paint the landlord said the last tenants had used and left except it's a lot lighter shade of magnolia now it's on the wall so it's obvious where I've painted, will be charged for this?

I've tidied the garden but can't mow the grass as A) we've had really bad snow and rain for 2 weeks and B) I sold my mower already without thinking. Will this matter?

There is also about half a bin of garden waste as my council don't collect the green bin between November and March. Will this matter?

And finally one wall of my bedroom was a purple colour and I didn't have any paint of the right colour paint and my bed has left a black Mark on the wall, I have scrubbed it best I can but it's still slightly noticeable (but not a big black line any more) will this matter?

Thanks in advance 🙂

Take photos. None of that sounds unreasonable but many landlords can be arseholes and claim issues exist that definitely don’t so they can keep the deposit.

I wouldn’t have got my deposit back from a house a few years ago had I not contested the fact the landlord didn’t have my deposit in a tenancy deposit scheme. He tried to claim we had ruined a carpet that was already ruined when we moved in, our young DC had drawn on the walls when they had never had access to any crayons/pens in that particular room and definitely had not ever drawn on a wall, that the kitchen blind wasn’t the original (we had replaced it and left the one we bought there because the one that was there when we moved in was ancient and half broken ). It was ridiculous but we thankfully had photos of each room and also photos of when we first moved in to show the damage was non existent. Because he hasn’t put the deposit in a TDS, we got it all back but only after our solicitor wrote to him.

outpinked If your LL doesn't put your deposit into a deposit protection scheme you can often be entitled to a great deal more than just your deposit back.

Also, he is breaking the law and should have face quite a considerable fine.

@ToEarlyForDecorations - I genuinely don't think some LL care - I wouldn't leave a property like that for someone new coming in. I on the other hand was so upset with the state of my property as I wouldn't dream of re-letting it in any other condition than I would live in.

@outpinked if a landlord hasn't protected your deposit in a scheme (TDS, DPS, etc) you are then able to claim up to 3x your original deposit amount back as it is illegal not to protect a deposit

www.gov.uk/deposit-protection-schemes-and-landlords/if-you-dont-protect-your-tenants-deposit

If what you say is accurate and you have cleaned very thoroughly then l would give you your full deposit back after a years tenancy.

@bigandbumpy

The Landlord was vacating the property and couldn't care less about the things that weren't working. There's more than I've mentioned. Things you wouldn't notice until you are living there. The Letting Agent wasn't going to be living there so guess what, he couldn't care less either.

We, as tenants, are really cross about the shoddy state of the house and the high handed, explain it away, attitude of the letting agent. Again I could go on and on about it. We've been back and forth with e-mails, texts and phone calls. Some things have been rectified but lots haven't and are still outstanding.

Suffice to say we are pursuing things through the proper channels.

Our sole function, it would seem, is to keep paying the rent in full and on time. Which we do.

Currently in dispute with our landlord who is trying to claim £600 for full redecoration of whole house!

My first though was also ‚‘do you have their number!?‘

I doubt you will get the full deposit back! We paid to have ours professionally cleaned and they still tried to say it wasn't clean so we had to dispute it and then they tried to charge us for bushes being overgrown that was nothing to do with us

Actually I think may be we have been 'charged' £600 for 'our half' of redecorating costs ie our landlord imagines he's being reasonable by only charging us half the costs he has incurred by redecorating the whole house.
I'm just so thankful we took lots and lots of photos when we moved out so we can prove the house was in a state the same as the inventory showed it was when we moved in.
I just hope the adjudicator is fair when assessing our case.

I would just like to clarify that I havent left any rubbish except what's in he garden bin and I have painted a cream wall purple, I painted it a very slightly different shade of cream because that was the paint the landlord left me. I have also now fixed the paint.

Thankyou for all your helpful responses though, the keys are handed back now so will just have to wait and see

Please don't accept any deductions OP, if the landlord tries it on dispute it with the deposit scheme people. Good luck!

agencies are buggers, but you never know.

I have a friend who has vowed one day to steal a car and drive it through the rental agencies window one night. He made no end of improvements to the house he rented, but was charged for them all - for example, he replaced the knackered old collapsed fence himself, would normally have cost nearly £600, and they charged him nearly £600 for doing it

I imagine the whole wall will need re-painting, if you have left lighter patches. That garden rubbish will have to be moved by someone and they won't do it for free

Aha, I've just caught up with your last 2 posts! :)

As a landlord, I’ve never withheld any deposit. Primarily because it’s quite a lot of hassle to do so. Do take pictures of everything and definitely raise a disputed if you feel that part of the deposit has been withheld unfairly.
I wouldn’t worry too much, OP, the law is firmly on your side.

Next time, make sure you document everything with pictures and in writing, all marks/carpet stains etc. Ideally insist on an inventory, the landlord should pay for the check in and tenant should finance the checkout or vice versa.

Dispute it, we have had this issue at every rental and it’s always been found in our favour. Insistence on professional cleaning is an unfair contract term too.

www.tenancydepositscheme.com/resources/files/Our%20approach%20to%20unfair%20contract%20terms.pdf

As a landlord, if the walls were a new colour, but not offensive - no issue.
Wear and tear is normal.
We withheld some deposit because a new stair carpet had been chewed to holes by their dog. We had been in and replaced the new decking already. How they'd managed to go through it is confusing, but we fixed it.
Strangest thing was that the tenant was an electrician. He asked for new light fittings. We bought and delivered them.
They were still left in the boxes when they moved out!??

Sounds reasonable wear and tear, Your deposit should be protected and most claims of unreasonable deductions are upheld in the tenants favour - mine was. Landlord claimed all sorts of things weren't cleaned or even vacuumed. Funny because I insisted he came and inpected it with me on leaving where he said it all looked fine!